Germanic unity

[rhiannon]

Then you seem to be different from most Americans as we tend to spot them from a mile off. They tend to walk differently from us. Make more gestures, talk louder.. much louder.

I'm pretty quiet in public as a rule. Plus, I am of NW European stock myself, so my phenotype blended right in

I know the types to which you are referring to....and you are right, they can be a pretty obnoxious lot, lol!

[The Lawspeaker]

I'm pretty quiet in public as a rule. Plus, I am of NW European stock myself, so my phenotype blended right in

I know the types to which you are referring to....and you are right, they can be a pretty obnoxious lot, lol!

It's probably because of a cultural difference. America is a huge country with lots and lots and lots of space. Most European countries are not large when compared to your average American state.

That of course explains why Americans value personal space even more then we do (I am the odd exception here lol as I have a very American feeling for personal space): because they have the space for it.

A lot of them are loud and boisterous compared to us. An American "It is the squeaky wheel that gets the grease" would not work in North-Western Europe at all. Here in the Netherlands we say the opposite thing (and a Scandinavian, accustomed to Jante Law would recognise it): it's the highest trees that catch the wind. (and it's negative: it means - the more fuzz you cause the more trouble you get), or "children who ask are skipped" (you wait until it's your turn to get something) and "the highest blade of grass gets cut off." (it's difficult to translate from Dutch as we say: "met je kop boven het maaiveld uitkomen" --- litt. having your head above the pasture).

So maybe typically North-West European is the tall poppy syndrome.

[Aces High]

You are not English, but South African.

I was born in Rhodesia not South Africa.......jesus you cant even get your facts right.

So you are right...im a xhosa...no a bantu immigrant.....a kaffir....a nigger,you have found me out and put me in my place.....ooooh the humiliation.

[Hevneren]

The more I am thinking of it.. the more attractive the idea becomes. But I am not sure about whether Britain would fit in such a Union. It should be something along the lines of the Nordic Council but with it's own elected parliament and mandatory referendums. And in the future maybe a customs union and currency union but that's something for the long term.

My problem with unions is that the more powerful and populous nations often overshadow and dominate the smaller nations. We already see this with France and Germany in the EU. In a Germanic union, Germany's role would be even stronger. I'd fear that the interests of other nations would not be addressed equally.

[Siegfried]

I don't think so. We need to preserve our own individuual culture and nationlities. Of course, a sense of unity between Germanics wouldn't be too bad, but not to the extent that we're one nation.

[Hevneren]

Americans have no culture.....except crappy consumer culture and Hollywood........thats why you have to come to European preservation sites,but thats ok,just dont go on about American culture because its a contradiction in terms.

Byrnecres isn't one of the "America! Fuck yeah!" crowd and I haven't seen her being anything but respectful on this forum, which is certainly more than can be said for you.

[mymy]

I like idea of cultural unions, not so much about political. I believe Germanic nations could have benefit from some kind of union, especially in culture, science, sport, etc.

However, i do not like any political union because in politics there are only interests and it can turn different than you expected. I know why i wouldn't like to see Slavic Union(USSR and Yugoslavia were kinds of it)! But don't know, Germanic nations have different mentality than Slavs, so maybe all nations could be happy in such union (although i think it's hard to achieve).

[Piparskeggr]

I should like to see closer cultural and economic cooperation within the Germanic and Nordic communities, not so keen on political or fiscal unity, though.

With a stronger community amongst the lands of many of my ancestors, perhaps folks in the US would see how to maintain such amongst those of like heritage.

[Hevneren]

It is unfair of you, Civis, to go around telling me or my fellow Americans that we have no right or claim to our ancestral homelands. That shows extreme arrogance on your part. Europe as my ancestral homeland, is not the same as making the claim that Europe is my home. Never have I claimed it to be such, either.

Please do not forget that.

I agree. It's unnecessarily divisive to deny Americans of European ancestry their right to feel a connection to Europe. The connection is undeniably there, in their veins, in their family history, in the cultural practices that they still remember from times passed. The United States of America was in its inception a country based on ideals from Europe, English common law, the Magna Carta and so on.

I do understand what Civis Batavi is getting at when he writes about language and culture, and I agree that (for example) Norwegian-Americans aren't "proper" Norwegians if they don't know our language or culture.

However, this is a thread that is meant to discuss Germanic unity, and if - say - Americans of a Germanic European background want to move to Europe and adopt the cultures and languages of their ancestors and immerse themselves in this way of life, then isn't this a good thing for the Germanic European nations? It'll mean a net contribution of people of relatively recent native heritage, and if their children grow up speaking the native languages and adopting the native cultures, this is a positive thing.

I would welcome Norwegian-Americans, Norwegian-Canadians etc. who are willing to learn and adopt our language and culture and raise their children in the Norwegian culture. These people will "rediscover" their Norwegian identity and become proper Norwegians in the generations to come.

[Logan]

Only greater economic cooperation. Their cultures are unique, and should be preserved against any others. Respect for and cooperation amongst.