The French?

[phoenix96]

Originally posted by lightning_8669
Lastly the French played no small part in our nation winning its independence from the British Crown over 200 years ago.

Remember, though, that the France that helped us in the Revolutionary War is not the same France that we deal with today. That was pre-revolution France, and one of the primary factors that is known to have sparked the revolution was the French aid to the US.

[shoden]

Originally posted by Mr. Pockets

That's the first I've heard of any nation offering support to this action 'anonymously.' How would a nation do something anonymously? What's your source for this information?

Here's some information on the "Coalition of the Willing" from a Q & A at The New York Times.

From the Article
Other countries have not been named publicly but are likely members of the coalition. They include Israel, as well as several Arab states that are providing bases or other assistance to the war: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan, Oman, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Egypt.

The article also explains which coalition members have contributed troops, and what their roles are... it's more than just the British, but just barely.

And look at some of the member nations: Afghanistan, Columbia, Nicaragua, Rwanda, Solomon Islands, Uganda... all bastions of democracy and human rights

Also, look at some of the major players supporting us: Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Palau, Solomon Islands... look them up, their militaries hardly exist and they're just there to make the list look longer.

[Beav]

Not that I don't appreciate what France did, say, a couple hundred years ago. But let's temper it with the fact that they were kinda tired of having the Brits kick their butt on the open seas. (I hope I'm right, it seems to me the name Trafalgar is important here... )

Let us also not forget a little skirmish they started in SE Asia that they abandoned and left others to pick up the ball... (I really should take the time to do this right but I'm on my way out the door. I don't dislike the French, just their politics.)

[SVXphile]

OK, if nobody else will do it, I'm going to patch up this spat between the United States and France.

As you know, our two nations are not getting along, as evidenced by the high-level meeting in Paris last week, during which French President Jacques Chirac and U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, in what aides described as''a frank exchange of views,'' bit each other.

Yes, relations are at an all-time low. The French view us as a bunch of fat, simplistic, SUV-driving, gum-chewing, gun-shooting, mall-dwelling, John Wayne cowboys who put ketchup on everything we eat, including breath mints.
Whereas we view the French as a bunch of snotty, hygiene-impaired, pseudo-intellectual, snail-slurping weenies whose sole military accomplishment in the past 100 years was inventing the tasseled combat boot.

Sadly -- as is so often the case when people resort to vicious
stereotypes -- both sides in this dispute are 100 percent correct. But the fact that we hate each other, with good reason, does NOT mean we can't be
friends! After all, the United States and France have a close
relationship that dates back to the Revolutionary War, when we were helped in our struggle for independence by a French person whose name we will never, ever
forget, as long as we have Internet access to the Encyclopedia
Britannica.

Let's see . . . Ladybird, Ladybug, Ladyfinger . . . OK, here it is:
Lafayette. Actually, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica, his full name was -- I am not making this up -- Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Motier, Marquis de Lafayette. As a result, he had a hellish childhood. His mother would lean out the kitchen window and shout: ''Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Motier, Marquis de Lafayette! You get back in here and finish
your snails THIS INSTANT!'' Hearing this, the other French children
would tease Lafayette, calling him ''Marie'' and threatening to brush his teeth.
So as soon as he could, he left France and came to America, where he joinedthe army and told everybody his name was Mark.

From that moment on, France and America were close allies. In 1886, as a
gift symbolizing more than a century of friendship, France gave us the Statue of Liberty; in return, we sent the French 18 tons of jerky, which they claimed was lost in shipping. And the relationship continues to this very day, when, many of the words that we use all the time, such as ''French fries,'' ''French toast,'' ''French kiss,'' ''French poodle'' and ''Chef
Boy-Ar-Dee,'' are, believe it or not, actually of French origin.

We simply cannot allow a close relationship like this to be destroyed because of some silly little dispute over who gets to run the world. That is why today I am calling upon you, my fellow Americans, to ''extend the olive jar'' to our French brothers and sisters and yappy little dogs. I want you
to deliberately approach French people wherever you can find them -- on the street, on the Internet, in the ''Small World'' ride at Disney World, in public restrooms -- and make friendly overtures to them in their own language (French). To help you do this, here is a list of friendly French phrases:

''Bonjour, personne francaise!'' (``Hello, French person!'')

''Je suis un Americain, et, dangue il, je vais vous donner une grande vieille etreinte!'' (``I am an American and, dang it, I am going to give you a big old hug!'')

''Parole! Vous ne sentez pas demi aussi de mauvais que j'ai prevu!'' (``Say! You do not smell half as bad as I expected!'')

''Qui s'inquiete qui court darned le monde?'' (``Who cares who runs the darned world?'')

''Voulez-vous la gomme? Elle ketchup-est assaisonnee!'' (``Do you want gum? It's ketchup-flavored!'')

''Voulez que je vous porte au mail dans mon SUV?'' (``Want me to take you to the mall in my SUV?'')

''Vous pouvez vous rendre au garde de securite!'' (``You can surrender to the security guard!'')

''Ha ha, je suis badiner juste autour hors de l'amiti!'' (``Ha ha, I am just kidding around out of friendship!'')

''Hey, revenez ici!'' (``Hey, come back here!'')

''Il n'y a aucune cause pour l'alarme! Mon pistolet a une surete!''
(``There is no cause for alarm! My gun has a safety!'')

Yes, fellow Americans, with a little effort, we can heal this rift
between us and our old friends. Because, in the end, we have a lot more in common than we do separating us! Or, as the French would say, ''Je suis un grand gros menteur'' (``I am a big fat liar'').
--------------------
I have no idea who wrote this....it just came in my email.
Don

[JeffN]

Originally posted by phoenix96


Remember, though, that the France that helped us in the Revolutionary War is not the same France that we deal with today. That was pre-revolution France, and one of the primary factors that is known to have sparked the revolution was the French aid to the US.

