Are English people European?

[The Bison King]

Being European is a silly concept anyway. First of all there's no such continent as Europe, there's just Eurasia with an imaginary dividing line between Europe and Asia. And what exactly makes one "European"? It's a meaningless word. In this time and age, when we have interwebs and such, all culture is slowly but surely blending into one and same tasteless soup. Regardless if you live in "Europe", "Asia" or "America".

I don't know. That soup tastes kind of like America to me.

[Timminz]

Being European is a silly concept anyway. First of all there's no such continent as Europe, there's just Eurasia with an imaginary dividing line between Europe and Asia. And what exactly makes one "European"? It's a meaningless word. In this time and age, when we have interwebs and such, all culture is slowly but surely blending into one and same tasteless soup. Regardless if you live in "Europe", "Asia" or "America".

I don't know. That soup tastes kind of like America to me.

Like brunt rubber, and broken dreams?

[Dukasaur]

Ok, chill down duke. It's not like I called your grandma a whore or anything.

You've got it all wrong. I wasn't in the least bit angry. I thought we were debating because debating is fun.

I know it must be titillating to slab that fine & snobby "Européan" label on your forehead.

Exactly. I mean, let's face it, I'm 99% Canadian now. I'm lucky to see a European city for two weeks every five years, and in tourist mode at that. When I do read Czech authors I read their English translations, because reading the originals is a struggle for me. Culture is mainly for fun, but to fully enjoy it you have to take sides.

I'm no more responsible for for the victory at Lepanto than you are, but I can take pleasure in it because I identify with the victors. Those are my people, and they beat those dastardly Turks! The average Bostonian hooting and hollering in a bar when the Bruins beat the Habs didn't have anything to do with their victory, but he can only take pleasure in it because he chooses to feel responsible. If he didn't, then hockey would be a tedious and meaningless thing for him to watch.

There's no "Europe" or "European culture", and you know why? It's because the whole concept of "European" is 100% defined by non-europeans.

That statement is... well, I can't say. You'd have to explain what you mean by it.

And stop posting my picture in a public forum! There are rules against that!

[The Bison King]

Being European is a silly concept anyway. First of all there's no such continent as Europe, there's just Eurasia with an imaginary dividing line between Europe and Asia. And what exactly makes one "European"? It's a meaningless word. In this time and age, when we have interwebs and such, all culture is slowly but surely blending into one and same tasteless soup. Regardless if you live in "Europe", "Asia" or "America".

I don't know. That soup tastes kind of like America to me.

Like brunt rubber, and broken dreams?

More like Hot dogs and MTV

[jonesthecurl]

Being European is a silly concept anyway. First of all there's no such continent as Europe, there's just Eurasia with an imaginary dividing line between Europe and Asia. And what exactly makes one "European"? It's a meaningless word. In this time and age, when we have interwebs and such, all culture is slowly but surely blending into one and same tasteless soup. Regardless if you live in "Europe", "Asia" or "America".

We could probably do with a very large casserole.
Capacious enough to take the entirity of planet Earth and its contents.
We should agitate for a century, possibly longer, on simmer.

[Timminz]

Being European is a silly concept anyway. First of all there's no such continent as Europe, there's just Eurasia with an imaginary dividing line between Europe and Asia. And what exactly makes one "European"? It's a meaningless word. In this time and age, when we have interwebs and such, all culture is slowly but surely blending into one and same tasteless soup. Regardless if you live in "Europe", "Asia" or "America".

I don't know. That soup tastes kind of like America to me.

Like brunt rubber, and broken dreams?

More like Hot dogs and MTV

you say potato...

[saxitoxin]

Jealousy because aog is starting to like me more?

That's funny because I'm looking at the evite for the camping trip to Shasta next weekend and, ironically, your name isn't on it.

[Snorri1234]

I'm not asking if England is geographically located in Europe, I am asking if you believe the English are a European culture in the traditional sense of that word. And I'm asking about the English only, not the Scottish, Welsh, et. al.

