You know, God Bless Em', but only the Brits would do something like this.
(edited by MoeGates on 28.1.03 1147) It seems that I am - in no particular order - Zack Morris, John Adams, a Siren, Aphrodite, Cletus the Slack Jawed Yokel, Amy-Wynn Pastor, Hydrogen, Spider-Man, and Boston.
At least they were polite about it....I mean, the firearms ban has done wonders and all... :)
"Present day writers, especially of the Socilaist school of thought- base their various theories upon one common hypothesis: They divide mankind into two parts. People in general- with the exception of the writer himself- from the first group. The writer, all alone, forms the second and most impportant group. Surely ths is the weirderst and most conceited notion that ever entered a human brain!" - Frederic Bastiat, The Law, 1850
I'd expect something like this from the French, not the British. Of course with the French, the letter would go: If you persist with your criminal behavior, we will be forced to surrender our country to you, as long as you allow us to make wine and cheese in Vichy.
Please help control the McMahon population. Have your Triple H's spayed or neutered.
(The answer's no, by the way. And I'm sure certain states in your country have never done anything wacky or outright foolish.)
"Here's the thing: I don't give a tupenny f*ck about your moral conundrum, you meatheaded shit-sack. That's pretty much the thing." Daniel Day-Lewis as Bill "The Butcher" Cutting, Gangs Of New York. You'd be surprised at how many statements this can be used as a response to.
I have to say that is the damned coolest thing I have ever read... Here we would have written a letter to the parents berating their guilt in raising their child improperly, the criminal would then go on Opera and talk about how he was sexually abused as a child, then sue the police department for harassment and for damages resulting from having to relive his tragic memories, then the public would sob about his poor story and excuse his sins the next time he committed a crime, because he is a poor, tortured soul... Some things, the Brits just get right. This I think, is one of them. What the hell is wrong with directly asking a criminal to stop perpetrating crimes?
Hey, it's not like I make fun of my own country a heck of a lot here also.
I love the Brits, and unlike, say, the French, I have some respect for their country also. And I'm certainly not scared of them, which is what "xenophobia" is. I'm not even sure I completely disagree with their approach. It's just that it's so.....British. I don't know what else to say.
It seems that I am - in no particular order - Zack Morris, John Adams, a Siren, Aphrodite, Cletus the Slack Jawed Yokel, Amy-Wynn Pastor, Hydrogen, Spider-Man, and Boston.
Originally posted by MoeGates And I'm certainly not scared of them, which is what "xenophobia" is.
Phobia is a fear OR hatred, my friend. Hence homophobes, who hate gay people. But I think xenophobia is thrown around too often when referring to Americans. Usually by people who hate us...
If nothing else, it sends an "Even though we let you go, we still haven't forgotten about you" message. Like they said, it really doesn't cost anything to try. A friendly reminder at the right time may actually be effective. It's not like it has a long history of failure.
More shenanigans from the British judicial system(and yes I expect more harrassment because I used FrontPage Magazine as a source...)
"Present day writers, especially of the Socilaist school of thought- base their various theories upon one common hypothesis: They divide mankind into two parts. People in general- with the exception of the writer himself- from the first group. The writer, all alone, forms the second and most impportant group. Surely ths is the weirderst and most conceited notion that ever entered a human brain!" - Frederic Bastiat, The Law, 1850
Can't you just see John Cleese dress in his classic burglar gear just about to rob a bank when a mailman walks up to him gives this the letter and he reads it and just say "Very well then" and walks away. I think the British are getthing all there ideas from Monty Python
A man defends his home, and is deemed a "threat to burglars". That is one of the most preposterous things I have ever heard. I'm actually sitting at work laughing at this because it's so freaking INSANE!!
And if I made my living as a burglar, I'd buy the next ticket to London. If they won't even investigate burglaries then anyone who can make a quick getaway despite leaving a ton of clues, will get off free. You just have to love that european enlightenment. Did those officials who came up with that scheme spend a recent vacation in Berkeley?
"My own personal feeling is that the Confederate flag no longer has a place flying any time, anywhere in our great nation." - Dick Gephardt, a man who apparently hates history AND the 1st Amendment
Oh man that's rich coming from a country with a gun-related death rate around 50 times that of any other civilised country you'd care to name.
And PLEASE stop digging up cases and saying "Wow! look at dem there crazy brits and EVERYTHING that's wrong with their country!" It's called "generalising", folks, and many could do it about cases in your fair land. Try when the wife of one of the Septtember 11th victims was threatened with deportation precisely a year after the event. Oh, but get this: Her kids weren't to be deported, because they were born Americans, by God, unlike her.
See how this works? There are many more cases I could cite and say "Wel your country just sucks", but it's a pointless and retarded game that gets us nowhere. Grimis, I totally agree with you on the case of Tony Bullimore; it's insane. But it's an isolated case. That's why it's got so much damn press. Trust me, I freakin' live here, I spend half my day on BBC 24 News and the other half trawling through the daily papers. That's why it pisses me off so much to come here and be told that our country sucks by people who don't even live here, who have no idea how it works, and who then are unwilling to listen to any criticism levelled against their country. And yes, I will level criticism at your source; first of all, keeping a gun in your house is not illegal. Keeping a HANDGUN in your house is illegal. My own grandfather owns several hunting rifles that he regularly goes shooting with. Secondly, the whole article is written from an obvious biased standpoint; it's not a news piece, it's an editorial. I could write an opposition piece and come up with just as many facts to twist to my advantage; it wouldn't make either piece right. And Moegates, I wasn't accusing you of xenophobia; there was one other reply in particular I had my eye on when writing that.
