Why does America lead the world?

[Fifty2One]

Shakespeare?

Must have forgotten e#3 in his haste to depart for the festival. www.stratfordfestival.ca/

 

[Rich]

Can you say PROPAGANDA?
The Chinese leadership is only trying to clean up its image because of all the bad press they have been getting over the Olympics and Tibet.

Capitalist propoganda...................................

 

[Rabbie]

I try to keep it light-hearted. But I do think it's a shame that somebody can have a sentiment illustrated by:

"We don't hate Americans. Granted we don't like them all that much either."

regardless of what country it's aimed at. That means he doesn't like me doesn't it?

Large successful countries are often not the most popular with their neighbours.

It's a bit of what my swedish friends call the elder brother complex.

Sweden is regarded a bit suspiciously by its scandinavian neighbours in the same way that the english are regarded by the scots, welsh and irish but if they are in trouble then they would rally round.

I think that's what Statsman was getting at.

 

[dan-cat]

Sweden is regarded a bit suspiciously by its scandinavian neighbours in the same way that the english are regarded by the scots, welsh and irish but if they are in trouble then they would rally round.

Do you not like the english very much?

 

[Rabbie]

Do you not like the english very much?

I have mixed feelings. I like them as individuals but as a nationality they are harder to like.

 

[Lightwave]

I have no problem with any other nations..

I would prefer to concerntrate on the work I'm doing now and what I'm involved which adds positively to what's around me rather than worrying about what's over my shoulder.
One of the most satisfying thing for me was that I helped to organise the European Duathlon Champs in Edinburgh last year which had a Belgian Male Champion. People from throughout Europe competed and it was fantastic to see all the differing nationalities sitting in Dynamic Earth - a stunning contemporary restoration of a historical building into a conference centre next door to Holyrood Palace and just across from the Scottish Parliament and the Royal park.

Pity I didn't get paid for that one!!!!

 

[Lightwave]

Back on thread...

America has led because it had the greatest economic health for the longest period that has been backed up by military might. This has been invested in a lot of physical wealth - buildings / infrastructure which because of a stable government has largely been incrementally improved.

And lets not forget their primary language - English, arguably the most popular method of communication on the globe among wealthy individuals.

I suspect it is being chased down by Japan / India / China and Russia.

 

[georgedwilkinson]

And Brazil.

 

[ColinEssex]

And lets not forget their primary language - English, . . . . . .. . .

More a Pigeon English really, but they just about manage to scrape by.

It might help if Americans had a sense of humour too. Bob Hope was good - ah, I forgot, - he was English.

Col

 

[Sum Guy]

Don't forget, English is one of India's official languages. Most Indians speak it some degree. Most Indians in international trade speak it well. The same for Japanese in the same position.

I believe the folks in Brazil speak Portuguese.

 

[statsman]

More a Pigeon English really, but they just about manage to scrape by.

It might help if Americans had a sense of humour too. Bob Hope was good - ah, I forgot, - he was English.

Col

English (with no clear attempt made on the part of the language) has become the international language of commerce. This is no doubt in part because of the breadth of the British Empire at it's height and the current supremacy in commercial centres of the USA. Many of the people who have English as their second language learned it from people who also have it as their second language. The Japanese for example still use English words that haven't been used in the West since the 1940s ("jumper" instead of sweater or jacket). All I can say is, their English is a lot better than my Japanese.

Bob Hope was born in England but he went to America when he was 17 and never looked back. If someone is born in one country but spent 60 years living in another (including becoming a citizen of that country), can the first country still claim him as one of their own?
I'm not trying to start an arguement, just curious about your position on this subject.

 

[georgedwilkinson]

Don't forget, English is one of India's official languages. Most Indians speak it some degree. Most Indians in international trade speak it well.

LOL! The Indians who run the help desks for US companies English is so bad that many companies in the US had to rethink their whole outsourcing strategy because of all the complaints.

 

[Rich]

LOL! The Indians who run the help desks for US companies English is so bad that many companies in the US had to rethink their whole outsourcing strategy because of all the complaints.

