Americans

ds says on Aug 19, 2006, 14:06:

Read yourself to learn why! "site and its pissing me off.." "greastest country in the world" ". "I would never desprect anyones country"

Kind regards!

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njtea5 says on Aug 19, 2006, 14:17:

ds ? I dont understand your point.. If you are going to qoute what I say please explain the point and the wrong in what i said... Thinking I live in a great country isn't a bad thing. And if loving the country that I live makes me an asshole back stabber "fruitloop" (what ever that means) I guess I am or maybe the people that would say that about me are ignorant... So DS please exspand on your comment homie...

Kind regards!

Memo...

p.s
whats wrong with being pissed off...and its looks like i spelled disrepect wrong sorry for the typo

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jaramillo says on Aug 19, 2006, 15:13:

There are a few other typos negitive
greastest
proff
proofing (that's more ignorance than a typo)
my family and I (family and ME, I believe)
anyones

Take a look before acusing others of being careless.

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jaramillo says on Aug 19, 2006, 15:14:

There are a few extras Oh well...

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juanalejo says on Aug 19, 2006, 15:29:

njtea5 A law of physics states that every action generates a reaction. So if there were not so many "Estadounidenses",(it is politically incorrect for many in Colombia to say Americans), bitching and bitching about Colombia in this Colombian site, then the anti-"Estadounidense" sentiment would not flourish so often. Also for many of your compatriots it is not that they THINK they live in the greatest country in the world, they actually want to convince the rest of the world about it and here it is where there is a problem.

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njtea5 says on Aug 19, 2006, 16:50:

Jaramillo Sorry about the spelling, I was always bad at spelling.. Anyway I think people might think I have something against Colombia and that is far from the truth... My parents are from Cali.. So that is not true at all... All i am doing is defending the USA thats it.. I am not better then any Colombia because I am from the States.. I love Colombia, I relly do... I dont agree with the U.S politics most the time... I think Colombian people are great.. I just will not sit back and have people smack talk my Country.. People are the same every where there is nice people in Colombia and there are nice people in the States, The are bad people in Colobia and bad people in the states...

Ok there are most likely allot of typos if it makes you feel better to point them out and post it be my guest..

One Love!!!

Memo Vasquez

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jaramillo says on Aug 19, 2006, 17:29:

Hey Memo I see your point. BTW, I'm prone to typos myself.

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tomtom33 says on Aug 19, 2006, 18:29:

Gee, Juan, this site is about Colombia. Isn't it? What else would I bitch about here?

Methinks that some Colombians have thin skins. I have only lived here for 3 years. Many of my complaints arise from my shortcomings. I haven't had a lifetime to figure out Colombia.

The US will never be perfect. We have many problems, but I am more accustomed to those problems. And I will admit to having a thin skin concerning some comments made about the US and its citizens. Regardless of what Skippy thinks, we are not all a herd of loudmouth dorks in shorts.

I have voted with my feet. I spend more time in Colombia each year than I do in the US.

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Juanes says on Aug 20, 2006, 04:41:

funny comments jamarillo & ds guys, your threads cracked me up - siempre ustedes tomando el pelo.......

juanes en londres

http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Juanes/

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Juanes says on Aug 20, 2006, 04:54:

estados unidos - el presidente no ayuda la situaccion alla... well juanelo has made some interesting points really. sometimes i get the impression to that people from the states dont seem too concerned about how good life is in other countries or what goes on in them or what those other nations can bring to the table. a lot of the time they do try to convince people that US is best and number one and maybe they dont/wont listen or believe too much the negative aspects of the US culture.

that all said, they certainly are a patriotic bunch though ! i would rank them up there in the top five countries in the world for this but at the world cup in germany where i was for 4 weeks watching those over paid english guys mess up i thought the US had the worse fans out of the whole tournament for singing, entertainment, drinking, etc.

one final point is that i think the respect america commands from the international community and especially latin america and europe has diminished a hell of a lot over the last 10 or so years maybe due to US foreign policy. when i was starting university here in 1989 the US had a lot of attraction for graduates and people maybe used to aspire to their quality of life. i think therefore because they dont have the same reputation there comes the negative attitude from johnny foreginer....but a lot of americans i think are disgruntled at the path the US has been going down under the bush administration

http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Juanes/

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tomtom33 says on Aug 20, 2006, 06:33:

No matter what your foreign policy is many people(nationals and foreigners) are not going to like it. In fact, I doubt that any one person is going to like every aspect of the foreign policy of any country. The only true judge of event is history. In 50 or so years we can pass definitive judgement. I believe that history will be more kind to the US than the Democrats or the French would have you believe.

