Whilst we look at these things with a wry humour a lot of Americans take it very serious. no wonder other countrys find it hard to understand we they want to talk of peace
I was looking for American Football jerseys when I stumbled upon a site selling Republican and Right-Wing Merchandise. I assume that the following examples are supposed to be humorous but I found them a little bit over the top and a sad indictment of the mentality shown by some citizens of such a powerful nation. Some of the items available are not fit for this forum. I think such an attitude, albeit attempting to be humorous, can only fuel hatred on both sides. What do other orgers think? Harmless fun or warped xenophobia?
Whilst we look at these things with a wry humour a lot of Americans take it very serious. no wonder other countrys find it hard to understand we they want to talk of peace
Live and let live
Life is too short
I agree that the examples you showed are not harmless fun, and indeed do display a sense of warped xenophobia, scorrie. But I can honestly say I've never seen anyone wearing T-shirts or the like bearing such emblems over here. Nor have I come across anyone with that warped sense of humour. Certainly not the kind of people I'd want to be associated with, if I did!
I am living for today, always remembering yesterday, and looking forward to tomorrow!
This one caught my attention.
http://www.motherjones.com/photos/aryan-outfitters/
Richard Sutherland
Scorrie, d'you have a link for the site? It is difficult to determine if this is by genuine believers, or a smear job by the smart and anti-racist Left which can suspend normal rules in the name of satire.
Plus, the loons responsible for the image linked to by Rheghead really believe it.
Live and let live, and do not impose your blinkered liberal sensitivities on the rest of the world. I feel sure that a visit - accidental, or otherwise to many middle-eastern websites would find far more bloodthirsty, cutting references to the United States of America.
The attitude displayed here was exemplified by gung-ho comments and slogans painted on to World War Two bombers, and the bombs themselves.
Attitudes like yours led to appeasement.
Why on earth though would anyone want an American 'football' jersey?
New England Patriots perhaps....perhaps not?
(p.s. perhaps if 3,000 Caithnessians had been murdered by suicidal terrorists whilst at work in two buildings in Wick, you might feel a little differently)
Hundreds of Muslims died unintentionally on 11/9. And even this multiple extinguishing of human life has been dwarfed many times over against Muslims in Algeria or Iraq or Saudi or Pakistan or Afghanistan by other Muslims.
Well, let me chime in as an American and a Conservative. The pictures Scorrie posted, while I have no doubt they can be purchased as T-Shirts, would be unwelcome and not tolerated around myself, nor likely any of my associates and friends.
In many cases highly political people in America like to characterize those they have even minor disagreements with as cartoon like characters with outrageous beliefs. This is no different than many of the fascist movements of the 20's and 30's and is sadly once again becoming the norm all too often. It is easier to dehumanize those you disagree with once you think of them in terms of nearly comical beliefs that they don't really hold or advocate.
So I am sure someone thought this was funny when they made it, but I don't personally know anyone who holds these beliefs or would even think of advocating them.
Bruce H
Personally, I think they are quite amusing...and that doesn't mean I agree with the sentiments printed on the shirts.
It's not just the States that has stuff like this. You can purchase your very own 'poor taste' T-shirts in the UK from www.farcanal.com . Most of the slogans are just funny T-shirts with a generally abusive message. Unfortunately, there are some aimed at Immigrants that go a little beyond 'humour'....
I cant put any on here, but have a trawl around their website and you'll find them.
Here's another victim of the Jihadis.
I wonder if this city's residents enjoyed the delicious irony of a bomb called Little Boy.
Boy, how they laughed!!
http://media-2.web.britannica.com/eb...4-22682C6D.jpg
I doubt very much they laughed. Equally, though, they soon came to terms with it and didn't have the face the continued conventional bombing raids which, in Toyko that year alone, had killed as many.
A US Marine veteran of WWII posts here. There's a very good chance he was on Iwo Jima at the time, hoping against hope he was not going to have to do this again and again. Had Truman not authorized the A-bombs, he should have been impeached.
<ducks and runs>
Actually historical research has shown that the bombs had surprisingly little impact on the Japanese decision to surrender. This was partly because the devastation was so overwhelming it could neither be communicated properly, nor comprehended or believed. That's not to say they had no impact, but it might have taken another few weeks for the true scale of the horror to get through to the right people. The final nail in the coffin was a report by the Imperial Navy stating how little they thought they would be able to do to stop an invasion of the mainland. Can you imagine the Royal Navy saying they would not be able to stop Hitler in 1940? That would have changed things a lot.
Blimey! we agree on summat MM.
Tens of thousands of American lives were saved by the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs. In 1945 they counted for more than Japanese civillian lives. Sad but true.
Scorrie: Manchester City in the hands of Arabs is to be lamented for many reasons.
I wish you well with your Washington Redskins. To each their own. I did not suggest the wearing of American football jerseys be prohibited. Personally though I'd like to see all replica shirts banned (notwithstanding my live and let live atittude in certain areas)...especially on middle age fat blokes. I have never owned a 'Thomas Cook' shirt, nor am I likely to. The new owners might curry favour and ditch the silly new badge which was introduced a few years ago and revert to the humble and simple one which sufficed for decades previously.Incidentally if todays (and yesterday's)City were playing in my front garden, whilst the back needed mowing then my attention would be taken by the longer grass. Modern football is very much out of favour with me, and is likely to remain so. Sorry to deflect the thread.
Yes, it's most disconcerting. Individual Japanese lives were not, of course, worth less than individual American lives, but the President's legal duty was to protect American lives. Had he forgone an opportunity which did precipitate the final capitulation of Imperial Japan, and thus continued a conflict in which tens of thousand of further GIs would certainly have died (not to mention hundreds of thousands of Japanese soldiers and civilians, both through Allied action and suicide), he would have failed in this duty.
I'm unclear what you mean by this. It resulted in unconditional surrender! That's a pretty big impact. Looking back, however, with full access to the historical record and seeing past the fog of war is always going to result in a different appraisal.Originally Posted by George Brims
You say the Imperial Japanese Navy conceded that it would ultimately succumb to a land invasion. Perfectly true. The likes of Kochi Kido, the Emperor's right-hand-man, would afterwards say that he'd saved millions of lives by accepting the surrender.
What puts a different slant on it, though, is that there were senior military and political characters, such as the Prime Minister, who had previously announced their absolute scorn for the option of surrender offered by the Potsdam Declaration. Nor would the sheer scale of destruction at Hiroshima and Nagasaki have been hidden: both cities were just a few dozen miles from the seat of government, along still functioning train lines.
Even after the bombs, even with the Soviets pressing in from the north, even after the Emperor agreed to surrender, there was a *coup* attempt on 14 August. A surprise bombing raid disrupted this. Thank Christ, because there was unlikely to be more radioactive material.
Amusing T shirts. I like the oil one, it summs up the problem right away.
Even if we find the light it will be surround by shadow.
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