Their English is fine, it's American they have a problem with

 

[ColinEssex]

The Japanese for example still use English words that haven't been used in the West since the 1940s ("jumper" instead of sweater or jacket).

I use the word 'jumper' also 'pullover' - in fact 'jumpers' are usually female garments and 'pullovers' are male ones. If you browse the shops in the UK you will see 'jumper' is widely used.

What is your reference for saying 'jumper' has not been used since the 1940s?

Remember 'the West' extends to more countries than just the USA and Canada - with the North American broken English, I would suggest that many hundreds of words may seem obsolete to North Americans but are still in normal use of correct English.

Bob Hope was born in England but he went to America when he was 17 and never looked back. If someone is born in one country but spent 60 years living in another (including becoming a citizen of that country), can the first country still claim him as one of their own?
I'm not trying to start an arguement, just curious about your position on this subject.

It doesn't matter what citizenship people have, if you are born in one country then that's what you are. Bob Hope was English, born in London - as was Charlie Chaplin, Olivia Newton-John was English not Aussie etc etc. Not many iconic comedians are actually born in the USA.

BTW - wasn't Bob Hope older than 77 when he died? I thought he was in his 90's. (I may be wrong)

Col

 

[Rabbie]

BTW - wasn't Bob Hope older than 77 when he died? I thought he was in his 90's. (I may be wrong)

Col

According to Wikipedia you are wrong He was 100 when he died. He emigrated to USA with his family when he was 5 and became a US citisen when he was 17.

 

[statsman]

It doesn't matter what citizenship people have, if you are born in one country then that's what you are. Bob Hope was English, born in London - as was Charlie Chaplin, Olivia Newton-John was English not Aussie etc etc. Not many iconic comedians are actually born in the USA.

Col

(source - dozens of interviews, every time the subject came up)
The reason I ask is that Bob Hope considered himself to be an American. He certainly acknowleges his British birth but he always went on to say he chose the USA. How does that effect the nationality equation?

 

[georgedwilkinson]

Bob Hope was English, born in London - as was Charlie Chaplin, Olivia Newton-John was English not Aussie etc etc. Not many iconic comedians are actually born in the USA.

Yeah, but what about the Beatles...oh crap, they were from England.

Well, there's always the Stones...oh man, I see your point...everybody who's anybody is from England!

 

[ColinEssex]

(source - dozens of interviews, every time the subject came up)
The reason I ask is that Bob Hope considered himself to be an American. He certainly acknowleges his British birth but he always went on to say he chose the USA. How does that effect the nationality equation?

One cannot change where one is born no matter what piece of paper you have.

Bob Hope was English - get used to it. The USA made him famous, I doubt he would have made it in the UK.

I live in Essex - have done for 18 years. I will never be an Essex person, I was born in Bristol.

Col

 

[Lightwave]

I do think it can be useful to consider how people were educated. If they had the majority of their primary and secondary education in one country they tend to pick up the affectations of that culture.

Hence although I was born in Trinidad, three months later we were back in the UK. I was educated at primary and secondary level in Scotland.

Bob Hope had his formative years in England including education. (SUBSEQUENT EDIT I picked this up wrong as Rabbie points out)

Historically people used accents to interpret heritage and you were trusted or not based on that accent... I guess the implication being that if you had that accent you'd spent significant amounts of time in that area.

Still probably the best way of "guessing" the background of someone...

 

[Rabbie]

I do think it can be useful to consider how people were educated. If they had the majority of their primary and secondary education in one country they tend to pick up the affectations of that culture.

Hence although I was born in Trinidad, three months later we were back in the UK. I was educated at primary and secondary level in Scotland.

Bob Hope had his formative years in England including education.

Historically people used accents to interpret heritage and you were trusted or not based on that accent... I guess the implication being that if you had that accent you'd spent significant amounts of time in that area.

Still probably the best way of "guessing" the background of someone...

As I said in an earlier post Bob Hope emigrated to the USA when he was 5 years old so I don't think he had much schooltime in England

5 Years in England 95 years in America. I think the maths in this case say he was really american.