Britbashing

[[email protected]]

SASless - your vitriol in other threads indicates a deep rooted dislike of the British attitude to everything, especially when it concerns the USA. Why not have a thread of your own to vent your spleen and tell us why the country with the highest production of greenhouse gases and the worst history for financial impropriety should not on the odd ocassion admit that sometimes 'British is Best'?

[SASless]

I have no problem saying something is better....irregardless of its origin......I just have a problem with starting off with the mindset that because of it being British it is naturally superior. I believe in calling a spade a spade.....and as your post so clearly points out....you insist upon demeanning the USA rather than refuting the points being made. My post merely said lay off with the preliminary statement of "the British.....is the best" and get on with the statement of fact or question.

I will gladly admit I prefer pubs to taverns....dark beer to light beer, curry to stewed chicken, Guinness over anything liquid, Lexington BBQ to all others....London to New York...the Wessex over the S-58T....the Mustang over the Spitfire....the Mossie over the Mitchell.....British comedy over American Sitcoms.....but I sure don't care for the xenophobic mindsets of some of the folks from the east side of the salt water divide.

Operative word is "some" not all....not many....not every.....just the few and the vocal.....those that cannot understand that every nation has a claim to greatness....and that mere birthright or class status does not give a natural guarantee to superiority.

I am not alone in this view....you have heard it from Nick Lappos and other ppruners from the western side of the salt water divide. As long as we on the west side are told by those on the east side how great things are there by natural right then you can count on a rebuttal. That is not Brit Bashing.....more like Brit Baiting maybe....which is definitely more rewarding and fun.

The one thing the Brits and the Yanks have in common....is the liberal left in both societies have an absolute ironclad belief that they are morally, ethically, and naturally correct and any opposing view is immature, incorrect, immoral and demands emotional responses with all sorts of illogical baseless allegations.

So Crab...stick your refuelling probe out on that SeaKing and take a very long flight....you guys do inflight refuelling with helicopters right?

[ShyTorque]

Handbags at dawn, methinks.... :rolleyes:

P.S. MacDonalds tastes just as bad on either side of the great divide.

[TomBola]

As a Brit I have to say that's a jolly good reply SASless (regardless of the fact that only in America could there be such a word as the double negative 'irregardless'!!).
As you say, let's keep the politics and xenophobia out of it (except when used as a wizard win-up!), call a shovel a spade and judge things on their own merits.
Your posts seem cutting and mostly to the point - just what's needed to keep these threads interesting.

PS In view of your earlier post about the Rotorheads forum being used for postings about rotary aviation, shouldn't this topic be on the Jetblast Forum?

[SASless]

Shy....Balloons on sticks at three paces.....say noonish....sunrise is too early for seeing....let alone thinking!

[Red Wine]

"The one thing the Brits and the Yanks have in common....is the liberal left in both societies have an absolute ironclad belief that they are morally, ethically, and naturally correct and any opposing view is immature, incorrect, immoral and demands emotional responses with all sorts of illogical baseless allegations. "

Its good to realise that you can both share equal second......

Carefully put away those royal handbags or you may get a stream from a M60 up your tailcone.

[Coriolis]

As a Brit I find myself agreeing with SASless - we don't have automatic Godhood, although we're not all total prats either.

On the other hand it also seems to me that anyone who has/had an Empire only got it by stealing it from someone else (vis Rome/India/Germany/Africa/ America)....Why do we have to do it that way - it it genetic that each lot has to prove themselves better by beating s**t out of those less able to prevent it?

But then again all the wishing don't fix it...I just promise to keep my fingers out of your pockets if you'll do the same!!!

Luv n Peace etc

[CTD]

Tombola said "only in America could there be..."

Only in 'America' could they take the name of an Italian explorer (Amerigo Vespucci), the eponym for an entire hemisphere, (N, S, Central), and usurp it as the name for their country alone. When folks say they're 'American', I usually ask the question "Really? What part of America? Chile? Québec? Honduras?":D

Only in 'America' when you say the word 'big', will they automatically think of Texas. Ain't nuthin' bigger n'Texas. Except maybe Alaska, most Canadian provinces, and all Australian states, save for Victoria and Tas!

As a lowly Colonial, I must say it's fun to watch the Yanks and Brits have a go. We can enjoy our Texas BBQ and Irish pubs with the comforting knowledge that we are 'unremarkable in every way'.:)

[widgeon]

aha but CTD havent you heard America is named after a brit !!!

http://groups.google.ca/groups?q=america+bristol+discover&start=10&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&selm=1998081123221200.TAA11293%40ladder01.news.aol.com&rnum=20

There are a'holes in all countries but I cannot think of any country where all inhabitants are . ( though there are certain cities in the UK where it appears they all are LOL ).

[Whirlybird]

Moderators, I suggest a new forum. Rotorblast should be for helicopter pilots who want to discuss totally non-aviation related topics - but only with other helicopter pilots.

[ClearBlueWater]

Coriolis,

In answer to why we do it consider the following.

