Something I don't like about Germans

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Originally Posted by Barbara

I don't know any German who thinks of himself as part of a master race. I am sure there are some- but I don't know them.

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Oh, I do, unfortunately! :( Not all, of course, but there are some. Grew up in an environment like that - and I sure hope it did not rub off on me. ;)

BTW, I did not mean that in a racist (nazi) way, it's more this attitude that Germans tend to have re. perfection, organization etc. Or these complaints that we are not ackknoledged in the way we should be in some people's opinion. I cannot count anymore how often I heard people saying "They (other countries) love to take our money, but they don't like us...). I think it's just so stupid! LOL

kokopup, that sounds like your wife was having a really rough time in the Netherlands. I'd never thought there's such a mentality over there. When I was there for a holiday, the Dutch seemed to be very open-minded, tolerant people. But maybe it's a difference when you're living there.

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Also, at the last comment in that quote, we call people that act like that "Grammar Nazis".

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LOL, sounds good! :D

Kirsten

Kirsten,
My wife loved our time in the Netherlands, and she would go back in a heartbeat. The main thing is the culture shock of moving from the "South" in the USA to Europe. In the South if you seeing someone doing something wrong you notice it but unless it was something extreme you would never say anything about it. The Dutch people although very warm people individually, are very ruthless in their day to day dealings with each other. The person that just knocked you down charging through a door would be very nice and cordial if you stopped them and ask a question. The Dutch did not believe in LINES (queues) and would push to get to the front rather than wait their turn. I guess this comes from having so many people on such little land. These were cultural adjustments that may not have been as evident if we were moving from New York or maybe the "Northern part" of USA. We tend to be a little more laid back in the South, even in the cities.

My son was stationed in Germany while I lived in the Netherland so we spent a lot of time in Germany. During Christmas time We would go to Austria for Holiday. Where he was stationed was right on the Mosel so we spent a lot of time touring that area. We even went to Octoberfest in Munich.

Along this line (as far as Americans go, anyway), a video from the Onion News Network: "Mexico Builds Border Wall to Keep Out US As*h*les" ... reported in Spanish with English subtitles!
http://www.theonion.com/content/vide...r_wall_to_keep

I think the German attitude is contagious. My boyfriend has an aunt and cousin living in Germany. They are American civilians working for the US military in either Bitburg or Heidelburg (can't remember). Anyway, any time they come to the US to visit the rest of the family they are always going on and on how wonderful Germany is and how it's soooooo much nicer than America. After about a week of this we are usually more than ready for them to go back, LOL

I don't belong to French forums. They are very impolite, always make bad jokes, answer completely out of topic and tell you that you are stupid posting such questions, that you should better not spend your time there, etc.

Off the subject for a minute..I have to ask...

Kirsten, and Barbara and other Europeans, I have to say..your
English is wonderful! Did you learn it in school? I mean, you use our idioms and everything. I'm dreadfully ashamed to say, that my 4 years of high school Spanish is a disaster. I know a bit (like baby talk), but now that our Hispanic community is growing, I'm thinking of heading to night school for a refresher.

I really admire multi-lingual people!!!

I can honestly say that this is the only forum that I haven't gotten into a major flame war on (I say major because I did step on a few toes when I was new lol). Usually I get into some sort of arguement within days of joining a forum. The anonimity (sp?) of the internet makes people a lot more bold with words than they would be speaking to your face...:rolleyes:

I think its a phenomenon that crosses all countries and cultures with access to the internet lol.

On some forums grammer and spelling nazis are part of the fun of the forums, but that is the lighter side of those forums as it gets much worse from there.

Of course every forum will have members who enjoy talking down to others, thankfully on PT its just a few.

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Originally Posted by K9karen

Kirsten, and Barbara and other Europeans, I have to say..your
English is wonderful! Did you learn it in school?

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Thank you very much Karen :) I only learnt English in school for 3 years- and that was in the 60s. But I had (and have) to use it quite a bit at work and that improved it very much. The last finish however, especially in idioms, came with Pet Talk :cool: But I'm still afraid I mix British and American as it comes.

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Originally Posted by K9karen

Kirsten, and Barbara and other Europeans, I have to say..your
English is wonderful! Did you learn it in school? I mean, you use our idioms and everything.

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Thank you, Karen! :) Yes, I learnt it at school, I think it must have been 8 years in total, but like Barbara has said, I too didn't start using idioms before I got some practice on the internet. We learnt the British English at school, so it's been somewhat different.

But even before there was the internet, I tried not to get completely out of touch with the English language, 'cause I didn't want to forget what I have learnt in all those years. Couldn't tell you much these days about any grammar rules and the correct use of tenses though... LOL

Kirsten

Kirsten , Barbara

Your English skill background is given away by your use of one word.
Learnt is the English version for the American word Learned.

All of our European PT friends do amazingly well with their post. If i had to post in German, French, Flemish, Spanish or Swedish I would be lost. I refer to various language dictionaries from time to time and am able to construct maybe a simple phrase if it doesn't contain more than 2 or 3 words. :D:D

I envy people that are Multlingual. When I lived in the Netherlands about 70% of the population spoke English. I went to Dutch lessons for a while but every time I spoke to someone in Dutch, when they heard my accent, they switched to listening in English. If I told them I am going to try to speak Dutch they would undestand me then. The only time I found an audience was when i spoke Dutch to someone that didn't speak English. I finally gave up because everyone I had dealings with spoke excellent English. Most of them thought they spoke Queens English but because they watched so many American movies it had taken on more of an American flavor.

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Learnt is the English version for the American word Learned.

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See, this must be one of the remnants of what we have learned in school. :D I will try to keep that in mind! LOL

The Dutch, as far as I know, speak an excellent English, like the Danes, or people from the other Scandinavian countries. Much better than the Germans do, btw. I guess it's because they - unlike the Germans - see American or English movies or tv shows in undubbed versions.

Kirsten

You have that same sort of problems in every race. I myself just walk away from people like that because I consider myself a better person. Just remember one thing, we all have to answer to the same God one day.

It's annoying that on some boards people are very arrogant, but then, if you want help with something, you have to put up with it. Luckily, I'm not particularly interested in posting anywhere, but PT. :)

Speaking of learning other languages, I had English in school from I was 11 years old, and when I left, I took an evening class during two winters. I really wanted to learn English so I could read the pop magazines I bought (Fabulous and Rave I think they were called). I also wanted to understand the text in the songs I liked - so that was an incentive too. ;)

I met John in 79, but he already spoke Danish fluently, so we kept speaking Danish. He told me he started to go a Bar where lots of foreigners came (Pilegården), just to keep his English fluent - of course, there were other reasons for going there too. LOL! It was a fun place, run by a Canadian ice hockey player, a Japanese guy and a crazy Czecholovakian (yes, I had to look that up!) Even some funny Americans were part of the crowd! :D

Quote by Carol Bulger

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You have that same sort of problems in every race. I myself just walk away from people like that because I consider myself a better person. Just remember one thing, we all have to answer to the same God one day.

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:confused::confused: Did I miss something here.