No, being French is not a race and bashing them is not racial, it is, however, immature, stupid and highly arrogant. Depending on the types of comments, it could be considered hate speech, in my opinion.

I do not condone the bad-mouthing the French have endured at the hands of american extremists with my-way-or-the-highway attitudes.

I think the whole thing was completely ignorant and because this behaviour was endorsed by the government sickens me even more.

Maybe I’m not understanding your point, Eric…or you didn’t understand mine.

Bush’s tactics of bullying people to get his way is ridiculous. (which I assume was your point?) Never have I seen late night television afraid to pick on a President before this. Leno is still going on Clinton jokes, for cryin’ out loud.

It’s like there’s this whole “Oh, shut your mouth!” / “you can’t say that” thing going on, which is silly.

My remarks are not politically-based. The French are just funny-ass people. Perhaps I did this too soon, I don’t know.

Purely coincidental: I grew up about 40 minutes away from Jerry Lee Lewis’s home. I love the man’s music, but what the hell was he thinking? Not only did he marry his cousin, but she was a child…geez.

Ick. Ick. Ick.

The anti-French thing is pure immaturity writ large. Hell, they were fully in their right to fight any war action, because as we now discovered the words of Bill Hicks have rung true again; you need two sides to call it a war. It’s immaturity tainted with cruelty and wanton ignorance.

We have an interdependent relationship with Europe and boycotts of French, German, or American products hurt everyone. Maybe your neighbor works in a BMW plant and your holier-than-thou, “I must punish those that don’t agree with me politically” actions will likely put him out of work.

And now I must fully purge this steaming wad of political mucus on my own site or it will clog my kindly cognitive creative output for the rest of the week.

Now I know I’m almost at the age where I’m going to buy a red two-seater sports car, a Harley, and shopping for a trophy wife.

… but any chick that I have vivid memories of being in a diaper? That’s where I draw the line.

Re: France. I’m thinking that I definitely did this too soon. I will say one thing. If they were the “cheese eating surrender monkeys” that we like to sterotype them, then they CERTAINLY wouldn’t have taken a stand against us on this war. They would have just followed the big dogs, and shut thier mouth.

But I don’t want to talk about politics here any more… really I don’t.

What’s more important, putting the spotlight on common interests or focusing on the areas conflict and expanding on them? Is it worth a massive bridge burning to prove a political point of view?

What did you mean by “political bridge-burning”? Did you mean me, or this country?

Me… I’m finding common ground with bloggers. I’ll never 100% agree with anyone. If I disagree, I skip their post (if they’re the type that just wants high-fives or “I agrees” in their comments.). I welcome all kinds of views here though.

The U.S. punishing France for opposing them? I think that just pretty fucking stupid. It’ll just draw us a long list of enemies (plenty of other countries fit thier criteria), and go back to the same question “Why the hell are we friends with Saudi Arabia”?

It’s time for everyone to come together again. Nothing gets resolved if we don’t talk about it.

My distaste for political based boycotts stem from that and the blatant ignorance involved in the financial ruin that will result to all countries involved. It’s going to cost uninvolved people their jobs.

I did not mean to be vague in the “bridge-burning” statement. I know you were taking the humorous approach to this topic in your post. I find the politics of conflict rather than diplomacy highly irritating and suddenly I’m off in rant mode.

It’s going to cost uninvolved people their jobs.
Agreed. Back when we were boycotting Japanese imports a decade or so, who suffered besides those in Nissan and Honda plants in the U.S.?

I’m off in rant mode.
I’m looking forward to it. :0)

Perhaps I’m better off covering the Acidman -vs- Venemous Kate war… if that’s not too late already. I think it’s a bad timing for my contempt for the French right now. (Of course there’s NEVER a bad time to dump on Woody Allen.)

“It’s time for everyone to come together again. Nothing gets resolved if we don’t talk about it.”

EXACTLY. Couldn’t be said better.

Good to see you again bro.

Ah well, having been thoroughly drenched in insults by the Spanish, the Germans, the English and the Basques, I suppose a little tinkling on one’s boots isn’t too great a burden to bear when it proceeds from that National Beacon of Western Civilisation that twice elected Cowboy George as the world’s most powerful village idiot. But for Pete’s sake, the correct Froggish phrase is “Foutez la France.” :oP

(Your paté is fried, by the way. And your little cat’s, too, methinks. But we’ll deal with that in a darkly different venue, my pretty. De-li-cate-ly. Now where did I put that hourglass and my pointy hat? Damned monkeys…)

Comment? Je ne comprende pas…. (Damn, I knew I should have been been paying more attention to what my french teacher was saying instead of staring at her legs!) oh wait!
“Thank you thousand times, Mr Eric, of your attack to skin this poor old pussy whipped man.” (*SNORT!*)

That degenerate, Woody Allen? My pleasure.
Wow… it’s interesting to re-read this after all this time.

Much has passed since these conversations, John did, indeed sever ties as ideology was more important than friendship, and it took time to understand a major tool of the NeoCons: Scapegoating and villifying their opposition. (Yes, Bush is indeed not exactly the sharpest crayon in the box! However, his handlers are fiendishly brilliant though.) I do think my views of the French have been misrepresented… I should have clarified. As an American, I see the French in the same way I see the Boston Red Sox as I am a New Yorker…

Despite all the rivalry and competitive hostility I was quite happy to see them win the World Series since the Yankees didn’t. It’s fun to ridicule your rivals.

But using Woody Allen for an image makeover was still dumb.