It's genetic and memetic. Genes and memes are the two replicators in life. The genes are the proteins that give us a predisposition to sex, food and violence. The memes are the pieces of information that are created by brains, basically they're ideas born out of our ability to imitate.

Memes that complement one another may join to form a memeplex. A memeplex will grow in size and complexity as the brain in which it resides experiences more living. The inner you is a selfplex which consists of many memeplexes which are complementary and in combination create what the individual experiences as 'his' consciousness.

There are countless memes and memeplexes being created by human brains and there all competing for brain space. The memes themselves and the memeplexes of which they are a part are in competition with one another not the vehicles that carry them i.e. people.

Peoples share similar experiences with those of the same country and culture and through imitation pick up the same memeplexes. If you share a memeplex with someone else then 'you' will think 'you' agree with 'them'. This is a great success for the shared memes because as replicators they 'want' to be more numerous. The memes are quite happy to use our genetic predisposition to violence to further themselves over and above other memes prevalent in another country and culture in order to ensure that they are replicated.

This is why 'we' don't do it. It's the memes that do it and we are powerless to stop them. Honest.

[SandBlaster-214]

Well, now I'm all perplexed:confused:

[tropicopter]

TomBola

"irregardless". Hm. I'm not sure, was it Sir Winston Churchill who said that the British and the Americans are two people divided by a common language? (or something along those lines).

I agree that too many Brits like to rest on their laurels, peoples still of a long-gone empire. However, too many Americans seem resentful of the fact that their predecessors supposedly fled an intolerable government to found a new country on the other side of the pond. The Brits like to point out that the new American settlers (of both North and South America) displaced and killed many of the people indigenous to that continent. However, it should be remembered that the English (as opposed to the Scots and the Welsh - for those contributors who seem to think that Britain = England) displaced and killed many of the Celtic peoples indigenous to the British Isles.

Maybe it's time we all just put the past behind us and realised that there are good and bad people in every country and that there are many differing views on any subject. I may agree with SASless on one point or disagree with him, but it will be because of what he says, not where he comes from.
:cool:

[Dave Jackson]

Clear Blue Water

Take it easy with this line of thinking, or you'll go from Darwin, to Dawkins, to Dennett. :eek:

Then we'll have to start questioning the 'Meaning of Life' :D :D

Dave

[ShyTorque]

And who are the "English" anyway?

I am English (and proud of it but then again I am not a football supporter) but I have been mistakenly assumed to be Italian, French, Bulgarian and AUSTRALIAN :eek: of all things!

Last year in Miami I was assumed to be Spanish by a Spaniard. My goodness, she was lovely but unfortunately I couldn't understand a word she said.

This gets embarrassing. Only one generation ago I would have been an O'Flaherty :confused:

So where do dark haired, blue eyed people normally come from?

[B.Loser]

Shy Tq. asks:

*****
So where do dark haired, blue eyed people normally come from?

*****

I thought we all came from Texas :cool:

[[email protected]]

Sasless, I admit defeat - it was a very good reply and not at all the Anglophobic rantings I was fishing for.
No we don't in-flight refuel - our Empire is so small you can get from one side to the other on one tank of gas!!

[SASless]

Well Crab......as is traditional....keep your sword, sidearm, and horse......errrrr...yer horse........feel free to continue to break the room out of its comatose state when you can. If we all agree then this becomes a rather boring place to visit....kinda like Horley on a Tuesday afternoon. You could have picked a couple of other topics and I would have fulfilled your every wish by entering the affray frothing at the mouth and yelling really politically incorrect rantings! Subjects like the American Social Security system, costs of medical insurance in the USA, licensing of doctors and attorneys.....oh, I could go on....but then these are not topics for discussion here.

Helicopter seats, heaters, cockpit layouts, side-saddle attitude indicators, cheap assed helicopter operators.....and Nigerian Uniformed extortionists.....now we can really get a tempest going.

[Thomas coupling]

I was once told:

we're all entitled to our own opinions......but the yanks are entitled to defend them:rolleyes:

[Coriolis]

Tropicopter - many thanks for the explanation - I feel heaps better now, I think.

No, I'm going to stop thinking, especially about your explanation; maybe I am a total prat after all; Boyle's law's easy, so is (are) hydraulics; theory of flight's a doddle; but I'm not sure if you're winding me up or if it's an arty thing like "look at the pathos in this pile of bricks..." but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for now, so Thanks again.....


Clearblue - I wish I'd said that 'cos it's exactly wot I Thort (je suis relatively illiterate engineer type)

Ho Hum.....

[SASless]

Tropicopter....

I feel compelled to correct one of your misconceptions about the origins of the USA....we did not flee the old country...by force of arms, we defeated your army and navy and won our independence from an abusive government. As a direct result of that defeat and surrender of forces, your government was forced to withdraw its forces and return them to other areas of the empire.

Many of our early settlers had indeed fled from religious persecution in Europe and settled in the colonies. That is why we have within our Bill of Rights, an article(amendment) that prohibits a "state sponsored or state created religion".

Many of our states have laws that are derived from the English common law and actually still have cites to those laws although it is becoming more common for the modern law to be less tied to those conventions. Also, the laws in Louisana owe more to the French influence of that region than to the English common law. The laws in the Spanish or Mexican areas of the US are also derived in great part from those cultures as well.