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Juanes says on Aug 20, 2006, 07:21:

ringodiego los siento amigo, tu escribiste un poco mal..

me llamo - masculino
me llama - feminino

unless your a part of the transexuales grupo...

http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Juanes/

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juanalejo says on Aug 20, 2006, 07:41:

Tomtom Just like I said look at your reaction, I don´t mind the bitching if you guys were not so thin skinned either. You people tend to not care one bit about respecting my country because your "freedom" of expression entitles you say what ever about it. But then you get on the defensive side when it comes to other people´s "freedom" of expression regarding your country.

Let me tell you, I lived several years in your country and among several things I did not like personally, the one I liked the least was unability to argue my point of view without being treated as a foreigner that is insulting your perfect nation. Most people I know in the USA, just tell me to ignore that attitude, that the key to living peacefully in the USA is to ignore politics and avoid saying much about them. So much for the land of the free. That attitude must change if you ever want to expect respect from other others abroad. For that you must understand that the culture here is different and must be respected for that, not better not worse but simply different, and I can assure you half of the bitching will stop, it is very easy to see that the bitching comes almost exclusively from those from your country, other nationalities tend to see the better over the worse, wonder why?

So if you do not like being called a gringo well sorry, as I among many in Latinamerica, do not feel comfortable calling you American. So get over it, if you want to be called American go to Europe and then we are all happy.

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juanalejo says on Aug 20, 2006, 08:13:

Dongringo Here we go again, please feel free to think what ever you want, if you think it is a fact rather than your opinion well please your self, you will never convince me about it.

If I ever had to move to another country yours would be the last, not because it does not have lots of good things and good people, but basically because the general attitude is far to close to yours.

And please do the world a favour, go back to your country and do something about your poltiicians and the way they spend your tax dollars. I have told you this many times, I still can not understand why your still making your life miserable around here if you can be living in "paradise".

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Simon says on Aug 20, 2006, 08:26:

"OK now you have a problem with this? In my time here Colombians have been doing this to me since the day I stepped foot here. So why is it that a person can not be proud of their country and want to convice everyone that it is the greatest country in the world?

I see it here all the time, it is normal. But an American (oh and yes that is politically correct to say in the entire rest of the world when describing a person from the USA) is not allowed to because of one reason. You and everyone else who has a problem with it knows it is a fact and not just an opinion therefor it bothers the sh&t out of you! jajaja If not then I fail to see any difference in what this guy said about his country USA)and what I hear spoken everyday in Colombia by Colombians about Colombia."

------------------------------------------------------


Don Gringo,


First of all, it is NOT politically correct to say "American" in Colombia to refer only to the USA. Read this and educate yourself a little bit:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Use_of_the_word_American



Secondly, whether the US is the "greatest country" is not a fact, it's an opinion!

Colombians in Colombia have ALL THE RIGHT to convince people that Colombia is the best beacuse they are in their own country! Just like you 'gringos' are in all your right to to do same while you are in your own country! Colombians also have the right to do so on a website about THEIR COUNTRY! Just like if this was a site about the USA (RichButMiserable?), it would be natural for the gringos to be bragging over their country. It's rude for "gringos' to be saying things like that in a website like this, which is not about their country. Don't they teach you people any manners over there?

"Tu vas a ver, llegaras a mi edad y veras que Colombia seguira igual"-----Simon Sr.

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juanalejo says on Aug 20, 2006, 08:56:

Tinto You are absolutely right, maybe one day when this board quits the bitching about Colombia I might even tell MrG to bring me back a can of corned beef hash which I have run out of.

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Juanes says on Aug 20, 2006, 08:59:

ooh simon says...... ok mate a bit strong against our US allies, dont forget we are the poodle here. who gives a damn about politically correct when there are much more problems in the world to be sorted like famine & health (if only the rich west was to spend a fraction of the time/money on politically correct laws and regulations then in africa, south america & asia those people would be much better off). i cant wait to get out of damn politically correct london city & england which is making a mockery of what people can and cannot say and everything you do or say is recorded, on video & people are consistently fined or facing charges for not poltically correct behaviour in the workplace or in public places.

take some of the comments on here a bit more lightly too cos loads of PBH members like to wind each other up and post funny or controversial comments......and what you said about american isnt right either cos in spanish you can say america del norte, americanos, estados unidos...if you want to refer to all the people in the 3 american continents you can say la gente en las americas. if only us westerners we to follow the latin path of machismo a little more then we wouldnt be preoccupied with 'PC' behaviour. im sure as larry that you would have a never ending task of bringing our PC values into the latin culture anyway.

politically correctness is rubbish and has gone way to far, how can you shorten peoples names from all over the world into nicknames but be a racist when it is directed towards pakistan..........

aussie - australia
argie - argentina
brit - british
scot - scottish
canuck - canadian
itai - italien

all of the above are ok to say apart from that one country, what a joke. no flying of the st georges flag during the world cup because it may offend other people not of english persuasion, no regional language to be used by council employees in the north east of england because some people may deem it overfriendly and offensive such as 'you alright pet', 'dont worry about that love/ducky'.