I haven't enjoyed the last 20 years of indoctrination by the EU's cultural unity commissioners so am still of the older mindset that they are not, nor can ever be due to the fundamental cultural dissimilarity of their experience which is of a more course, utilitarian tradition (which I don't say pejoratively, only matter-of-factly).

Well European culture in the traditional sense consist mostly of fighting each other and making a hefty profit at the same time.


So in that sense England is hella European.

[Snorri1234]

Coherence requires simplification -- a raw dump of the sum of all knowledge would be pretty useless. So any attempt to provide a coherent view of anything has to be simplified to be useful, and it it then vulnerable to being attacked as "too simplistic." I don't see simplicity as being a valid reason to reject something.

Now, what I did was compose a list of major formative experiences in European culture, and on examination the English are found to have participated in most of that list, so I will count them "in." Is it the last word on the subject? No, of course not. It's a largely subjective list that I knocked off in ten minutes. Someone who wanted to make a career out of it could probably do a lot to improve the list, and could probably come up with some precise numerical formula for who is 82% in versus 84% in. But it probably wouldn't change the final answer. Whether the English would be found to be 83.6% European or only 76.4% isn't the issue, only whether they are mostly European.

I don't know enough about Syria to comment. It really doesn't matter that the Crusades were fought there. What matters is whether a typical Syrian can take you to a cliff, point with pride at a particular outcropping and say with pride, "that is where my ancestor Akbar stood and held steady against the invader!" If it is still part of the local folklore then it is significant; if it is forgotten then it is not.

So the English are as European as the Syrians. I'll agree to that.

Honest to god serious question:

Do you have a mental disability?

[saxitoxin]

Coherence requires simplification -- a raw dump of the sum of all knowledge would be pretty useless. So any attempt to provide a coherent view of anything has to be simplified to be useful, and it it then vulnerable to being attacked as "too simplistic." I don't see simplicity as being a valid reason to reject something.

Now, what I did was compose a list of major formative experiences in European culture, and on examination the English are found to have participated in most of that list, so I will count them "in." Is it the last word on the subject? No, of course not. It's a largely subjective list that I knocked off in ten minutes. Someone who wanted to make a career out of it could probably do a lot to improve the list, and could probably come up with some precise numerical formula for who is 82% in versus 84% in. But it probably wouldn't change the final answer. Whether the English would be found to be 83.6% European or only 76.4% isn't the issue, only whether they are mostly European.

I don't know enough about Syria to comment. It really doesn't matter that the Crusades were fought there. What matters is whether a typical Syrian can take you to a cliff, point with pride at a particular outcropping and say with pride, "that is where my ancestor Akbar stood and held steady against the invader!" If it is still part of the local folklore then it is significant; if it is forgotten then it is not.

So the English are as European as the Syrians. I'll agree to that.

Honest to god serious question:

Do you have a mental disability?

Sorry, I still can't understand a word you're writing.

[Symmetry]

He's simply making the statement that with regards to Syria and the recent popular protests, we're all Syrians now.

Ssxi- continue the good fight.

[Snorri1234]

Coherence requires simplification -- a raw dump of the sum of all knowledge would be pretty useless. So any attempt to provide a coherent view of anything has to be simplified to be useful, and it it then vulnerable to being attacked as "too simplistic." I don't see simplicity as being a valid reason to reject something.

Now, what I did was compose a list of major formative experiences in European culture, and on examination the English are found to have participated in most of that list, so I will count them "in." Is it the last word on the subject? No, of course not. It's a largely subjective list that I knocked off in ten minutes. Someone who wanted to make a career out of it could probably do a lot to improve the list, and could probably come up with some precise numerical formula for who is 82% in versus 84% in. But it probably wouldn't change the final answer. Whether the English would be found to be 83.6% European or only 76.4% isn't the issue, only whether they are mostly European.

I don't know enough about Syria to comment. It really doesn't matter that the Crusades were fought there. What matters is whether a typical Syrian can take you to a cliff, point with pride at a particular outcropping and say with pride, "that is where my ancestor Akbar stood and held steady against the invader!" If it is still part of the local folklore then it is significant; if it is forgotten then it is not.