One of the philosophical changes is the "Victim's Rights" movement which is slowly changing the concept of violent crime being a violation of the peace and dignity of the state (read Crown) and making it a crime against the person of the victim whereas the old common law made it a property crime against the Crown. (as during the days when serfs were considered property of the Crown).

[tropicopter]

Thanks for that SASless - the detail of history never was my strong point.
Interesting point you make about we have within our Bill of Rights, an article(amendment) that prohibits a "state sponsored or state created religion" in view of the Ruling that the California federal judges made only a few weeks ago, that the words "one nation under God", in the Pledge of Allegiance infringe the constitutional spearation of church and state. Do you agree with the view that this means that the words "In God We Trust" should be removed from every dollar bill?

[SASless]

Tropicopter....

The founding fathers freely mentioned the concept of a nation being "under God" and did so in many documents. My interpetation of the intent of the Constitution and Bill of Rights is that there would be no " state sponsored religion " ,meaning a particular sect, or form of religious doctrine and ritual.

I am not supportive of the judge's decision as it is written.....and if you read the facts of the case, most reasonable people would not support it either. The case stems from a doctor suing the government over his concern that his third grade daughter (being raised in his atheistic home) was being unfairly discriminated against by being exposed to the pledge of allegiance to the flag while in school. He said she felt intimidated and was coecrced into saying the pledge.

Somehow, the image of big burly cops, standing over the child with sticks or something, making her repeat this horrible pledge just doesn't seem to ring true. All he had to do was approach the school board and request that she not have to uttter those offensive words...."under God".

If she wanted , all she had to do was remain silent and state she objected on grounds that she was an atheist and the school would not have persisted. This was a radical using our system to further his political cause. Do you reasonably think a second or third grade child can formulate this concept of "God" or have a driving need to be an "atheist" or was this more her father being the individual involved here.

I watched an interview of this idiot on the Telly....and was impressed with him no end. He spent 3,000 hours of work doing the suit....and now intends to pursue other issues along the same line. Even the interviewer was ....how I can say it....errrr...disdainful of the good doctor's motives, explanations, and cause.

One must also recall, the circuit court in California is the most liberal in the country and the decision is subject to review by the Supreme Court. Also, the court has reconsidered its decision in the aftermath of all the uproar the decision caused.

So the answer is "NO"....leave the currency alone...leave the pledge alone....leave the school kid alone....if you believe in "God" fine, if you do not..."Fine..." That is what religious freedom is all about......not a freedom "from" religion.

[SandBlaster-214]

AND ANOTHER THING...

... I do believe in God, the Pledge of Allegiance, One Nation Under God and all of the rest. Therefore, I suggest this: anyone out there who can't stand having those terrible words; "In God We Trust" on their currency can package all of it up and send it to me. Any denominations or coinage welcome.

What the hell, while we're at it - I'll accept guns and ammo too! :D

C Ya

[[email protected]]

SASless you forgot 'by force of arms (and with the help of the French) we defeated your army and navy etc..'
It is sad that what was an economic dispute (taxing tea) was so poorly handled by the British government and could have been settled so simply. There must have been some lessons learned though - the British gave the East India company a monopoly on importing tea thus denying American merchants the ability to trade....this sort of business ethic is the same employed by the likes of Microsoft and IBM!!

[SASless]

Now Crab....you are edging towards another fuss.....please remember that you cannot expect much out of a race of people that try to make saltwater tea !

[tecpilot]

What an interesting thread... :(

Unfortunately internet isn't so easy to get in some parts of the world and therefore we have no words from other nations.
And unfortunately the kings english isn't the the most proven language inside and outside helicopters in the most parts of the world. (JAA and FAA still working on that problem)
Ok, there are a lot of helojocks in the USA and UK, but if we have all the russians out here on the screen...
I have met and flown with some helicopter pilots from a lot of countrys (including russians :rolleyes: ) but never seen such a discussion. Should this be a question of selfimagination... or is it a bad childhood trauma?
Praise the Lord!
i'm german :D :D :D

[widgeon]

quote "A large number of Americans have German ancestors. More than 25% of U.S. Americans are either completely or partly of German descent. There was even some talk after the War of Independence about whether English or German should be the national language! '

". In 1902, proposed congressional legislation requiring the U.S. Government to use the metric system exclusively was defeated by a single vote. "

Hmm wonder what a German speaking Metric US would be like ,

[3top]

"a German speaking Metric US !!!!"

And then there are the french around the big river, the chinese and other yellow folk in the northwest (with all kinds off languages), Florida and SW has second language "Inglese",
most of the big money gets managed in hebrew, and as far as I understand Boing is building airliners in METRIC.
(Do they employ american indians? Do they still speak their native language? Is that Englisch?)
But then I might not understand it at all.............





:D :p :D :D 3top


by the way, I am from Austria, but speak mainly spanish lately........at least I try to.........

