Americans and Germans?

[Mookie]

Ed: ? Doesn't insurance and safety preclude other than workers from being on the property and engines? Or is this sshhh?

Jen

[edblysard]

SShhhh.....

[Anonymous]

Its just an electronic stylization.

RmC

[foamer4000]

Ed,
If I ever make it to Texas I will look you up.If all Texans and Americans were like you what a country it would be!
David

[edblysard]

But boreing as all get out, its the diversity that makes this country really great, and why my grandfather, and most likely yours too, came here in the first place.
Stay Frosty,
Ed

[Anonymous]

I'm gonna stay off the politics except to say that I agree with you about the war, but want to say this:

I was in Germany in the late 1980s and the Bundesbahn is the greatest thing going. I wish we could have passenger rail service like that in the U.S. Amtrak just doesn't cut it, it doesn't even serve a lot of major cities (like Las Vegas) and except on the east coast isn't practical for commuting if you need to be there on time. In Germany in just about every town you are within walking distance of a Bahnhof and can take the train anywhere in the country you want to go. I envy you living there for that reason.:)

We in the U.S. need to get serious about passenger rail service, and the German Bundesbahn would be a good model to follow.

[foamer4000]

Hi Ed,
Both of my grandparents grew up on farms in Michigan. They were both at least the third generation in the states. Diversity is good, except for the people who do not appreciate what america stands for. Some people have no appreciation for the soverenty of America. These are the people who I do not consider diverse, but a threat. What amases me Is that first generation Americans often hold this country higher than the decendants of the pilgrams. That is truly sad.
David

[Anonymous]

No specific harm intended to you Ed, I always enjoy your posts.

There just is this thick sentiment of American self righteousness floating around, and it burns me a tad.

I for one would had no ethical dilemma in going in and rolling that country (or any other) flat as a pancake. AFTER significant provocation. And it simply is not there in the current situation.

Look at the attempts by "Rummy" and "Dummy" to build a case to justify what they've wanted to do all along, and in each instance, the premise has crumbled before them (weapons of mass destruction pointed at our kids in their schools, etc) Then it became "the war to save the Iraqi people" (don't know if you've seen the papers lately, but the pictures I see are of banners reading "invaders go home") it's hard to say we are really wanted there.

It stems mostly from our current infatuation with "political correctness" But when that political correctness is constituted of hyperbole and half truths (as it is now) what good is it?

I'm sure that the Nazi's were full of reasons why the halocaust should be a patriotic rallyinng point, do you doubt it?

[Anonymous]

Your assessment of me is so far off base, let me just say you have a lot of nerve calling someone else a "namecaller".

Try reading the bill of rights someday

[edblysard]

Hi Rick,
Maybe I didnt type it in big enough letters. I dont think we should have attacked them, or invaded their country. I too, dont see the provocation needed to invade another country. Before every one starts asking if I missed 9/11, no, I was horrified in front of my TV all day long. But the time to act against them was then, in a quick, decisive manner.
And no, I dont doubt the Nazi's felt fully justified in what they were doing, and had what they belived were reasonable and just reasons for doing so. I also feel that quite a large part of the German populace agreed with them, after all, their econonomy was shot to pieces, their money worthless, and along comes a leader who promises he can fix it all. Of course they followed him, its human nature to want to belive someone has all the answers. Thats why religions have lasted, and will continue to last. Which, in the end, was exactly what fascists sold them, in the form of national socicalism, or the Nazi's.
And I still think if the Iraqis wanted Saddam out, they should have revolted. Yes, I know he had all the guns, but so did the white south africans.
Personaly, I think Rumsfeld would look just about "right" in a black uniform, with silver lightening bolts on the lapels. He kinda has that permanently pissed off, pinched look to him.
Stay Frosty,
Ed

[edblysard]

Hi David,
I think that was part of the "plan", for the newcomers to embrace the idea of America with hope for themselves and their children. I also think that some of us have grown so use to the freedoms and "rights" we have, that we lose sight of the fact that this is a unique way of life, in one of the only functioning democratic republics that has survived.
My across the street neighbor, who is muslim, saw some show on A&E, or discovery channel, about the Alamo, then watched John Waynes movie. He had a lot of questions. Foremost was, do Americans always distort the truth in their movies. I had a hard time explaining that the movie combined myth and fact, and yes, JW took a little license with the facts, but only to make the movie more entertaining, not to distort the truth. He wanted to know why, wasnt the truth good enough? I tried to explain that no one really knows all the truth about what happened there, and he was amazed. He assumed all americans would consider it a holy place, and every thing that could be know about it would have been discovered. He's right, we Texans do consider it a holy place, after all, it was a church. He then wanted to know if it was true, that the defenders intentionaly sacrificed themselves so Sam Houston would have time to raise a army. I told him yes, that was the whole point of taunting Santa Anna into a fight there, instead of at San Jancinto. He pointed out that," thats what makes Americans a great "people", that we are willing to die in order to preserve the idea of freedom". I didnt have the heart to tell him that at that time, Texas wasnt part of America, but was a nation itself. But he got the point about America, that we are willing to sacrifice everything for a concept, or idea, of freedom.
Whats sad is that, in our society's ru***o make our country more like the "modern" world,(read Euro-trash) we seem to have forgotten what places like the Alamo, Shilo, and Valley Forge stand for, and what the people there really did.
As silly as it may sound, they died so you and I could sit around and watch trains when and where we liked, without having to ask our goverment "if we can".
In fact, out goverment, by design, has to ask us, the citizens, "if it can".
Without you, me, and my new American Muslim neighbor, all with a somewhat different idea of what America is and stands for, this country would have never come into exsistance, nor survived this long.
Stay Frosty,
Ed

[Anonymous]

If Someone were to refer to someone as "herr" anybody and then make reference to the fascism of the individual - that sounds like name calling to me!

Read the whole Bill of Rights - it applies to all - not just those who agree with you. The name caller, the callee, and anyone else who objects to name calling, are all equal under the Constitution.

As to whether anyone is a name calling liberal or a name calling whatever - WHO CARES. IT IS ALL VERY TIRESOME.

Enough said! I hope!

Oh, and It sure didn't take any nerve at all to say that!

[Anonymous]

Now that the war is almost over, I think George Walker Bush was correct. While we have yet to find the weapons of mass destruction, we have found plenty of evidence Iraq had them, if not have them.

And we have found evidence of terrorists in Iraq. While they may or may not be related to Al Queda, there is no doubt that their best fighters were not Iraqis.

As for the threat to America one only needs to remember the Twin Towers. WE ARE AT WAR WITH TERRORISTS, and they declared the war. The United States is only responding.

Any state that harbors terrorists that threaten the United States should take notice.....


Peace is an interesting word. In my Websters it is defined as this: 1. freedom from war or civil strife. 2. an agreement to end war. 3. freedom from public disturbance; law and order. 4. harmony; concord. 5. an undisturbed state of mind; serenity. 6. calm; quiet.

Therefore peace is more than not being at war. Peace is more than that. When terrorists disturb the public harmony, peace is lost.....