GET A GRIP ON YOUR PRIORITIES BUSH & BLAIR....

juanes en londres

http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Juanes/

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utopiacowboy says on Aug 20, 2006, 09:37:

It's a shame that you can't persuade the other 600,000 Colombians in the US to leave with you, Juanalejo. Unfortunately the vast majority think coming here is the best thing that's ever happened to them and they'd cheerfully bring another 600,000 to live here with them. PBSH is probably the only place you'll hear this kind of carping.

Disclaimer: any comment I make is inane and is not to be taken seriously, and is so patently ridiculous that no one should take it seriously, even as an insult.

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juanalejo says on Aug 20, 2006, 09:44:

UC Yes fortunatelly I am not one of those who had to leave for money, and not only to the USA but also to Venezuela, to Costa Rica, to Panama, to Spain, to France, to Italy, to the UK, etc. Lots of people left because they needed jobs and money. Some crossed by foot, some got on a plane and some married foreigners. Isn´t a shame. Now happy? Well it not what I hear from them, most of them would come back if the economic conditions here would provide them what their host countries are offering them.

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David in Idaho says on Aug 20, 2006, 11:02:

me llamo ... me llama ... not gender related Sorry Juanes, the difference between Me llamo an Me llama has nothing to do with masculing and feminine. Of course, the o and a refer to this in nouns and adjectives. But llamar is a verb, and the difference between o and a refers to 1st and 3rd person singular conjugation in the present tense. So, to say Me llamo David literally means "I call myself David." And to say Me llama David would be "He/she/it calls me David." Obviously the first one is the way one states their name, but the second one would be correct too, in it's own context. If someone asked me, "David, what does your friend call you?" I could respond with "Me llama David."

Sorry, I'm a Spanish teacher and just had to point that out. Not to pick on you Juanes - not at all, but just so other readers not so familiar with Spanish don't get confused.

Also it isn't "los siento" but rather "lo siento, tú también escribiste un poco mal".

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njtea5 says on Aug 20, 2006, 11:44:

Juan You should really be more open minded if you represent Colombians then you are doing an awful job you need to be more open minded homey.. And as far as Colombians in the USA that would come back you dont know shit my mother and father both from Cali, Colombia dont want to move back they love Colombia but just dont want to live their and they have the money to live where ever they want without having to work another day in thier lives same goes for the 40 plus family members I have living in the USA... So Juan don't just say things without any type of back up.. And this website is about Colombia and this issue is with Colombians and Americans... I love Colombia, I love most Colombians, I love the USA and love most Americans... I am not trying to Convince anyone that the USA is the best Country I am just voicing my thoughts its free Country....

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arthur brode says on Aug 20, 2006, 11:50:

Yes,the U.S. is the greatest country in the World that is always getting into Wars,dont care about its own Citizens with over 2 million North Americans incarcerated and 45 million without health insurance...what a joke! Its funny how North Americans refer to themselves the "Policemen of the World" when the rest of the World calls them "the Bullies of the World" And Yes,Latinos are offended when you refer to yourself as "American" but then again,what do you care?Your best bet would be to say that you are from somewhere else(like Canada).Many people from other countries do not think too highly of North Americans.

http://www.calirentals.net/

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Simon says on Aug 20, 2006, 13:25:

njtea5Dude, I don't know njtea5


Dude, I don't know what you're talking about. I have several family members who have moved back to Colombia from the USA. Quit making stupid broad statements like "Colombians don't want to move back", because that is a lie. Some do, other's don't.

And just like you can express your opinion, so can I express mine about Colombia being the best country in the world.

"Tu vas a ver, llegaras a mi edad y veras que Colombia seguira igual"-----Simon Sr.

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David in Idaho says on Aug 20, 2006, 13:53:

silly debate if you ask me This is about as lame as our previous discussion about which city has the best looking women. Since when was "the best" an objectively measurable quality? If you're going to compare countries, you ought to stick to factually concrete criteria. The US is bigger than Colombia. The US has more Spanish speakers than Colombia. The US is located farther north than Colombia. Colombia produces more cocaine than the US. The US consumes more cocaine than Colombia.

If you want to say that one is the best, you must realize this is your personal opinion, which you are obviously entitled to. But your point of view is no more or less valid than mine, or anyone else. Stop trying to prove your point, be it for Colombia, the US, or timbuckfuckingtu. Your opinion will never be a fact, and therefore can never be proved.

I happen to think bluegrass is the best music in the world. But I won't argue with you if you claim hip hop to be the best. It may very well be the best in YOUR world, but not MINE.