[Vfrpilotpb]

SASless,

We speak a common language, but we spell and say things in many different ways, we have some exceedingly moronic prats in our country as we also do in most of our political parties, some of our Royalty are the laughing stock of the entire universe, we drive on the wrong side of the road(according to the USA) and we brew the best beer in the world.

But if you look inwards to the USA it is mirror like, and your country also have a Major share of the morons and prats who occupy our planet, your president has great difficulty in stringing together more than three words, your military only like to fight battles from either zillions of miles high or out at sea, to top it all it is rumoured that the recipe for Budwieser was stolen from some European brewer mid last century, plus GB inc gave you the recipe for the jet engine and the fully flying tailplane? despite all this dont forget you were once one of our more troublesome colonies, who we decided to let go and rule themselve's:p

[SASless]

VFR has his head in the clouds me thinks...

..but thanks very much for letting us go way back when.....of course we were only fighting the second string.....guess the Hessians lent some backbone to the Redcoated mob. You guys did much better the second time around....burned the White House for us....been some times during the last administration that I would like to have invited you back for an encore.

Granted our current President does seem to mumble his words and could not be confused with your great orator Churchill....but then didn't Winston have an American mother?

Please do not forget the angled flight deck or the Fresnel Lens landing system....also British inventions that the American navy has put to good use.....course there is not a lot of need for them in the British navy.

A very interesting place to visit in the USA is the Aviation and Space Museum in Washington, DC. The entry lobby is called the hall of firsts......amazing exhibit of the record makers....the Wright Brother's airplane, Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis, Apollo, Rutan's airplane, the X-1, neat stuff really.

As to fighting wars from space, the sea, or from zillions of miles away.....tell that to the troops in Afghanistan, or the Gulf War....or go check the American graveyards in your own country Normandy, Iwo Jima, or dozens of other places. As I recall, the British SAS, Australian SAS, Canadian SF and the American SOG troops are all in it together in Afghanistan.

Matter of fact .....you might reconsider your views....afterall you might be talking about kin folk....I did have several Uncles in England during WWII.....after all they were oversexed, overpaid and overthere.....the British were undersexed, underpaid, and under Eisenhower.

DNA testing could resolve that issue . Family reunions are held in July for the Cooper clan ,VFR....cousins are always welcome! Of course, depending upon his age....hmmmmm...might be a closer relation than I care to think about !

[tecpilot]

That's an rotorhead thread and i'm not interested in any burning (White) house. Ok, do you like the publicity or why don't use your own email?

Why don't you talk about the history of rotorcrafts?


Thanks to Mr. Cierva, Mr. Flettner, Mr. Achgelis and Mr. Sikorsky.

Couldn't count a brit or american...:p

[3top]

Hey Tec,

don´t forget Uncle Frank R. !!


:D :D :D 3top

[SASless]

Or.....a few guys like Kaman, Pieseckei, Bell.....and Sikorsky did his work in the USA....not Russia. The Russians also have a few guys who know something about building helicopters as well. Then there are the Italians, Germans, and the Japanese. Lots of people contribute to the success of the industry.

Tecpilot needs to read the entire thread and then form his post...the "history lesson" was in response to something that was said....and the consensus lately has been such "non-rotorcraft" issues sometimes work to generate interest and hopefully participation will improve as a result.

If you wish to discuss rotorcraft history....by all means start a thread....and if any interest exists out there...you will soon have an up and going thread.

[GwynM]

I always thought the American War of Independence was fought by British traders fighting against mercenaries acting for a German king who was on the throne of England?

[TomBola]

tecpilot,
Don't get so testy! SASless is a professional helicopter pilot and the history of America does affect him - it made him an American for one thing! Anyway, the title of this thread is Britbashing and some of the history of the USA is very relevant to that. The thread isn't titled History of Brit rotorcraft bashing......
:eek:

[SASless]

Tombola....you know what the three white rings around an American matelot's jumper sleeve cuff mean?

[OFBSLF]

However, too many Americans seem resentful of the fact that their predecessors supposedly fled an intolerable government to found a new country on the other side of the pond.

Resentful? Huh? Proud, perhaps. Boastful, perhaps. Resentful? Now you've lost me.

Btw, my predecessors didn't "supposedly" flee an intolerable government. You can be quite sure that they did, in fact flee, and that the Lenin's government was quite intolerable (and destined to get even more so). At the time, they wouldn't have tolerated two of my grandparents living -- their families were put against a wall and shot.

OFBSLF

[OFBSLF]

I feel compelled to correct one of your misconceptions about the origins of the USA....we did not flee the old country...by force of arms, we defeated your army and navy and won our independence from an abusive government.

The French helped us both directly and indirectly. Besides providing us with some arms, the French joined the US army at the ultimate battle at Yorktown. IIRC, France was at war with the UK at the time, so the bulk of the UKs army and navy were rather preoccupied.

