No idea who you're talking to (Hanzi something?) but I enjoyed your responses! Especially: "Still, don’t flatter yourself. We haven’t had a sane and responsible government in a long time. And neither have you."
The most astonishing thing to me about everything going on right now is that the citizens of Europe and European-adjacent nations like the UK are staggeringly clueless about everything that's going on in their own backyard (which would be a bad enough indictment in itself) yet are utterly convinced they are well-informed and sagely competent to comment on US politics from a preposterous assumption of moral high ground. Get Germany in order - then we'll talk!
Max, I can't believe you wasted so much time on this mewling worm, Hanzi Freinacht.
However, it did allow you to forge this gem: “Our two-party system is a swinging pendulum, but historically, one hypnotizing our people to distract them from the antics of an intractable administrative state.”
FYI, no biggie, but “nom de plum” should be “nom de plume”.
Excellent points. You should re-post this as an “Open Letter to My European Friends.” But it’s not likely they will understand as they are still in the first two stages of grief – anger and denial – and are not open to objective analysis. As the song goes, they have a long way to go through bargaining, depression and finally acceptance before they might understand the reasons and the true scope of what’s happening.
Ah, Europe … the continent that in the last century gave us fascism, communism, two horrible wars, Holocaust … the continent that was liberated by America and lived under US protection (under a great cost to American taxpayers) for 80 years … the continent that is now throwing a tantrum because America told them to stand on their own feet.
But it’s good that they are showing us their true illiberal and warmongering nature. It’s akin to realizing that our “partner” of many years was an ungrateful, needy manipulator who’s screaming because the gig is up. Their accusations no longer work. We have a lot to do to bring our own house in order. As for the Europeans, in going through their stages of grief they might move to responsible liberalism (the classical one, not the meaningless modern label) or they can persist in their current insane policies. The choice is theirs. I'm not optimistic but one can always hope.
What a totally delusional view of the world your correspondent has . With europe teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, its indigenous populations being replaced at alarming rates , with social breakdown imminent, your correspondent is obviously hitting the stimulants a bit too hard .
At last our cousins in America have a government that is aggressively reversing your socialist experiment, ( the same type of regime that has rotted and collapsed Europe ).
God’s speed with the reversal . And don’t let any more of your correspondent and his / her type from the Frankfurt School inside your doors - they are nothing but trouble , couldn’t do an honest days work if you forced them and are generally miserable and whingey . To be avoided .
Bartles and James, oh, how we miss you! Well, the girls miss you. Even as kids, my buddies and I knew we would have to surrender our dignity (if nor our masculinity) to dig into those!
I was never too worried about appearances. I was once out with a girl and she ordered a beer and I ordered an amaretto sour. Whatevs. I still did fine with the ladies :-)
Agreed. If anything, I've tended to be allergic to what the crowd thinks.
As for beverages, I like things that are "interesting," as in lots of flavor. Spiked punch isn't very interesting, especially I don't like being anything more than slightly buzzed, at most.
Amaretto sour.... I'll have to try that sometime soon!
I think I once heard a wise old saying... something about speck of sawdust in your brother's eye, and an unnoticed plank in your own eye? And the wisdom of tending to your own eye first, to be able to see your brother's eye more clearly? ;)
Well done Max, very entertaining. The post is a snapshot of this moment's zeitgeist. If they hand out prizes for condescension Hanzi deserves a nomination. His letter might be excellent fodder for a standup routine.
And the idea that we Americans would be worried about what they (Europe — and once again, is that the people, or their governments?) think about us is laughable.
No defence capability. No industrial capacity left to revitalise the defence capability because its all in China. Whole populations cowering before rampant Islam (UK Rape Gangs - I'm looking at you). Immiserated people, mentally and physically and morally sick, living off the dole, gooning to internet porn, and all being rapidly replaced by inbred imbecile Muslims anyway. Crumbling, inadequate infrastructure. Oppressive states, with boots stamping on faces from London to Athens.
And all of this driven by the most poisonously corrupt, narcissistic, self-serving and utterly incompetent and inept "elites" the world has ever seen and who, in a sane world, would all be dangling from lamp posts or burning at the stake.
Ok. Enough accentuating the positive. Next, we'll discuss all the things that are going wrong in Europe.
That brought to mind the idea of hunting elephants with birdshot. It hit the herd and killed none. MAGA could I believe be seen as Don Quixote tilting at windmills. Yes, there are giants roaming the earth, endangering humans, but they will not be wiped out by a half-blind fool lashing out at windmills. If there is an answer to the rule of elites a more appropriate allegory would be Lilliputians' and Blefuscudians' opposition to Gulliver. It might not work in real life just as it did not in the stories. At bottom, we may not have weapons available to us to answer the strengths of our enemies. A war pitting ideas against nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons will likely disprove "the pen is mightier than the sword."
No idea who you're talking to (Hanzi something?) but I enjoyed your responses! Especially: "Still, don’t flatter yourself. We haven’t had a sane and responsible government in a long time. And neither have you."
The most astonishing thing to me about everything going on right now is that the citizens of Europe and European-adjacent nations like the UK are staggeringly clueless about everything that's going on in their own backyard (which would be a bad enough indictment in itself) yet are utterly convinced they are well-informed and sagely competent to comment on US politics from a preposterous assumption of moral high ground. Get Germany in order - then we'll talk!
Stay wonderful,
Chris.
Max, I can't believe you wasted so much time on this mewling worm, Hanzi Freinacht.
However, it did allow you to forge this gem: “Our two-party system is a swinging pendulum, but historically, one hypnotizing our people to distract them from the antics of an intractable administrative state.”