Of course, Colombia has the best women in the world, and that is a concrete fact. :)

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famsearch says on Aug 20, 2006, 14:37:

all i know.... i've heard the proper way to call americans is norteamericanos. but on to other things. having been born here in the u.s., i'd say we have a pretty good thing going on here. sure, we may still be the new country on the block, only being a country for 230 years, we haven't had the centuries that other countries have had to smooth off the rough edges, but give us time. are we brash, yes, are we opinionated, well, show me an american who says they aren't opinionated, and i'll show you someone lying through thier teeth. now ol' art says we're always getting into wars, let's see, there were 2 world wars that we got pulled into, after letting folks know we were decidedly neutral, and even then, we got into it after they got the first punch in. they may have started it, but we decicively finish it both times. even after the second world war, as horrific as it was, we extended helping hands to both injured allies, and former enemies. moving on to korea, that was a u.n. affair, and who did the u.n. turn to for the lion's share of men and material? well, t'weren't belgium. not to forget vietnam, that was a case of us helping an ally, france, who then took off and left us holding the bag. afghanistan? well, after sept. 11, 2001, i'm sure there weren't too many of us here that wanted to fight them here, rather than where al-qaida lives. as for iraq, i'm still waiting for the smoke to clear. he also mentions the number of folks we have in jail, around 2 million he said, and it sounds about right. but then again, you have to take into account the difference in the populations of the u.s. and colombia. as for the folks in jail, i'm pretty certain they did something somewhere, got caught for it, and are serving out thier punishment. it's not as if we have people "disappeared" for political views, like argentina. now, for being as pushed around as we are, we are still a very generous country. even with our budgets far exceeding what we take in, we still send out over $12 billion in aid to other countries. never to be returned, never to be paid back, and that's every year. i cannot count the number of countries who have defaulted with the world bank, and oh yes, we're the ones who contribute more than the combined amount of other countries to that organization too. juanalejo says you can't express your opinion without getting the "damned fer'ner" treatment. i say, get out of the cities! get out of new york, miami, los angeles, they are not the real america. get right in the middle, or what the easterners call flyover country, and you'll find the real america. in our family, we have colombians who have come up here, loved it, and have been here for over 40 years now, and some who have come up, initially loved it here, but homesickness, missing friends and family, and things not expected, take a toll, and some have gone back to colombia. face it, it happens. i wouldn't mind at all, retiring in colombia, but there would be times where i would be happier in late august, munching on a pronto pup at the state fair. but that's life. i ramble on a bit, and i do apologize, but when it comes to this country of ours, that holds out the helping hand to friend and foe alike, no matter how we are treated in the u.n. by those recipients, who is the first on site at a disaster, natural or man-made, asking how can we help, the place where so many people are beating a path to our doors, that the immigration services are slowed to almost a crawl, i think we're doing pretty much ok, and we may not be as bad as some make us out to be...
dan

dan

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Simon says on Aug 20, 2006, 16:52:

"The US has more Spanish speakers than Colombia."


I doubt this, man. Not all hispanics in the US can speak spanish fluently. Actually, only about half the latinos on the US can speak spanish at all, and that's about 20 million people.

"Tu vas a ver, llegaras a mi edad y veras que Colombia seguira igual"-----Simon Sr.

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utopiacowboy says on Aug 20, 2006, 17:01:

You're right, Simon, but perhaps not for too much longer. As of 2000, there were 28.1 million Spanish speakers in the US, a number which has surely grown in the past 6 years but is probably still less than Colombia's population.

Thanks, David in Idaho, for pointing out the error in the whole "me llamo" thing. I told my wife about that post and she thought it was absurd. Of course this is PBSH with the emphasis on the BS.

And for everyone else, oh yeah, well my ass is bigger than your ass, so there!

Disclaimer: any comment I make is inane and is not to be taken seriously, and is so patently ridiculous that no one should take it seriously, even as an insult.

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David in Idaho says on Aug 20, 2006, 17:21:

I could certainly be wrong But I based that on something I read in the paper a few years back, that the US was the second largest nation of Spanish speakers, with only Mexico having more. If UTC has more accurate data, I concur. And let this be an example of an actual topic that can be argued, supported, and finally proven to all parties.

I just did a quick Google search and it looks like whoever wrote the article I read had a pretty screwy sense of statistics. It looks like Spain, Argentina and Colombia also have more than the US. I also asked Google which one was the "best" country. My computer crashed trying to comprehend the question.

As for the whole "me llamo" thing, I am always happy to clarify grammatical issues. Call me a nerd, but I enjoy teaching Spanish and English. Any other confusing aspects of either language? I welcome your inquiries and will try my best to make up a satisfactory explanation.

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David in Idaho says on Aug 20, 2006, 19:01:

your or you're "unless your part of the transexuals group."

Sorry Juanes, but if YOU'RE going to call people on their errors, you better take another look at YOUR errors.

