If you were not British what other Nationaility would appeal to you and why?

That’s really what I was saying. Incomprehension on both sides. So I think I might prefer the Pacific coast despite the rain!

I met a couple of Americans in a museum in Munich, both bewailing the state of politics in our respective countries.
They were amused to find that I lived in France, but said that they couldn’t find another country.
When I suggested Canada, they said they had considered it but both felt that it was too cold!

I would happily abandon any nationality in favour of citizenship of the European Union, as a temporary staging- post towards an acknowledgement of universal citizenship based on principles of equity within diversity.

Nationality based on accidental place of birth will soon become an arcane irrelevancy, and an impediment to peace, cooperation, and planetary survival. This is not IMO an idealistic pipedream, but a pressing issue that must be grasped by all.

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Yes indeed Peter - but to all intents and purposes that’s what we have with the EU passport isn’t it? I have no objection to countries holding their own elections as I do believe tht government should be as close to the people as possible - which is one reason I did not approve of Holland’s change of regions idea, as the ‘seats’ of government have been distanced from the people and not the other way about. It is also why I like the French Maire system as well, It is good to be able to talk face to face over matters more local of simple admin - like identifying yourself for Pension benefits etc.
Yesterday I watched a one-hour discussion on youtube - not live obviously, but was fascinating as it was about Nationalism and Globalisation with ProfessorHarari and he made very excellent points on tis very subject. Well worth a look!

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I had an 'international experience the other day on Skype - talking to a friend in Wyoming and another in Australia - one was in 6ft snowdrifts and the other under 40°c heat! Guess which was which?

No particular nationality comes to mind. My options would be limited because I am total rubbish at languages. Maybe somewhere in the West Indies, the more remote the better.

You are right of course about the EU passport which is why I deplore Brexit which, to me, stinks of neo-liberal crony capitalism a la Trump sold to the public with a dressing of xenophobic nationalism to add grisly savour.

I resent having my EU citizenship snatched away by the likes of Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage fuelled by their toxic ambitions and naked greed.

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Couldn’t have put it more clearly if I had tried! Well said!

Thanks, @Norman_Clark and all other ‘luvvies’ who showed appreciation :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:.

When my dander is up I can be a bit of a swine and snotty invective flows freely from my thumb, perish the thought! :scream::grimacing:

Now THERE’S an expression I have heard in a long time -‘when my dander is up’ Oldies are often goodies aren’t they? :+1:

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These sayings have very little or no meaning in contemporary society, but they come readily to my mind. But I would only use them whimsically now, not wanting to encourage stereotyping.

The derivation of dander is hard to find on-line, but I reckon it refers to the ‘ruff’ of feathers on a rooster. These form an elegant neck-ruff or mini cape on the cockerel. When my own rooster is miffed with me, his dander goes up like those veterinary devices poorly dogs and cats wear to stop them licking or biting. It exaggerates his head-size by framing it to look fierce.

So I think it’s a rural saying. My same-age Norman neighbour and I have a lot of such expressions in (sort-of) common, give or take a few that get lost in translation. Although I am a pre-war city boy my upbringing was garlanded with lots of sayings and words that betray a pre-industrial heritage, which I find incredibly beautiful in my latter days.

And this is an unexpectedly wonderful gift that coming to Normandy in old age has given me, a sense of ‘coming home’. :hugs:

It sounds as if you pre-date me as a City boy? I was born in 1940 in Slough God help me!) Where and when for you?

Brummagem, 1938.

Hi Peter, at the risk of offending other Brummies, it sounds just as bad as my heritage!

You seem to be ticking over very sweetly on your heritage, I’d say a 1947 Rover “six-window” saloon?

Apparently, this very question was once asked of our greatest statesman: " Mr Churchill, if you were not British, which nationality would you like to be?"

Back came a very blunt one word answer: “BRITISH”.

If this story is not apocryphal, it certainly shows the old bugger couldn’t be caught napping by a journalist.

But what a creep (the journo, I mean) to serve up such a sycophantic lob to lovable old toff Winnie). :hugs::stuck_out_tongue:

On 10 April, the Government passed the Arms (Prohibited Firearms , Magazines, and Parts) Amendment Act 2019, banning semi-automatic firearms , magazines, and parts. The Arms Amendment Bill was supported by all parties except the opposition ACT Party’s sole MP David Seymour. That’s the sort of response that all citizens want from their elected puts NZ so high up on the wish list!

Forget Trinidad.

9 miles from Venezuela and a positive motorway fast lane for drugs. Last time [and it will be the last time] I was there in 2011/12, the Trini army had just been stood down from 6 months of martial law and curfew enforcement. There had been a war, literally, with the drug gangs.

Port of Spain I refer to as Wakefield-on-Caribbean. A dump. There are no beaches. Well, there’s Maracas but it’s dangerous to swim - very strong under-tow. Rummed-up Trinis are drowned most weekends …

Tobago used to be OK but the bad guys are becoming more of a problem…

Antigua - that was lovely. Barbados, home of Mount Gay rum. The best. Martinique for being Caribbean & French.

Danish, I think. Or Dutch. They are our cousins. I say that the Danish and Dutch are what the British would be if only the British behaved better. An example of this is my typically British way of guffawing when passing the sign on the motorway crossing the bridge from Jutland to Funen, for the turning to Middlefart.

I was at a wedding reception where I was the only one in the room of 60-70 people who could not understand the speeches. However, everybody spoke excellent English, so if the speeches had been given in English, everyone would have understood them!

Not that I’d want to live in Denmark unless I was on Danish wages and soc security. It’s eyewateringly expensive. It’s also very flat.