[Vfrpilotpb]

OFB,

So really your countrymen did'nt have the ability to do it on their own, they needed the help of the treacherous Frogs? :p

[t'aint natural]

George Washington? Puh-leeze!
He only ever beat the Hessians, on the Delaware - and the French, on the Monongahela, when he was fighting for the British, before he turned his coat...
He was beaten like a gong by the British at New York, at Brandywine, at Germantown... anytime the British suffered an, ahem, reverse, Washington was miles away. Who did the winning? Why, Benedict Arnold - my kind of American.
Washington was a bit-part player when von Steuben and Lafayette did for Cornwallis.
What's this got to do with helicopters?

[Earpiece]

I've heard that the French always join the winning side, even if its only 'til the tea's maid (made)! Are they on the side of the Americans now - mais non.

[SASless]

What is with the French and the English.....afterall you are now joined by land and all ? Can we now describe the UK as being the small ex-island immediately adjacent to France? I would think with the new political joining of the other European nations, the UK would be ready to join the majority power. The fact you will no longer be buying pints, halfs, by the pound, round, or rasher....should not be an impediment to financial gain for the country. Would not entrance into the the EU not provide for the defense of the UK by having the French Military as allies ? The only real loser out of all this appears to be the money changers and the UK Customs .....with all those duty free ciggies and wine coming into the country.

This has absolutely nothing to do with helicopters...but a great deal to do with helicopter pilots, engineers, and their families. Plus, the starched wing side of the house really are not interested in "helicopter" stuff.

[t'aint natural]

SaSless: You tread heavily on delicate sensibilities.
Here in the UK, war with France is the normal state of affairs. We have been at war with France for much of the past thousand years. The 20th century was the only one in the last millennium where we did not have a major war, or wars, with France - and that was only because the Germans usurped their position. In fact, we have in the relatively recent past been at war with France for an unbroken period of one hundred years. In all our celebrated victories - Waterloo, Trafalgar, the Nile - it was the French that won second prize.
On the positive side, they make a decent cheese.
Consider the position of your own Mr Washington, who began his military career fighting the French at Fort Duquesne. He then inveigled them into fighting his battles for him, forged a nation and ended his military career at the head of an American army that was preparing to fight the French.
As to your crack about European defence, last time we had major turbulence, between 1939 and 1945, the French sat the whole thing out.

[Holly_Copter]

Hey, guys - how did I miss this thread for so long. Looks like fun!

Personally, I've worked extensively in the US - initially against my will - but found that I love the place to bits. I just prefer my women to be less than four feet from hip-to-hip.

Anyway - to keep in in a rotor theme, I note the comment about in-flight refeulling. Us Brits certainly have a lot to learn there.....


....is this how it's done?

www.paulrivers.biz/probe.mpeg ???


Holly_Copter

[S76Heavy]

That one is below the belt, Holly. I'm sure there is footage a plenty when it comes to helicopter mishaps and accidents. From both sides of the Atlantic.

How did this one end, in a safe landing I hope?

[SASless]

Yikes!

Talk about cutting yer nose off to spite your face! Now imagaine this at night in cloud on NVG's.....my hat is off those that do!

[Nick Lappos]

Holley-Copter,

Regarding width of women, I find if I have the twins standing closer together, there is less than four feet from hip to hip. Might give it a try!

Nick

PS Anyone who thinks there are fundamental differences between the two cultures is kidding! All that civilization talk is nice, but I've seen the football match videos, guys!

[OFBSLF]

So really your countrymen did'nt have the ability to do it on their own, they needed the help of the treacherous Frogs?

Indeed. At the time, the military might of the UK far, far exceeded that of the fledgling US. My history is a bit weak, but it is my recollection that the UK was a bit distracted with France at the time, so they could not commit anywhere near their entire force to the colonies. IIRC, the French didn't do a whole lot of fighting, but when they showed up to the rear of the British lines in Yorktown, the Brit commander realized the battle was lost.

Regarding Gen. Washington, he lost the vast majority of his battles. But won the war.

OFBSLF

[Holly_Copter]

S76,
Wasn't meant to be 'below the belt'. It's a video clip I've had kicking around for some time, and given the in-flight-refeullng comment I thought it might be interesting.

As far as I can tell from the video, the guy was flying well & stable after the incident.

...whether or not they had enough fuel to get back home is another matter, of course!

As for the follow-up comment about twins - well, I feel a cold shower coming on!

Holly_Copter.

[HeliAviator]

Hi, Ive come to this thread late and it seems to be getting away from the original thread however, it does have a modicum of comedy and enjoyment in it.

Presonally. both sides of the pond have there good and bad elements. Some of the most professional helicopter pilots I have met (and I have been flying rotary since 1984) have been Americans and just like us in the UK they have some complete buffoons who should not be let lose with a kids buggy (with or without a kid in it).

SASless, I kinda like you chap, you have one thing that 99% of all Americans do not have; the ability to banter. So start teaching the rest of your continent and the good ole USA will be an even better place.:p

[HeliAviator]

Post script to the last: Crab@SSAvn I know who you are, I did after all work at the same gaff a few years ago.

PS it was me who lead the massed approach at the last Airshow.

[S76Heavy]

Holly_copter, perhaps too strongly worded from my side. But I HATE seeing clips like that without knowing what happened to the crew..
still too good to waste. And as it's a helicopter he could always drop it somewhere and wait for the fuel truck to arrive.