Look closely at the above use of "you're" (a contraction of "you are" with the following Spanish tranlastions: "tú eres/estás" and "ustedes son/están," as well as the vosotros forms we don't bother with here.)

Now look at the use of "your" (a possesive adjective, meaning "belonging to you" with the translations of "tu" (no accent) or "su.")

But don't feel too bad. A huge number of native speakers make this error every day. I am one English teacher who notices it all the time, but I only step in and correct when someone asks for it either directly, or by criticizing others' language while not using it very well yourself.

So, if YOU'RE not perfect, admit it and keep YOUR posts humble. I say this for your own protection, to spare you from looking like a silly, misguided, not very well educated asshole.

Now, to redeem yourself, give me a sentence using THERE, THEIR, AND THEY'RE and I'll let you off the hook. No cheating.

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famsearch says on Aug 20, 2006, 20:22:

hmm... there were two chickens, nesting in a coop,
someone plucked their feathers,
and now they're in the soup. =)
dan

dan

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tomtom33 says on Aug 20, 2006, 21:08:

Juanalejo "...the one I liked the least was unability to argue my point of view without being treated as a foreigner that is insulting your perfect nation..."

I generally don't bother giving a point of view on politics or religion. There is such a diversity of opinion in the US that there is rarely agreement. And I don't bother with such opinions concerning Colombia, either.

And you can feel free to call me a Gringo or any other name you choose.

I'll be damned if I can figure out how you can take offense at my complaints about some of your bureaucracy and your banking system. There is so much redundancy and inefficiency that it is mind numbing. And I cite specific facts and actual situations. If you choose to interpret this as me saying that the US is better, that is your problem. What I am saying is that this particular situation is bullshit. Don't be so defensive.

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David in Idaho says on Aug 20, 2006, 21:12:

estadounidense Like all nationalities ending with -ense, like estadounidense and canadiense, there is no gender distinction made. Estadounidenso/a doesn't exist. Actually, this is true for all adjectives that end in -e (inteligente, grande, picante, chévere) and consonants (joven, mortal).

I couldn't tell if you were actually asking for clarification of to, too, two, and of course tu/tú. If so ...

to = preposition (esp. = a) I am going to Colombia. Voy a Colombia.
too = adverb (demasiado) and conjuction (también). This is not too difficult, but you must practice it too.
two = the number 2 (dos)
tú = the pronoun "you" second person, singular, informal. Tú eres muy guapa.
tu = the posesive adjective "your" as in Your grammar isn't so bad.

Any other questions for the grammar nazi?

Dan, did you make that up or steal it from Mother Goose? Either way, that's a keeper.

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njtea5 says on Aug 20, 2006, 23:04:

Simon My Man OK I never said that all Colombians are happy in the US i just said that my 30 plus family members in the US are happier here!!!!! They are all Colombian born and raised and prefer the U.S so if you want to speak to for them you really can not.... I am not your dude Simon and please dont put words in my mouth.....

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famsearch says on Aug 20, 2006, 23:17:

just for you dave... an oyster met an oyster,
and they were oysters two,
two oysters met two oysters,
and they were oysters too,
four oysters met a pint of cream,
and they were oyster stew,
por ti!

also, all this grousing about being able to express one's opinion reminds me of an old joke, about an american and a russian (soviet era), being able to freely...

a.c.:we can express our opinions freely here! i can stand in front of the white house and yell that reagan is an idiot. whereas you cannot do this in moscow.

s.c.:oh yes! i can do that! i too can get up in the middle of red square and yell at the top of my lungs that your president reagan is an idiot!

remember, as long as you remember, that you occupy a rather smallish area of a medium sized planet, in a smallish sized solar system, on the edge of a medium sized galaxy, spinning around in a rather large universe, that in the grand scheme of things, arguing over what we call each other isn't worth the air used to argue about it. even in beautiful colombia, people refer to each other by various nicknames based on appearance. i carry a couple of extra pounds, but i've been called "mi gordito", the one sister in law there is called "flacita" because she is thin. i've seen darker colombians refered to as "mi negro". city people call the mountain people monteñeros, and not always in a nice way, and i'm sure the mountain people have a name for the city folks too. i've been called "mi gringo" by my wife, and a polack by my german uncle, but there is no offense taken. so people, lighten up just a little...

dan

dan

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. says on Aug 21, 2006, 00:49:

Well.... "Number of Colombians moving to 'AMERICA', versus
Number of 'AMERICANS' moving to Colombia. Where are those stats?""

Just wait until Colombia legalize the Drugs, Colombia will be overcrowd of Gringos!

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. says on Aug 21, 2006, 01:08:

Well..... I agreed to famsearch when saying that every one has the right to call anyone in any way if this is not a treat, I have been called "orejon" (Big hears)all my life, but it is fine for me, my mom is called "negra" or "negrita" because she got a dark skin, and she likes being called like that.

