Americans Have No Culture

^ Philip pines to be enveloped by Manila?

We may not have culture, but we do have more than two ice cubes in our restaurant and bar drinks.

King of Loss wrote: The T wrote: It would have been an interesting read.  I was having a discussion with my friend, whose family came over here on the Mayflower, about this particular curious topic a day before. He didn't think I was being anti-American. He considers America to have limited intellectual culture, but rich culture elsewhere in creating popular and commercial culture (which I tend to agree with).  On a side note, I laughed when he said that we should nominate Jean-Jacques Rosseau as the next nominee for the Democratic

Where are you from, exactly? I need a point of reference. You keep minimizing the intellectual culture specific to the U.S., yet I cannot measure my responses in return.

I also find it amusing you found an inbred off the Mayflower to agree with you. As if that somehow bolsters your point -- which I suggest it definitely does not.

The Dark Elf wrote: King of Loss wrote: The T wrote: It would have been an interesting read.  I was having a discussion with my friend, whose family came over here on the Mayflower, about this particular curious topic a day before. He didn't think I was being anti-American. He considers America to have limited intellectual culture, but rich culture elsewhere in creating popular and commercial culture (which I tend to agree with).  On a side note, I laughed when he said that we should nominate Jean-Jacques Rosseau as the next nominee for the Democratic Where are you from, exactly? I need a point of reference. You keep minimizing the intellectual culture specific to the U.S., yet I cannot measure my responses in return. I also find it amusing you found an inbred off the Mayflower to agree with you. As if that somehow bolsters your point -- which I suggest it definitely does not.

The assumption of inbreeding is your own. not that of King of Loss. The only reason you need an ethnic point of reference is to assist in your transparent attempt to illustrate his comments as being somehow indicative of the inevitable errors of reasoning bequeathed from his cultural rearing and forbears. If you cannot measure your responses by dint of being unaware of the ethnic origin of the poster, then does something like anti-semitism becomes justifiable if you knew beforehand you weren't speaking to a Jew?

ExittheLemming wrote: The Dark Elf wrote: King of Loss wrote: The T wrote: It would have been an interesting read.  I was having a discussion with my friend, whose family came over here on the Mayflower, about this particular curious topic a day before. He didn't think I was being anti-American. He considers America to have limited intellectual culture, but rich culture elsewhere in creating popular and commercial culture (which I tend to agree with).  On a side note, I laughed when he said that we should nominate Jean-Jacques Rosseau as the next nominee for the Democratic Where are you from, exactly? I need a point of reference. You keep minimizing the intellectual culture specific to the U.S., yet I cannot measure my responses in return. I also find it amusing you found an inbred off the Mayflower to agree with you. As if that somehow bolsters your point -- which I suggest it definitely does not. The assumption of inbreeding is your own. not that of King of Loss. The only reason you need an ethnic point of reference is to assist in your transparent attempt to illustrate his comments as being somehow indicative of the inevitable errors of reasoning bequeathed from his cultural rearing and forbears. If you cannot measure your responses by dint of being unaware of the ethnic origin of the poster, then does something like anti-semitism becomes justifiable if you knew beforehand you weren't speaking to a Jew?

Know your foe. I'm not quite sure why you would refer to anti-semitism where there is none, and not applicable in this case whatsoever. I was referring to country of origin and not race or religion.

In any case, my request is valid, and intended to be transparent. Quid pro quo.

Edited by The Dark Elf - June 03 2014 at 08:24

ExittheLemming wrote: So race or religion would have no bearing on either the poster's comments or your response to same, yet what is printed on his passport re 'country of origin' would cause you to measure your response to his opinions? Would my tax file number elicit the same trepidation? What exactly do you think contributes to an individual's cultural orientation that would temper your responses to that individual? The reason I mention anti-semitism is purely as an example of the type of prejudice that most cultured people would consider offensive and just might rub shoulders with a friend being described as in-bred by dint of having a contrary opinion to your own. Neither of us agree with King Of Loss' views but I certainly don't pretend that his opinions are the result of some historic miscegnation as you so crassly illustrate.

There has to be some point of reference to his elitist attitude, and perhaps his country of origin is the place to start. Considering his implication that we Americans have a frontier mentality bereft of an independent intellectual culture, I would consider their is certainly some bias, if not animosity towards the U.S. What is the basis for this? Perhaps it is indeed based on geographical or societal miscegenation.

Your insertion of anti-semitism is asinine, particularly considering the wealth of Jewish immigrants who fled to America specifically for the intellectual culture, resources and freedom this country provided that was denied them in Europe.

As far as the Mayflower comment, I was rankled by the poster's use of the term as if it somehow gave weight to his flimsy argument. Shall I quote a friend who was descended 40 times removed from Edward the Confessor when making a point regarding the lack of English courtesy?

I fully understand the reactions here, but I think the reactions here are much warranted....I deeply regret posting a very controversial point of view here -> but as Englishmen and Americans, you have to look at yourselves and question everything. Yes, maybe I didn't back up my argument in this thread, but I didn't even mention America's rich tradition of commerce, of in creating pop culture, of a very great place of a new civilization based on the opposite of what has been in place before..... 

Yogurt does, too. 

You and I and we all are more ordinary and common than we might think.... 

The Dark Elf wrote: The T wrote: You and I and we all are more ordinary and common than we might think....  Perhaps. But it is comforting to know that we won't be the ones hanging from lampposts when the inevitable revolution comes.

I like that idea. 

Edited by The T - June 03 2014 at 12:38