So the English are as European as the Syrians. I'll agree to that.

Honest to god serious question:

Do you have a mental disability?

Sorry, I still can't understand a word you're writing.

What kind of mental disability?

[saxitoxin]

Coherence requires simplification -- a raw dump of the sum of all knowledge would be pretty useless. So any attempt to provide a coherent view of anything has to be simplified to be useful, and it it then vulnerable to being attacked as "too simplistic." I don't see simplicity as being a valid reason to reject something.

Now, what I did was compose a list of major formative experiences in European culture, and on examination the English are found to have participated in most of that list, so I will count them "in." Is it the last word on the subject? No, of course not. It's a largely subjective list that I knocked off in ten minutes. Someone who wanted to make a career out of it could probably do a lot to improve the list, and could probably come up with some precise numerical formula for who is 82% in versus 84% in. But it probably wouldn't change the final answer. Whether the English would be found to be 83.6% European or only 76.4% isn't the issue, only whether they are mostly European.

I don't know enough about Syria to comment. It really doesn't matter that the Crusades were fought there. What matters is whether a typical Syrian can take you to a cliff, point with pride at a particular outcropping and say with pride, "that is where my ancestor Akbar stood and held steady against the invader!" If it is still part of the local folklore then it is significant; if it is forgotten then it is not.

So the English are as European as the Syrians. I'll agree to that.

Honest to god serious question:

Do you have a mental disability?

Sorry, I still can't understand a word you're writing.

Dut ink ov mental invalid?

[Snorri1234]

Honest to god serious question:

Do you have a mental disability?

Sorry, I still can't understand a word you're writing.

Dut ink ov mental invalid?

I'm sorry I don't speak Japanese.

[BigBallinStalin]

I'm not asking if England is geographically located in Europe, I am asking if you believe the English are a European culture in the traditional sense of that word. And I'm asking about the English only, not the Scottish, Welsh, et. al.

I haven't enjoyed the last 20 years of indoctrination by the EU's cultural unity commissioners so am still of the older mindset that they are not, nor can ever be due to the fundamental cultural dissimilarity of their experience which is of a more course, utilitarian tradition (which I don't say pejoratively, only matter-of-factly).

Well European culture in the traditional sense consist mostly of fighting each other and making a hefty profit at the same time.


So in that sense England is hella European.

Countries profit from wars?

[Serbia]

It's been a while since I've been guested.
My English wife now lives in North America. She's been to Asia, Africa, and Australia. I would NOT call her Eurasian, though.

[saxitoxin]

Honest to god serious question:

Do you have a mental disability?

Sorry, I still can't understand a word you're writing.

Dut ink ov mental invalid?

I'm sorry I don't speak Japanese.

You don't speak English either but that's not stopping you from trying. Give it a go!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OV2l0k8bbf4

[MeDeFe]

I'm not asking if England is geographically located in Europe, I am asking if you believe the English are a European culture in the traditional sense of that word. And I'm asking about the English only, not the Scottish, Welsh, et. al.

I haven't enjoyed the last 20 years of indoctrination by the EU's cultural unity commissioners so am still of the older mindset that they are not, nor can ever be due to the fundamental cultural dissimilarity of their experience which is of a more course, utilitarian tradition (which I don't say pejoratively, only matter-of-factly).

Well European culture in the traditional sense consist mostly of fighting each other and making a hefty profit at the same time.


So in that sense England is hella European.

Countries profit from wars?

The people who produce the weapons most certainly do.

[BigBallinStalin]

Big difference from an entire country compared to "those who produce the weapons"!

[Snorri1234]

I'm not asking if England is geographically located in Europe, I am asking if you believe the English are a European culture in the traditional sense of that word. And I'm asking about the English only, not the Scottish, Welsh, et. al.

I haven't enjoyed the last 20 years of indoctrination by the EU's cultural unity commissioners so am still of the older mindset that they are not, nor can ever be due to the fundamental cultural dissimilarity of their experience which is of a more course, utilitarian tradition (which I don't say pejoratively, only matter-of-factly).