On the other hand, I do not agree to someone else who writes or claims on this post, to be an american, when she or he is not able even to write with the right grammar. One thing is to write wrongly a couple of words, and another thing is to write a comment with a really horrible grammar which makes the comment as difficult to understand that could be the enviousness of the Davinci Code, but he or she claims to be an american, probably got the American Citizen a couple of weeks ago and now want to show off. To get the United state Citizenship, a person usually needs 10 year of living in the States, have not you done an English course over there? 10 have not been enough to to improve it? What a shame!

My english grammar is disgusting and my spelling is horrible but in your case is just....., how ever, I am Colombian.

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famsearch says on Aug 21, 2006, 03:17:

as far as nicknames go... my wife has saddled me with more nicknames/petnames than i can shake a stick at, mi:amor, vida, corazon, cajita de sorpresas, peluche, and the list goes on. she really threw me a curve when she signed off her latest email, tu blanquita esposita. i kind of figured out the esposita, but the blanquita part left me scratching my head. so, like any good, confused gringo husband, i asked my colombiana/cubana sis in law what it was about. she said it was a diminutive of her name. her given name is blanca, hence blanquita. sis in law's given name is raquel, but in colombia is called quelita. i'd be happy to leave it at just plain old gringo, but i guess my wife will come up with a few more to call me in the future, but hopefully not late for dinner.
dan

dan

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. says on Aug 21, 2006, 05:11:

Ringodiego In the 1930s, People in USA used to say what you are saying (it will never happen) about the alcohol! and now it is legal!

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. says on Aug 21, 2006, 05:18:

Ringodiego In the 1930s, people in the USA used to say what you are saying and now the alcohol is 100% legal and can be found in any supermarket across USA. Alcapone must be laughing about it in the hell.

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njtea5 says on Aug 21, 2006, 08:04:

Al Capone 2 words.. Sorry my friend Big Ears if coca was legal the americans would just grow it here.. The reason we don't grow it here is my our Government is very on top of those activities...They treat people that sell Coca the same as murders.... Green Rooms trust me it would be good shit....

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Rubiazo says on Aug 21, 2006, 10:21:

You can't grow coca here it is very sensitive to climate change. The weather in North America is just too variable. It really only grows well in the Andes.

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juanalejo says on Aug 21, 2006, 10:46:

njtea5 Am I missing something here? Is pot legal now in the USA? Because my understanding is that lots of pot is grown in West Virginia and California.

"They treat people that sell Coca the same as murders" and they treat people who buy it like poor souls, what a bunch of hypocrits. But then again it is the blacks and latins who sell it and the whites who buy it......oh I found the answer.

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Tinto (Moderator) says on Aug 21, 2006, 11:02:

Just say NO to drugs or you might end up like Boy George, picking up trash in New York City. Hehe.

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. says on Aug 21, 2006, 12:01:

Well.... what ever!

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njtea5 says on Aug 21, 2006, 12:17:

Juan You are so clueless pot is legal my big ear friend.. They grow the hell out of it... San Francisco has Weed Clubs...So I dont get it... And I mean if Coca was legal then big companies would design green rooms to make it in the USA.... And are you suggesting that only black and latinos sell drugs? In my hood Italians run the drugs and in San francisco asians are the dealers there... What a racist statement Juan! I am Latino and take huge offence to that stupid comment.. And are you calling white people poor souls? Are defending drug selling? Have you lived in the USA? Just quit typing you are making a fool of yourself....one love

Memo Vasquez

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Lostgringo says on Aug 21, 2006, 13:26:

The Good Old USA I see nothing wrong with anyone thinking their country is the best country in world. It is subjective for the most part. First, let me start by saying that I have allot of American relatives and that my father was an American. I am however, Canadian. Secondly, I "think" that the USA is a great country. Yet, I would argue that it "may" not be the best country. Nobody has defined what "best" means and that is important. Does best mean their democracy and freedom are the best. May they are more patriotic than others. Actually I think almost all Americans like to wave their flag. But I have seen this kind of dedication in other countries too.

Anyway, what really gets me going are those Americans who have their heads in the sand and when they come up for air they start bragging. And, they say stuff without knowing what in the world they are talking about. For example, famsearch feels that we should all be grateful to the United States for coming in and saving the world from Hitler in WW2. Please give us a break. This was not an altruistic act on the part of the USA.

First, you need not go far to see the profiteering that was done at that time by the USA (see this URL http://www.acsa.net/ibm_and_hitler.htm). They profiteered on backs of the young men and woman who took up arms and fought against Hitler and his band of thugs. Many of these brave souls died in the process before the USA got involved in WW2.

