[Herk]

Just an observation, but I haven't yet noticed any talk of a German Boycott. France, yeah, but honestly, what the hell do they produce that would handicap their economy without American consumers? Wine? Cheese?

But Germany... BMW, Volkswagen, Mercedes, Green Hats with Feathers, shorts with suspenders, BEER, H&K, Glock, etc. Or is the thought of boycotting M3s and POSsats just to "taboo" for the American people to even contemplate?

Or, am I missing something on the German side? I almost get the feeling that everyone is letting Germany slide on this one. But why? I understand we have quite a few troops over there. Heck, I was one of them in the early 90's, and I love Germany and the people, but I still don't get it.

What am I missing?

[The Nip]

Because wants surpass needs.

Most major internet corporations (microsoft, for example) are horribly anti-gun and disgustingly liberal. However, even the most right-wing member of this board won't sacrifice his internet connection, or computer, or computer programs....because his WANTS surpass his NEEDS. His wants for the internet surpass his needs for such services.

Same goes for German products. Hey, when Spain starts making cars that rival the Beemer, you might have a case.


NIP

[schild]

1. Glocks are Austrian, not German.
2. More Americans claim German ancestry than any other nationality.

[T.Stahl]

I think it was a single vote that made English the official language of the United States instead of German.

[Herk]

I want to go on record to say that I'm not in favor one way or the other of boycotting France or German products. I just think it's hypocritical to not bring up Germany when 'dissing' the French.

schild,
1. Oops, my bad.
2. Thought it was Mexican? (Kidding)

I guess it comes down to business. We do major business with Germany, so we leave all discussions and bickering constrained to polical discussions and ideals.

[David Roberson]

On the local TV news this morning in Charlotte, NC -- a classy restaurant that has taken all French and German wines off the menu. The owner said he felt it just wasn't right to keep serving them.

[M1911]

Both of our cars are German. It will be hard for me to not consider German cars when we replace them. And don't forget that if you want to boycott German cars, that rules out Chrysler/Dodge these days as well.

But life without real Roquefort? Mon dieu:banghead: C'est impossible.

And no, my background is not French -- all Russian.

[Soap]

Boycott German goods? Yeah right. I'll keep buying my German cars right along with my Chinese computer components. Either I must be "un-American", "supporting terrorism", or believe in free trade.

In America we don't punish people for the sins of their fathers. I believe the same applies with trade. I'm not going to punish businesses for the sins of their government. For example, during the Clinton years our government's foreign policy was a circus. Now how would you like if you went out of business just because your government made some stupid decisions?

Just as a side note, read some Bastiat, it might just change your perspective on trade.

Votre kilomètrage peut changer.

[Tamara]

Is Chrysler German? Are Benzes American? Are Saabs foreign cars even though they're owned by GM?

The idea that one can favor or shun products of a certain nation in this day of global markets and global corporations is, well, kinda simplistic...

[cuchulainn]

I think it was a single vote that made English the official language of the United States instead of German.

http://www.snopes.com/language/apocryph/german.htm

[Herk]

I acknowledge that my original question was very simplistic, and naive as well. I should have worded it much better. My question is really a quest for some enlightenment. Is the latest "French Fiasco" just the latest straw on the camels back? Whereas, Germany, even siding with the French on the Iraq issue, do not warrant such disgust and hatred that the French do. Not yet anyway? The cries of "Boycott the French", but no word of Germany, would be just an example to my questions.

Oh well, my Fiance wants a new Merc really bad, and I know once she can afford one, she will get one. And German cars are made right here in the Good ole USA, and Ford has a headquarters in Frankfurt, so anyone who has thought this through shouldn't even be posting such a question without realizing that it would be impossible. The only thing more impossible would be to Boycott Japanese products.

I yeild.

edit. Can anything be "more" impossible than another?

[buzz_knox]

I think there is also a bit of a difference in the circumstances and how they affect our views. We consider ourselves to have "saved" France twice. On the later occassion we saved them after they allowed a threat to develop, capitulated easily, and collaborated readily. Then, France insisted that it saved itself (i.e. De Gaulle marching into Paris as a liberator instead of the followon he was), and demanded to be treated as an equal, if not in fact a superior. That . . . irritates us to say the least.

Germany, however, fought us hard both times and such a fight speaks somewhat to the American psyche. Further, we built up a closer relationship to them over the years than to the French, whom we could never really count on against the Soviets. Finally, Germany has twice been on the instigating side of bloody conflicts. I think most people don't mind too much they're staying out of the war business.