Well European culture in the traditional sense consist mostly of fighting each other and making a hefty profit at the same time.


So in that sense England is hella European.

Countries profit from wars?

Uh....yes.

There is a huge demand for things during war, not just guns but food and clothes and contraband and hookers and drugs and basically everything that was almost exclusively manufactured in the country that went to war. Which gives a nice boost to the economy.


And winning a war gives you hella profit. I mean, why do you think they went to war in the first place?

[InkL0sed]

European culture isn't uniform. The English aren't French, the French aren't German, the Germans aren't Spanish, and the Spanish aren't Serbian.

In Europe, you can get different cultures in neighboring towns, much less countries.

There are different "levels" of culture, too. "Western" is a culture, kind of, which includes America and Canada and Australia - but then there are all the nations with their cultures and local cultures and subcultures.

So the real answer is "that's a vague and vaguely retarded question."

[saxitoxin]

I'm not asking if England is geographically located in Europe, I am asking if you believe the English are a European culture in the traditional sense of that word. And I'm asking about the English only, not the Scottish, Welsh, et. al.

I haven't enjoyed the last 20 years of indoctrination by the EU's cultural unity commissioners so am still of the older mindset that they are not, nor can ever be due to the fundamental cultural dissimilarity of their experience which is of a more course, utilitarian tradition (which I don't say pejoratively, only matter-of-factly).

Well European culture in the traditional sense consist mostly of fighting each other and making a hefty profit at the same time.


So in that sense England is hella European.

Countries profit from wars?

Uh....yes.

There is a huge demand for things during war, not just guns but food and clothes and contraband and hookers and drugs and basically everything that was almost exclusively manufactured in the country that went to war. Which gives a nice boost to the economy.


And winning a war gives you hella profit. I mean, why do you think they went to war in the first place?

English is a difficult language from which to pick-up sarcasm; especially when it's subtle like BBS.

[Nola_Lifer]

Are Welsh British? Are Scottish British? What is English? Britain can send athletes to the Olympics which includes N. Ireland, Wales, and Scotland but England declared that a no, no. In Football/Soccer each country is able to play for the World Cup. What is the difference between a country and a nation? Are Australians Asian? For me, I can tell the cultural differences between European continent and the U.K. but England is a part of Europe just as much as Turkey is a part of Europe.

[BigBallinStalin]

I'm not asking if England is geographically located in Europe, I am asking if you believe the English are a European culture in the traditional sense of that word. And I'm asking about the English only, not the Scottish, Welsh, et. al.

I haven't enjoyed the last 20 years of indoctrination by the EU's cultural unity commissioners so am still of the older mindset that they are not, nor can ever be due to the fundamental cultural dissimilarity of their experience which is of a more course, utilitarian tradition (which I don't say pejoratively, only matter-of-factly).

Well European culture in the traditional sense consist mostly of fighting each other and making a hefty profit at the same time.


So in that sense England is hella European.

Countries profit from wars?

Uh....yes.

There is a huge demand for things during war, not just guns but food and clothes and contraband and hookers and drugs and basically everything that was almost exclusively manufactured in the country that went to war. Which gives a nice boost to the economy.


And winning a war gives you hella profit. I mean, why do you think they went to war in the first place?

English is a difficult language from which to pick-up sarcasm; especially when it's subtle like BBS.

At first I was, but now he's mentioned something fun for me to play with.

@SNORRI: It depends on the war and the consequences, so pick a war as a working example.

[natty dread]

European culture isn't uniform. The English aren't French, the French aren't German, the Germans aren't Spanish, and the Spanish aren't Serbian.

In Europe, you can get different cultures in neighboring towns, much less countries.

There are different "levels" of culture, too. "Western" is a culture, kind of, which includes America and Canada and Australia - but then there are all the nations with their cultures and local cultures and subcultures.

So the real answer is "that's a vague and vaguely retarded question."

This is correct. A+