It is true what famsearch says about the USA being neutral. But what he fails to mention is that the USA was dealing directly with Hitler for monitory gain. Yes, the USA sat back and stayed "neutral." And some of the biggest companies in the US actually had business dealings directly with Hitler while he was killing the English, French, Australians and Canadians to mention but few. Look no further than IBM. So famsearch don't sit with your pompous attitude and say the US "saved" the world like it was something benevolent they had done. Truth is, they would have continued to profit from the war, if the raid at Pearl Harbor not been carried out.

I have nothing against Americans. In fact I like them. And nothing against the government (l leave that up Americans). But people like famsearch and others (I won't mention) here on PBH, refuse to look at the facts. In my opinion this Holyer than Thow attitude only gives the USA a bad rep. If you are really proud of your country learn it's history! That's all I wanted to say on the subject.

Your Home Away from Home www.welovebogota.com and www.apartmentinbogota.com "Luxury apartments and rooms Cheap" Only 2 blocks from the American Embassy! 24/7 hour security.

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Mr. Hollywood says on Aug 21, 2006, 14:20:

My two cents I just think anyone who says "greatest country in the world" is asking for trouble whether they're talking about the US, Colombia, Liberia or North Korea.

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njtea5 says on Aug 21, 2006, 14:30:

I actually take that back, regret writing that, I was trying to prove a point that people should not knock on other peoples up bringings... I didn't mean that everyone should think USA is the greatest country in the world... Some times I cant stand the USA...

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Mr. Hollywood says on Aug 21, 2006, 14:36:

Look at it this way The US has the jobs. The US has the money. The US has military might. The US has Nike and Microsoft and Coke; Shaquile O'Neal and George Clooney and Angelina Jolie...

Of course a lot of people hate us. Big fucking deal. Open yourself another tasty microbrew and move on.

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arthur brode says on Aug 21, 2006, 15:21:

famsearch then wtf do you call the invasion of Panama?and you were deceived into this war by your own President.face it,you live in a Bully country.and you say we spend 12 billion in aid to other countries?then why cant we spend that 12 billion on our own Citizens that need it more?i will tell you why,because the U.S. really dont give a at #%! about their own Citizens.they care more about the rich.famsearch, its 300 million(U.S. population) divided by 2 million(pop.incarcerated)equals 1 out of every 150 Citizens is incarcerated.no other country even comes close to that ratio......."Houston,we have a problem".and the "real america is in the middle"what a joke!the middle is a bunch of Jesus Freaks,like Bush.if it wasnt for N.Y. and L.A. you wouldnt exist.

http://www.calirentals.net/

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griffbos says on Aug 21, 2006, 15:29:

Colombians are moving back njtea5 many colombians are moving back from the USA in the past year I have had 20 of my colombian friends move back for they are tried of dealing with racism in the USA. AS for me I love Colombia even thou I was born here in the USA and my great grand parnets come to the USA from Ireland, I think Colombia is one of the greatest countries on the world, as for the USA it was once a great country but has become a cesspool of corruption.

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rocinante says on Aug 21, 2006, 15:32:

Tim ARTHUR: Knights! Forward!
[boom boom boom boom BOOM boom boom boom boom]
What manner of man are you that can summon up fire without flint
or tinder?
TIM: I... am an enchanter.
ARTHUR: By what name are you known?
TIM: There are some who call me... Tim?

For the record, in Jackson Heights and UnionCity/West New York The Colombians that want to stay in the US have been out of Colombia for 10+ years and the ones who want to retrun home (if they could) have been here for less than 7 years.

The Colombian woman married to a guy in England and has been living there for a good deal of time is proof of this - I forget her name. I speculate that more than 60% of Colombianos living in the US would prefer being back in ther own country but can't for monetary reasons.


Also I think Dan "famsearch" is a retired sailor - not that there's anything wrong with that.

"World economic indicators point to a democrat winning 2008. It will surely be Obama. Peso 1400 by November" Feb 5, 2008

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rocinante says on Aug 21, 2006, 15:41:

David in Idaho What do you think of 2nd language acquisition in adult learners using communicative strategy in an informal environment vs. grammar in a controlled environment? What do you think of Stephen Krashen and Monitor theory? How is it possible to measure i+1 and what is necessary, in your opinion for effective intake?

I am of the opinion that grammar in a formal environment that slowly transitions to communicative strategy is the best and fastest way to acquire L2 as an adult. I think the monitor always needs to be present after utterances and then over time, if the student gains confidence and is motivated the monitor needs to diminish otherwise it becomes a hindrance.

I am interested in hearing your opinion on this matter.

"World economic indicators point to a democrat winning 2008. It will surely be Obama. Peso 1400 by November" Feb 5, 2008

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David in Idaho says on Aug 21, 2006, 15:55:

Rocinante Fantastic questions ...

This merits a full response, or perhaps even its own thread. I'm out the door to go teach my evening class, but will address this later tonight. Thanks for such a thoughtul inquiry!