And our revolution was the impetus for France's subsequent revolution and their flag colors.

[SVXphile]

"Let them eat cake!" said the queen.

"Sweetie", replied the king, "Let's not lose our heads about this!"

...and a French culinary dispute leads to revolution.


(Well, we got totally bent out of shape over tea once...)

Don

[Ron Mummert]

Yeah...and I hear Mr. Lafayette eventually moved to Indiana, founded a town, & built a Suby factory in the cornfields. He also established a fine institution of higher learning there called Perdeau.

Ron (Le site historian).

[phoenix96]

Originally posted by JeffN


And our revolution was the impetus for France's subsequent revolution and their flag colors.

Yeah, that's what the last part of what I said is referring to...

[LarryIII]

Originally posted by Ron Mummert
Yeah...and I hear Mr. Lafayette eventually moved to Indiana, founded a town, & built a Suby factory in the cornfields. He also established a fine institution of higher learning there called Perdeau.

Ron (Le site historian).

Oh wise sage of the historical muses, I implore and beseech thee to enlighten my humble trough of knowledge and confirm the following tidbit of lore from yore.

Was not that fine institution of higher learning of which you speak , named Perdue (notice the Anglosized spelling), established so long ago by the Marquis; the first to offer courses in the subject of "Animal Husbandry" specializing in chickens and other notable fowls ?

You guys are absolutely killing me!!!!!

I am truly enjoying this thread. Much more civil than some I've been involved with when it comes down to "world events".

However, I am troubled that our lawmakers have actually taken the time to vote on changing the name of "french fries" to "freedom fries" on the Capitol's cafeteria menu. We PAID for them to do that and I'm only troubled more by how foolish we look, as a nation, for undertaking such lunacy. Might our lawmakers not have something more pressing to do??????

I'm not angry at the French nor am I angry at people who are angry at the French. They, along with anyone else, are completely entitled to their opinion of us and our actions.

Someone a ways back in this thread mentioned that the French have a good business relationship with the Iraqis. Please keep in mind that the United States is the largest consumer of Iraqi oil. Well, at least up until we attacked them.

Please also let us keep in mind that the US has been instrumental in helping the Iraqis develop their WMD programs and may have actually supplied them with much of the needed material. Might explain in part why some are so absolutely sure that Iraq possesses such things.

It's a mess. And some, like the French, Russians and Chinese (to name a few) don't believe bombing the country of Iraq is the way to clean it up.

But I still think the protester is cute. And yes, she is a protester.

Thanks for the humor and civil discussion.

[Mr. Pockets]

Originally posted by lightning_8669
But I still think the protester is cute. And yes, she is a protester.

Let's just talk about that.

Originally posted by Mr. Pockets


Let's just talk about that.

Actually with all the potential problems an SVX can confront an owner with it's a wonder we have time to consider issues of a global nature.

Hey! Wait a minute! I don't own an SVX anymore! Is this what it's going to be like living SVXless?!

But she is cute

[mohrds]

Originally posted by lightning_8669
Hey! Wait a minute! I don't own an SVX anymore! Is this what it's going to be like living SVXless?!

But she is cute

Yes she is cute.

As for the lack of SVX worries, they have passed on to me tenfold. On Tuesday I had to leave work and drive down to the south side of Chicago to rescue Amy after the original top radiator hose blew almost 2 gallons of coolant all over the Indiana Toll Road.

This is less than 12 hours after Mraz had replaced the radiator and "inspected" the hoses. I took my SVX in to Mraz today to get the outer CV boots replaced and I left the ruptured hose in a ziploc bag on the seat for Mraz to review their "inspection" procedures.

It was interesting taking my car after I had just finished installing the engine a few hours earlier all the way from Sheboygan through Chicago and into Indiana. It was certainly a white knuckled drive, but the new engine performed flawlessly in its 500 mile maiden voyage.

Doug

[Mr. Pockets]

Originally posted by mohrds
I left the ruptured hose in a ziploc bag on the seat for Mraz to review their "inspection" procedures.

Classic.

So you have the new engine in and working, huh?

Originally posted by mohrds


Yes she is cute.

As for the lack of SVX worries, they have passed on to me tenfold. On Tuesday I had to leave work and drive down to the south side of Chicago to rescue Amy after the original top radiator hose blew almost 2 gallons of coolant all over the Indiana Toll Road.

This is less than 12 hours after Mraz had replaced the radiator and "inspected" the hoses. I took my SVX in to Mraz today to get the outer CV boots replaced and I left the ruptured hose in a ziploc bag on the seat for Mraz to review their "inspection" procedures.

It was interesting taking my car after I had just finished installing the engine a few hours earlier all the way from Sheboygan through Chicago and into Indiana. It was certainly a white knuckled drive, but the new engine performed flawlessly in its 500 mile maiden voyage.

Doug

Doug,

Sorry to hear about your's and Amy's troubles. I'm surprised the hose went as my GL went 250,000 with the original hoses and clamps. However, it is nice to hear that your new engine is performing for your. A question though, has the TC lock-up issue been resolved with the swap?

As for problems I'm experiencing my share also. But nothing that I haven't been able to exacerbate with the use of a 16Lb. sledge hammer. Of course I still have the 4' x 6' hole in my bathroom floor but hey, a little concrete, a little tile, some caulk and maybe some duct tape and, viola!, good as new.

By the way, the protester is one cute chick! I don't care what you say