[B.Loser]

HEY HeliAviator!

I take the utmost exception to those comments. The reason they took my buggy away was NOT because I am a buffoon. They said my talents were being wasted with the buggy and they’d be better served in another capacity. Sure 'nuf, two days later I was in a shiny white and blue helicopter winging my way across the southern US of A.

Wonder what ever happened to that buggy?

Oh, BTW. One of my all time favorite songs was inspired by a musician’s trip to England. Ya’ll may have heard it --- written by “Gary P. Nunn” ---

“London Homesick Blues” :D

*** Seriously, I’d like to see it at least once before I “earn my wings”. Heard some good things… :)

[Airtoday]

Tis' a very nice thread.

I would like to quote from Douglas Jerrold
"The best thing I know between France and England is the sea."

This also applies of course, but with more water, to us and the US. (Or to the US and us).

But the most apt quotation I can think of for US and us is by Frederick Marryat (l792-1848):-

"Every man paddle his own canoe."

[Huron Topp]

"Every man paddle his own canoe."

I couldn't have asked for a better opportunity to hop in than that comment!! How about the point of view from someone whose ancestors did not come from away? Thats right, from the Native point of view. I know this'll really get some gander up, but I just can't help myself.:rolleyes:

The Brits came here to take the land by force. The "Americans" (now thats irony) fought the Brits to take the land and expand it substantially. The latter was the main reason for the Revolution, or War of Independance, whichever you prefer. The Crown had come up with the Royal Proclamation of 1763 forbidding any further westward expansion, due to the "depredations"(I'm being extrememly PC here) against the Native Peoples by the american frontiersmen. The Yanks didn't like that much, as of course, natives were considered to be less than human. And, of course, once the war started, Native warriors kicked serious colonial butt until such time as the glorious Crown beat feet back across the pond, leaving her Allies (but in English eyes certainly not equals) at the mercy of the so-called democratic US government.

In other words, for those of us here of a slightly darker complexion, historically speaking, there ain't no difference between either group. Both countries used and abused us, and Canada was rarely any different. Is it that way now? I would bet that if you asked the same question to 100 of us, you would get 100 very different answers. But I'll guarentee, if you've ever served beside any of us in the military, you'll not have met prouder men anywhere.

OOps, seems I have some issues I need to resolve. Now, where'd the wife put that damned hatchet...:eek:

[Airtoday]

Hey we have made it up to all of you by dedicating the names of our best and favourite helicopters to all of your best tribes. Sorry that we don't have a Ute yet....Maybe, yet, we'll have a Ute Jet...

[Vfrpilotpb]

Not wishing to be insulting, but, I can now see why the French handed Paris over to the Germans in WW2, I have spent a little time there of late, and without doubt had it not been surrendered to the Jerries then it would have been pulverised, that would have been a great loss to all mankind.

On the other hand, their General DeGaul then wanted to enter Paris as the victor who had freed up his city and people, and sadly our politicians of the day and Eisenhower agreed to allow that to go ahead, many Americans and many Brits died, so that pompous ineffective and selfish General could make political muchness of the occassion, and if you look at the Middle East situation the French are still at it!!!:(

[CyclicRick]

Right thats enough!

I seem to remember that the "American" independace was revoked last year because they couldn't even elect a president properly. So you are STILL a British colony..is that clear.

The French don't like us because we ALWAYs beat them at war and when someone else has a go at them we always help them out of the s*** too.

Most things the "Americans" claim to have made or invented were either done by us or the Germans.

They can't speak proper English but still have the cheek to call it such.

The USA is in fact a lovely country and as a nation is still only just over 200 years old, a mere child compred to the rest of us, thats why they are so incesently loud all the time...children!

Please don't forget, the world is divided into two parts, Britain and the Colonies. Sorry to burst your bubble but thats it I'm afraid.
:cool:

[Huron Topp]

AirToday, true enough, along with naming all types of ships etc. and tons of school mascots. Kinda sucks being a mascot though. The argument being that there is no such team as the New Jersey Jews or the Leemington Limeys, so why should there be the Atlanta Braves and worst of all, the Washington Red Skins!

vfrpilot: don't think anyone wants to think about the French in wartime. They invented running shoes, didn't they?

Rick: you must have just had a nice little vacation to Fantasy Island, eh?:D

[Red Wine]

GGGggg....Ok guys........and gals...!!

1. Who was the first to fly a engine powered aircraft...and where...?

2. Who invented Baseball......?

3....And No, Aussie's were'nt involved in either......but we did lever away the America's Cup, so many years ago.........and even survived the court challenge [such is sport]..........and then there was the little plaything about the Commonwealth Games.......all that GOLD..!!

4...Over to you..!!

:eek: :rolleyes: :(

[CTD]

"Why do I have to study English? I'm never going to England!"

-Homer Simpson

[BlenderPilot]

All of you get over here, CanCun perhaps? And while looking at scantily clad ladies on the beach, next to a huge bucket of "cerveza corona" in ice, we can all argue who is dumber, and who kicked who out of where!