(edited by oldschoolhero on 28.1.03 1419)
"Here's the thing: I don't give a tupenny f*ck about your moral conundrum, you meatheaded shit-sack. That's pretty much the thing." Daniel Day-Lewis as Bill "The Butcher" Cutting, Gangs Of New York. You'd be surprised at how many statements this can be used as a response to.
Originally posted by Bizzle Izzle A man defends his home, and is deemed a "threat to burglars". That is one of the most preposterous things I have ever heard. I'm actually sitting at work laughing at this because it's so freaking INSANE!!
And if I made my living as a burglar, I'd buy the next ticket to London. If they won't even investigate burglaries then anyone who can make a quick getaway despite leaving a ton of clues, will get off free. You just have to love that european enlightenment. Did those officials who came up with that scheme spend a recent vacation in Berkeley?
Just so long as you're not an encyclopedia salesman.
Originally posted by El NastioOn a note related to what Moe said, I still don't see the logic why everyone hates the French.
It's one of either two things;
1. Attitude(French think they're better and let you know it. i.e. saying the French liberated France in WW2 with limited US and British support.
2. Nobody likes the smell of somebody in leather in July.
"Present day writers, especially of the Socilaist school of thought- base their various theories upon one common hypothesis: They divide mankind into two parts. People in general- with the exception of the writer himself- from the first group. The writer, all alone, forms the second and most impportant group. Surely ths is the weirderst and most conceited notion that ever entered a human brain!" - Frederic Bastiat, The Law, 1850
Originally posted by oldschoolheroTrust me, I freakin' live here, I spend half my day on BBC 24 News and the other half trawling through the daily papers. (edited by oldschoolhero on 28.1.03 1419)
BBC 24? i thought you all only had 4 channels, and all were filled with wildlife programming and Eastenders.
only joking. i didn't know it was HANDGUNS and not all guns that were outlawed...i learned something new today
You die...--More-- You made the Top Ten List! No Points 1 43372 Kaka-Bar-Orc-Mal-Cha died in The Dungeons of Doom on level 7 [Max 13], Killed by a troll, while helpless.
I'll try and mount some sort of defence for my much maligned nation by providing the counter argument to the 2 stories cited in this thread.
First of, the letters to criminals is clearly only something being tested in one region. It isn't meant to make criminals reform their ways and not for one second do the police believe that someone would read this and suddenly see the error of their way.
Its supposed to be a 'gentle' reminder that the police know who they are and the sort of shit they get up to. Its basically saying, if anything happens in your neck of the woods then yours is gonna be the first door we come knocking on'.
Will it work? probably not but whats the harm in trying? I dont think theres many nations (including the States) that can preach to others on how to prevent repeat offenders. I remember hearing a story about a guy who faced life in prison for stealing a pizza under the '3 strikes' rule a few years ago. Thats crazy.
The second story about Tony Martin (Tony Bullimore was the guy who survived upside down in a boat by the way oldschoolhero. Insane I'll grant you, but hardly relevant.:)). As has already been pointed out, this is a biased editorial viewpoint and not a report of the facts.
My understanding of warning shots was that they were done into the air, not in the general direction of the people youre trying to scare. You'd also be very hard pushed to prove from forensics that someone fired in a blind panic. Forensics can only tell you where, and if you're lucky when shots were fired. They can't say anything about the state of mind of the shooter.
And as for the police becoming less responsive? Utter bullshit. In a bar I used to manage we had to alarm codes, one which switched off the alarm, and the other which also switched it off but sent a message to the police telling them you were being robbed. One morning the cleaner typed in the wrong code and an armed response unit was there inside 3 minutes.
And Ridzokan, we have 5 channels now to facilitate the introduciton of the Weakest link and Millionaire to our usual quota of soaps and wildlife shows.:)
"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy" Benjamin Franklin
Originally posted by dMrI remember hearing a story about a guy who faced life in prison for stealing a pizza under the '3 strikes' rule a few years ago. Thats crazy.
I'd actually say it's getting recidivist riff-raff off the streets.
Americans are a resolute people who have risen to every test of our time. Adversity has revealed the character of our country, to the world and to ourselves. America is a strong nation, and honorable in the use of our strength. We exercise power without conquest, and we sacrifice for the liberty of strangers. Americans are a free people, who know that freedom is the right of every person and the future of every nation. The liberty we prize is not America's gift to the world, it is God's gift to humanity. - President George W. Bush, State of the Union Address, 1/28/2003
Bill Maher, from last year's Politically Incorrect Xmas episode. It still applies: Now, being our last show of the year, I'd like to make a plea tonight for world peace. Oh, I know what you're saying. "Bill, you've had enough controversy this year....