31 Mar 2003 | Darrel said...

Yea...German jokes are funny.

01 Apr 2003 | jedrek said...

I think the joke that's going arround the net is:

What is the world comming to?

1. The biggest selling rapper is white.
2. The best golfer is black.
3. Germany doesn't want to go to war.

01 Apr 2003 | p8 said...

How many wars did Germany fight in the last 100 years?
How many wars did US fight in the last 100 years?

Alcoholism is characterized by impaired control over drinking, preoccupation with the drug alcohol, use of alcohol despite adverse consequences, and distortions in thinking, most notably denial.

Germany kicked the habit a long time ago.
The US however....

01 Apr 2003 | jupiter said...

isn't the degree of civilization of a country characterized by the ability to learn from errors?

01 Apr 2003 | Jonny Roader said...

Excellent ripostes from p8 and jupiter there (and I think this war is largely justified, if that matters).

01 Apr 2003 | matt said...

It's a joke people. Germany started WW2, remember? Now they're anti-war and it's funny. That's all.

01 Apr 2003 | fajalar said...

With most addictions, the addict either needs to want to change, or needs to be bitch-slapped into changing. For lasting change, both at the same time are usually helpful.

I don't think this country will soon find the want to change. And, even though things aren't going "as well as planned" in Iraq, as long as the conflict stays in Iraq the Administration will be able to convince "americans" (the ones who most often get polled) that they are still great.

Like Chief Wiggum says: This is going to get worse before it gets better.

I wish I could still watch The Daily Show.

01 Apr 2003 | One said...

It's a joke people. Germany started WW2, remember? Now they're anti-war and it's funny. That's all

i don't think its funny, people around world know what war is and what they get from war, i mean who likes to see people killed because of "stupid" persons ruling the world? we want peace not WAR!

01 Apr 2003 | indi said...

War is ugly and brutal. War is sad and disturbing. War is cruel and heartless. But sometimes war is regrettably necessary. No sane person wants to go to war, it's something you become resigned to.

Most of us want peace. But to achieve real peace and not just relative peace you sometimes have to go through war and out the other side to find it.

01 Apr 2003 | Darrel said...

> But sometimes war is regrettably necessary.

Is it in this case?

01 Apr 2003 | matt said...

Hey -- NOBODY calls my president stupid; not until the Patriot Act blows over anyway :)

Of course I don't think the war itself is funny, I'm not crazy. I just think that particular joke is. I'm sure I'll laugh at many war-themed jokes in the future. It doesn't mean I like war or suffering, only that I have a sense of humor.

01 Apr 2003 | Steve said...

One of the remarkable things about humans is the ability to laugh in the face of hardship. There's nothing wrong with laughing about circumstances peripheral to the war. Hell, some of the stuff directly related to the war would be damn funny if it weren't so damn sad (like, for instance, the US government insisting no one said the war would be easy when Cheny, Rumsfeld et al. were saying exactly that beofre, and that they think we're all stupid enough not to realize that.)

A lot of times, the only alternatives are to laugh or to cry. I'd rather laugh.

01 Apr 2003 | Tim said...

This “joke” is simply outdated.

It’s said Germans are good at war.
It’s said Jews are good dealers.

But look at the last 50 years.

Germans were masters in export.
Israelis were most successful fighters.

To Steve: No I do not agree. Sometimes it’s better to cry than to laugh.

02 Apr 2003 | p8 said...

I've seen John Stewart making that joke and probably laughed.
ML posted the joke for some discussion I guess.
Jokes are funny when there is some thruth in it. But when reading it again I had to agree with Tim. It's a bit outdated now. After WWII Germany (the only country in history that was succesfully bombed into a democracy?) hasn't been part of any military action for 50 years, and only peacekeeping missions for the last couple of years.
The US however seems to have to fight a war every ten years.

02 Apr 2003 | brian said...

to p8, so you don't think Japan is a successful example of being bombed into democracy? i am pretty sure they were can be considered successful (or did i miss something on your statement?)

02 Apr 2003 | Steve said...

Japan is not a democracy. Oh sure, they have all the appearances of one, but the same party has controlled the country since the war, the system is heavily tilted toward the corporate structure, etc. It's a remarkably open and free closed system, but it's a closed system nonetheless.

There were a few very good articles on this point earlier this year, when talking about the very "bombed into democracy" idea. Wish I could remember where I read them so I could find links.

03 Apr 2003 | Tim said...

Germany was not bombed into democracy. It was bombed back
to democracy. Both Germany and Japan had completely other socio-cultural structures then Iraq. Democracy needs many things. Education is only one…

I do hope it will not be necessary to bomb the USA back to democracy in the future.
Not only because there is no one powerful enough to do so...

03 Apr 2003 | alisha said...

no no Tim, you have it all wrong. Germany ws and is just like Iraq. that´s why we´re all so passive over here - we´re small weaklings with no voice and we don´t really know what we want because our "old european dictator" keeps us in the dark. I think what we need is a good dose of "shock and awe". That otta wake us up.

09 Apr 2003 | test said...

test

10 Apr 2003 | Paul said...

Alisha doesn't sound too German too me, so I'll pipe in with (excuse me: wiz) some "old European" insight.
German was definitely not bombed into a democracy. It had been a democracy (of sorts) before the NSDAP usurped power in 1933. As my mothers and my grandmothers reactions to war exemplify, Germany suffered through a prolonged bombing war which bombed pacifism into the German psyche. If you?ve seen the scale models of German cities before and after the war, you'd understand the terror that is the fundamental reason for Germany's utter disdain for violent means of conflict resolution (and of course the endless shame about what had been perpetrated by Germans).

So, no, it's not really funny. But vhatever floats your boat is fine I guess.

And remember: war is hell for those who have to suffer it.

22 Apr 2003 | Thought For The Day said...

WWII Germany and Iraq do have a lot in common: they are both fundamentallyprosperous, advanced, and intelligent people, but under the control of despotic dictators who have in essence destroyed the country's potential.

22 Apr 2003 | Jessa A. said...

You think that this situation is funny because Germany started WW2? I don't think that you can compare the political system and decisions of Germany today to when they were under a facist leader who would kill anyone who spoke against him. Just because Hitler was the leader of Germany in the 1940s and he was a crazy son of a bitch doesn't mean that Germany has no right to refuse to join another war. I mean, who can blame them? Look how the last one turned out for them.

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