I think someone asked where the first air to air combat and the first aircraft to ship attack took place, does anyone know the answer?

[reynoldsno1]

1. Who was the first to fly a engine powered aircraft...and where...?

RICHARD PEARSE Nr. Timaru, New Zealand

2. Who invented Baseball......?

A game played with a ball called 'Base' has been recorded in 15th Century England.

[Red Wine]

We agree on the country of origin.....just the dates that differ..........your two centuries older than me...!!!...but yes the UK..

But about the first flight....Sorry, try again.

[[email protected]]

Well boys and girls, what started as an attempt to bait SASless - one which he evaded well - has turned into a xenophobic free for all....excellent!!!!
There has been some top class banter which has raised a smile and that is a good thing to have on a forum populated by the best pilots in the world (there are 2 types of pilots, helicopter pilots and fixed wing pilots that wish they were helicopter pilots).
Just don't get me started on the blo*dy French - the list is too long of their failings as members of the human race!! Not only have they persistently been a pain in the bum to us Brits at home but they want to try and control a chunk of the Commonwealth as well - fortunately the English speaking Canadians don't have much good to say about them either and are still very much in the majority.
Cyclic Rick - good call about the president, in fact you have to think long and hard to find one in recent times who hasn't been a clown, a liar, a womaniser and a liar or just incompetent. How can you expect foreign policy from someone who had never been outside of the USA until he took office?

[SASless]

Crab.....I read you like a book, mate!

It was a nice try but no cigar! It is amazing how many other fish arose to the bait though....well done!

Seems the some on that small ex-island adjacent to the old country seem to be a bit sensitive to their new next door neighbors......now that water-walking isn't required to gain access to Blighty. Very kind of the UK government to accomodate them by providing an all-weather, rain free means of access to the home counties....have they installed pedestrain turnstiles in the Chunnel yet.....as a means of updating the census figures for immigration into the UK?

Do you reckon one of the byproducts of this new joining of the UK and France will be improved cuisine in Britain and better beer in France? Seems interesting that after all these wars and acrimony between the UK and France.....you now have a land border......not even continental drift could keep you apart....seems it was meant to be. You folks in the UK should get over this petty hostility towards your neighbors and embrace all things French......as I am sure they will embrace all things British.

[CyclicRick]

SASless:
Embrace the French? I thought that had been banned by law, if not it should be.
This "Brit bashing" thing turned out to be "Yank baiting" and was working quite well but now it's getting insulting.

Back to "Yank baiting" it's much more fun.

I feel sorry for the poor old Canadians having to live next door to Hollywood..... or was it Disneyland....you know the place, where reality comes from.

This is below the belt but has eveyone heard the latest about protecting our poor troops from "friendly fire"? Most of our casualties in the Gulf were caused by our nice friendly cousins over the water and ont the bloody enemy. They obviously haven't been watching their own films on how it's done...


Cor that's going to cause some puffed cheeks! :D

[Bunnion]

Another late arrival here but am compelled to add a post given that I made my way in the US and am now back in Europe earning my crust...
Heres a few of my observations...
1. Brits have adopted yankee bashing as a national pastime... Yanks couldnt give a damn.
2. Brits will gladly take a pay cut for an extra stripe.... Yanks will want the cheque signed beore any commitment to managerial grief.
3. Show a Brit. how to do something today and he'll be showing you how to do it properly tomorrow...( quote from a good aul boy I brought offshore)
4. Brit approach.. If in doubt make it complicated... Yank approach... if in doubt make it simple.
5. Most brits arrive in the US giving out like mad but subsequently do everything in their power to stay.
6. Despite all the volumes of regulations and procedures, and all those exams, the way things are done over here aint all that much different in the end.

[SASless]

Bunnion,

Your candor and honesty is welcomed and appreciated. I fear Crab....who sometimes has episodes of backsliding....and others might take you to the woodshed for your statements. In this case....beer is on me should you get to the Piedmont region of the Tarheel State.

[reynoldsno1]

I like you Bunnion, and your experience reflects my own. I recently returned to the UK after a prolonged absence. I lasted 18 months before exiting stage right again - for the last time! Perhaps I am fortunate in having more than one nationality to choose from!

[PercyDragon]

Two things that I would like to know the answer to, from any of you Yanks reading this:

1. Why is the bad guy in American films always an Englishman?

2. Why do the Americans invariably end up assasinating their Presidents. (in that they either actually shoot them or impeach them for having blow-jobs in the White house).

Just interested...that's all.:confused:

[Q max]

Who does have the speed record for helicopters?
(Gowaan bight ... handgrenade)



Peace and love between nation's pilots

[OFBSLF]

1. Why is the bad guy in American films always an Englishman?

Well, that's self explanatory isn't it? After the unpleasantness of the 1700s, you don't expect us to trust you, do you?;)

2. Why do the Americans invariably end up assasinating their Presidents. (in that they either actually shoot them or impeach them for having blow-jobs in the White house)

A bit of exaggeration there. Of the 18 presidents since 1901, JFK was the only one killed. Nixon resigned after trying to cover up Watergate. Reagan was shot by a psycho. Clinton's problem wasn't that he got caught with his pants down, it was that he lied about it under oath -- if he hadn't lied, he wouldn't have been impeached.