I am a big Steven (Stephen?) Krashen fan, and strong advocate of Communicative Language instruction in general. For starters, I think we are certainly on the same side of this issue.

More later,

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famsearch says on Aug 21, 2006, 16:22:

american history, from a canadian viewpoint... oh to be lectured on american history, by canadians, and fake canadians at that. if you want the real canada, you need go no further than quebec. the original canada, or as it was known at the time as neuvelle france, was french through and through, until the english, who in my opinion, have done more damage to people around the world than america ever could, african slave trade, repression in india, originators of the concept of concentration camps in south africa, and the uprooting of the citizens of acadia (that's nova scotia for those that don't know), burning homes, churches, and towns. most acadians went to louisiana, and eventually became cajuns. also, not forgetting the opression of the eskimo peoples of northern canada for openers. you think i don't know my own country's history? about how roosevelt's shoot on sight policy was in place long before dec 7th? sure we did business with germany, with italy, even with japan until the invasion of china and the rape of nanking. we did business with just about every country in the world, and ya know what, we still do. well, ol frankie says it's a bit pompous to say that the u.s. pretty much saved democracy in ww2. let's look at how the other bulwarks of democracy were doing when we got caught up in it. france, overrun and occupied, actively collaborating with germany. england, bankrupt and teetering, but hanging on with help via lend/lease. czechoslovakia, my oops, they were divvied up by germany, with help from england and france. poland, overrun by germany, fought hard while england and france sat on their hands. as for canada, never really was seen as a power to be reckoned with, so never came close to getting an undeclared, pre-emptive strike on it's navy. i don't remember canada being called the arsenal of democracy either, so, i think it's not too pompous to say we hauled more than a few allied chestnuts out of the fire. now frankie, you also mentioned ibm. i have the book about those dealings, ibm and the holocaust. from the late 20's on, ibm was everywhere. if a country needed a census done, ibm had the hardware solution. census processing was ibm's specialty at the time. ibm had the corner on the machines and the cards, and had offices in every european country, even russia. before the war, sure they made good profits, wouldn't expect anything less. but after the war started, ibm germany was nationalized, and in every country they occupied, one of the first things done was to nationalize the local ibm structure. so, after 1939, ibm was cut off from revenue from germany, poland czechoslovakia, france, austria, etc., so not much in the way of profit from europe during the war years.

now on to my old friend art. panama, the canal, we negotiated it with the gov't of panama at the time, we financed it, we built it, and had a really long term lease on it, until jimmy carter gave it away to noriega. how many people do you think, when a small time dictator like that, thinks he's gonna shut down a world commercial chokepoint like the canal, are gonna stand around and just say, ok? not too many i think. now on to the 2 million in prison. art, have you ever stopped to think, and i know that's asking a lot, that those 2 million people in prison kinda did something to land in prision, or do you think people are being picked up willy-nilly off the streets and put in prison? if someone killed your parents, would you want them in prison, or walking the streets? if they stole your car, would you want them in prison, or walking the streets? if they beat you over the head with a pipe and robbed you, would you want them in prison, or walking the streets?

a quote just for you ringo, there are lies, damned lies, and statistics. mark twain

sorry roci, the closest i've ever been to being a sailor, retired or otherwise, was when i had my sailboat. lol

dan

dan

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tomtom33 says on Aug 21, 2006, 17:10:

Panama Canal I thought that I'd mention that the US negotiated the canal with the government of Panama after we "stole" Panama from Colombia. Seems that Colombia didn't want the US to build the canal. Entonces... Some people living on the isthmus declared independence from Colombia. Colombia was persuaded to let them by the presence of US gunboats off the coast, gunboat diplomacy.

That strike by Japan wasn't exactly undeclared. We had declared economic war on Japan years earlier. But we had some pretty good reasons for doing so.

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arthur brode says on Aug 21, 2006, 17:24:

famsearch Noriega was kidnapped from his own Country and brought to the U.S. on drug charges.famsearch,tell me,why was Noriega going shut down the Canal?The Canal makes money for Panama.famsearch,whether they deserve it or not is irrelevant.all i know is that there is something wrong with a Country that has 1 out of every 150 of its Citizens incarcerated.

http://www.calirentals.net/

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njtea5 says on Aug 21, 2006, 17:46:

60% of colombians living in the US want to move back to colombia where is that stated...come on please dont throw out false stats!!! I love Colombia!!!!!!

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juanalejo says on Aug 21, 2006, 18:15:

njtea5 I think you need a reading comprehension course before you continue rambling about.

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njtea5 says on Aug 21, 2006, 18:51:

about? About what Juan? are you going to finish that sentence? How dumb are you to say something like that and not even complete your sentence.. Wow thats embrassing for you!!! Just quit homes...

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