FYI, no biggie, but “nom de plum” should be “nom de plume”.
Fixed—thank you as ever
Excellent points. You should re-post this as an “Open Letter to My European Friends.” But it’s not likely they will understand as they are still in the first two stages of grief – anger and denial – and are not open to objective analysis. As the song goes, they have a long way to go through bargaining, depression and finally acceptance before they might understand the reasons and the true scope of what’s happening.
Ah, Europe … the continent that in the last century gave us fascism, communism, two horrible wars, Holocaust … the continent that was liberated by America and lived under US protection (under a great cost to American taxpayers) for 80 years … the continent that is now throwing a tantrum because America told them to stand on their own feet.
But it’s good that they are showing us their true illiberal and warmongering nature. It’s akin to realizing that our “partner” of many years was an ungrateful, needy manipulator who’s screaming because the gig is up. Their accusations no longer work. We have a lot to do to bring our own house in order. As for the Europeans, in going through their stages of grief they might move to responsible liberalism (the classical one, not the meaningless modern label) or they can persist in their current insane policies. The choice is theirs. I'm not optimistic but one can always hope.
What a totally delusional view of the world your correspondent has . With europe teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, its indigenous populations being replaced at alarming rates , with social breakdown imminent, your correspondent is obviously hitting the stimulants a bit too hard .
At last our cousins in America have a government that is aggressively reversing your socialist experiment, ( the same type of regime that has rotted and collapsed Europe ).
God’s speed with the reversal . And don’t let any more of your correspondent and his / her type from the Frankfurt School inside your doors - they are nothing but trouble , couldn’t do an honest days work if you forced them and are generally miserable and whingey . To be avoided .
"we’ll bring a bottle of sparkling rosé to the reunion. I’m sure the French will be tickled pink."
—Ha! I tip my hat.
Reminded me of high school…Boonsfarm Tickle Pink. With a straw. (TBH, I still love a sparkling rose, sans the straw)
For me, in the 80s, it was wine coolers. We were so damn cool.
Bartles and James, oh, how we miss you! Well, the girls miss you. Even as kids, my buddies and I knew we would have to surrender our dignity (if nor our masculinity) to dig into those!
I am sure we both have stories we could tell…
I was fairly temperate in the day, but I heard plenty of stories from my peers filled with debauchery and woa fueled by the ol' B&J!
I was never too worried about appearances. I was once out with a girl and she ordered a beer and I ordered an amaretto sour. Whatevs. I still did fine with the ladies :-)
Agreed. If anything, I've tended to be allergic to what the crowd thinks.
As for beverages, I like things that are "interesting," as in lots of flavor. Spiked punch isn't very interesting, especially I don't like being anything more than slightly buzzed, at most.
Amaretto sour.... I'll have to try that sometime soon!
Spiked punch…oh dear. I have stories.
"Amaretto sour.... I'll have to try that sometime soon!"
—It's good! (It's sweet, though, just in case you don't like sweet.)
"I've tended to be allergic to what the crowd thinks."
—I have never liked oppression, and groupthink is a form of oppression.
I think I once heard a wise old saying... something about speck of sawdust in your brother's eye, and an unnoticed plank in your own eye? And the wisdom of tending to your own eye first, to be able to see your brother's eye more clearly? ;)
Well done Max, very entertaining. The post is a snapshot of this moment's zeitgeist. If they hand out prizes for condescension Hanzi deserves a nomination. His letter might be excellent fodder for a standup routine.
An excellent, incisive, and sharp takedown of this person's ludicrously superior attitude.
And the idea that we Americans would be worried about what they (Europe — and once again, is that the people, or their governments?) think about us is laughable.
Brilliant
You stole my word.
This was great. The back & forth, brilliant. You nailed it.
Europe?
No defence capability. No industrial capacity left to revitalise the defence capability because its all in China. Whole populations cowering before rampant Islam (UK Rape Gangs - I'm looking at you). Immiserated people, mentally and physically and morally sick, living off the dole, gooning to internet porn, and all being rapidly replaced by inbred imbecile Muslims anyway. Crumbling, inadequate infrastructure. Oppressive states, with boots stamping on faces from London to Athens.
And all of this driven by the most poisonously corrupt, narcissistic, self-serving and utterly incompetent and inept "elites" the world has ever seen and who, in a sane world, would all be dangling from lamp posts or burning at the stake.
Ok. Enough accentuating the positive. Next, we'll discuss all the things that are going wrong in Europe.
It’s official: I’m in love.
Love it. Pride goeth before the fall.
When Europe is taken over by immigrants from the 8th century, don’t call us Heinzi.
better to start going back home, no one has requested your presence in europe, your military bases and you "culture"
remember that in europe we are occupied by usa for 80 years, and after you and your gb colleague have bombarded us...
so go out from europe and pay for refunds
the immigrants are here because of usa dem policy remember...
Of course. Europe has no responsibility for what happens there. You’re like a bunch of children
All we have to do is remove the elephants, for we the people communicate very nicely.
For those that make the noise and corruption are never on the front line are they?
That brought to mind the idea of hunting elephants with birdshot. It hit the herd and killed none. MAGA could I believe be seen as Don Quixote tilting at windmills. Yes, there are giants roaming the earth, endangering humans, but they will not be wiped out by a half-blind fool lashing out at windmills. If there is an answer to the rule of elites a more appropriate allegory would be Lilliputians' and Blefuscudians' opposition to Gulliver. It might not work in real life just as it did not in the stories. At bottom, we may not have weapons available to us to answer the strengths of our enemies. A war pitting ideas against nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons will likely disprove "the pen is mightier than the sword."
Sigh—you’re not wrong