OFBSLF

[Irlandés]

I thought the current trend was to make the bad guy a South African... :rolleyes:

Irlandés

(Hey Discobeast, no offense intended!!! :D)

[Huron Topp]

Umm, actually, Clinton was not impeached.

As to why the villains in American movies are usually Brits, its simple...the accent, old man.:D Believe me, if you've ever tried to follow a conversation with someone from the deep south or mid-western US states, you'd understand. Its just too damned hard to be "villainized" when you're too busy laughing your a$$ off at the abuse of the language.:rolleyes:

[reynoldsno1]

Mrs Reynolds's first language is not English. She has lived in the US and the UK. Generally speaking she finds Americans much easier to understand than Brits. She agrees that the inhabitants of the Smoky Mountains in North Carolina present a considerable linguistic challenge, but this is matched by the inhabitants of Gateshead, Birkenhead and most of the Thames Estuary.

[SASless]

Now ease up on the hillbilly folk of my native state Sir! Ms. Reynolds should try for the back hill folks of Carroll County, Virginia for a translation exercise.....I grew up on a farm there....until I had to seek alternative employment after falling out of a cabbage patch and breaking a leg. (for those on the eastern side of the saltwater divide.....Carroll County has some rather steep hillside farms with a main crop of cabbage) The reedy, nasal, twang of those folks was much more a challenge to understand......along with the single large eye and the cloven hoofys to distract one's attention. There were some folks there that had never been further than Hillsville...the county seat...and had yet to have a telephone or electricity or even running water inside the house. Nicer people I have never met....but they definitely had a very isolated view of the world around them.

[Huron Topp]

haha:p ...sounds like some of the folk from northern Maine where my wife grew up, especially the area between Bangor and Calais. Some of the folks there always reminded me of the movie "Deliverance". Then again SAS, bein' a good 'ole boy, you'd know about those types better than anyone.:D

[SASless]

Topp.....

I usedta think I'as a Good Ol' Boy and a Redneck.....up and until I spent a couple of years in good ol' Albenny, Jawga. Down yonder I met fellers that were sur' nuff Rednecks.....complete with Budwieser-itis, snoose lip, and pickup trucks with gunracks that were really used for that purpose. They also spoke in a somewhat different dialect from that which I had grown up with. Words and phrases like "sneakin' " for trespassing with the intent to poach...."cooter" meaning either Snapping Turtles or the part of the female anatomy that so intriques helicopter pilots....."take a lil' drink " which usually translated into getting commode hugging-fallin' down drunk...."beer joint" which meant an out of business gas station now turned into a pub which specilizes in crisps, peanuts, pickled pig's feet, and Budweiser.....outdoor loo's and women not allowed inside. Until you have been "redneckin' " with the genuine article.....you just cannot understand the difference between common perceptions and reality. Whew wee....son! As they said down there...."If you can't run with the big dogs...then don't come out from under the porch!"

I am quite certain our good friends from the eastern side of the saltwater divide would find real Rednecks to be a bit coarse, certainly too American, and in all likelihood feel just a bit intimidated by it all. I know I was......and that is why I prefer the shady spot next to the steps.

[Huron Topp]

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!... I know whatcha mean on this one. My wife lived in Georgia for a year or so, about 10 years ago. Damned if this little canadian cousin didn't have a clue what in heck she was talkin' about!!!

Met a local guy here not long ago, and thats what his first name was. Didn't my daughters start laughing their heads off.:eek:

[handyandyuk]

I can't help but wonder at the thought of a busload of Geordies on holiday in the US deep south.:eek:
And maybe the ensueing gentlemanly discussion following an expression such as 'Bloody southern puffs!'

[Vfrpilotpb]

Well from what I've read in the thread, we have thrown down the gauntlet to the Brits, the Frogs, the Yanks our Crim bretheren from the Atipodes and we have all taken and given what could be called equal rebutts, but when is some one going to be politically incorrect and say something rude about the Krauts and their insufferable attitude of being the best at winning the poolside towel laying comp, or eating the largest meals or downing the largest glasses of foaming, tastless unbelievably strong bier
:D :D :D

[SASless]

.....or see the cute lil' southern waitress's expression when my dear Geordie friend Patricia ordered "just a couple of grits" just to see if she liked them. Then to listen to the discussion that followed when the waitress tried to explain why they couldn't be served just a couple at a time was even better.

[reynoldsno1]

Having never experienced the 'poolside' antics of Germans on holiday, so I don't really understand the British obsession with it. However, I am led to believe many Mediterranean holiday resorts are not exactly enamoured with British holidaymakers... not surprising if A certain Civilian is anything to go by...

I have lived and worked in Germany, albeit many years ago. I found them to be very warm, friendly people with an extremely droll sense of humour and a sense of the absurd - which is probably why they like Monty Python so much. I love their beer, wine and food, and an evening playing darts with a retired Luftwaffe Pilots' Association in Berlin was absolutely priceless.