[T.Stahl]

Thank you, Cuchulainn. From now on I'll spread the truth about that story. :)

[JCOJR]

I'm going to buy a car in June. I guess I'll also have to scratch Peugeot, Renault, and Citroen off the list.:D

[M1911]

Germany, however, fought us hard both times and such a fight speaks somewhat to the American psyche.IIRC, the country of origin of the largest number of US citizens is the UK. The second largest is Germany.
I'm going to buy a car in June. I guess I'll also have to scratch Peugeot, Renault, and Citroen off the list.Now that's a real sacrifice ;)

[El Tejon]

Hooray for Ingerish emmygrants!:)

Boycott? How about we stop sending checks to France instead?

[Soap]

El Tejon- You mean that we should actually punish governments instead of private corporations!? C'est fou, mon ami!

[Soap]

Herk- You yield? Wow...I'll have to commend you for honesty on the matter. Bravo! Also, only the M-Class is produced in the U.S. More specifically, they are assembled in Alabama. Strangely though, there have been issues with the reliabilty and quality of the M-Class.

[pogo2]

I believe the German opposition on the Iraq question is primarily a function of one man - Schroeder. He was elected recently on an anti-US platform. The leader of the major opposition party in Germany recently said that if he were in charge, he would support the US position on Iraq. And historically, since WW2, Germany has been a good ally of the US. What we see today may be an aberration that could quickly change.

[Herk]

Daniel,

Thanks. I like to think of myself as a wise man in trainging. Of course, to be a wise man, you must undertand that the only thing a wise man knows for sure, is that he knows nothing. And a man who knows everything, doesn't even know himself.

Got that from a Greek philosopher who said it a heck of a lot better than I ever could. Either Socrates or Plato, can't remember which. Anyway, I try to learn something new everyday, and form opinions after I know all the facts, or as much facts as I can get. So I'm an open book. But can smell BS a mile away. Benifits of NYC street education. ;-)

Also, BMW has a plant in South Carolina, and Toyota has one down south somewhere as well. I guess the point here is, as Tamara put it, in a Global Economy, it is near impossible to choose many products by country of origin alone.

[Soap]

Herk- I would agree. But luckily we can still punish foreign countries. One such example would be to quit giving foreign governments the dole. As an individual consumer though, I'll keep supporting other capitalists with my cash :D

[Tamara]

IIRC, the country of origin of the largest number of US citizens is the UK.

Only if you consider England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland one country. Good luck. ;)

[DeltaElite]

It's the German beer silly.
We get nothing useful from the French.

[Delmar]

I already have a Cuckoo clock

[El Tejon]

It will be a cold day in a war place before I recognize Wales as part of the motherland.:p

[Grandpa Simpson voice] "It will be a cold day in hell before I recognzie Missoura as a state of the Union."

[Skunkabilly]

Daniel F., funny you mention that, my step mother test drove an M-class. It didn't reek of Teutonicness and lacked the typical Mercedes quality.

I hope HKs don't turn out that way when they start assembling them here.

[cuchulainn]

IIRC, the country of origin of the largest number of US citizens is the UK. The second largest is Germany.

Of course, there's a lot of overlap. I'm Irish/German/Dutch/Scoth-Irish. Do I get counted once or four times?

Top 20 Nations of Ancestry
German -- 46,428,321
Irish -- 33,048,744
English -- 28,222,890
United States or American -- 20,092,896 (interesting answer)
Italian -- 15,916,396
French (except Basque) -- 9,794,218
Polish -- 9,029,440
Scottish -- 5,406,421
Scotch-Irish -- 5,205,335
Dutch -- 5,203,974
Norwegian -- 4,524,953
Swedish -- 4,342,160
Russian -- 2,975,628
French Canadian -- 2,211,688
West Indian (excluding Hispanic origin groups) -- 1,914,410
Welsh -- 1,895,726
Subsaharan African -- 1,530,987 (odd; there are more Blacks than that)
Hungarian -- 1,510,878
Danish -- 1,505,450
Czech -- 1,407,495

Source: http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/QTTable?ds_name=ACS_C2SS_EST_G00_&geo_id=01000US&qr_name=ACS_C2SS_EST_G00_QT02

Only if you consider England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland one country. Good luck. ;)
Certainly not Ireland, which fought a revolution to remove the Union Jack from its soil (well, most of it). ;)

[Soap]

Skunk- The M's I've been in have been mediocre at best. Now if you wanna be a pimp you have to get a G-Class :D