Trump

[Alan]

The embarrassment must be off the scale.

"You're from America?"

"...never heard of it."

 

[Tony Towner]

Nobody else should bother turning up

 

[Tredman]

"You're from America?"

"...never heard of it."

As I told one of your compatriots tonight you and Canadians all sound the same, don’t worry about it

Edit - may be a reflection on my poor ‘ear’ for accents

 

[Alan]

As I told one of your compatriots tonight you and Canadians all sound the same, don’t worry about it

Edit - may be a reflection on my poor ‘ear’ for accents

There are pockets here and there in both countries that are very distinct (look up Okracoke Island here in NC; they sound they stepped off the Mayflower yesterday), but by and large things have definitely converged into a kind of indistinct hodge-podge.

There are probably dozens of English accents I couldn't pin to a place, much less identify as their own unique speech. Frankly, any American who gives you shit for misplacing an accent can do one. We're more divided by words (calling things like Coca-Cola "pop" in the Midwest, or "soda" on the West Coast and up through New England, or just filing all soft drinks under "Coke" like we tend to do in the South) than sound.

Still, I'm very much a North Carolinian before an American now. That will almost certainly feel silly to some Europeans, but it's all I've got to lean on at the moment. To that, I would say that most Europeans probably still referred to themselves as English, or German, or Danish, or whatever other country-level demonym rather than "European" when the EU happened.

 

[Tredman]

There are pockets here and there in both countries that are very distinct (look up Okracoke Island here in NC; they sound they stepped off the Mayflower yesterday), but by and large things have definitely converged into a kind of indistinct hodge-podge.

There are probably dozens of English accents I couldn't pin to a place, much less identify as their own unique speech. Frankly, any American who gives you shit for misplacing an accent can do one. We're more divided by words (calling things like Coca-Cola "pop" in the Midwest, or "soda" on the West Coast and up through New England, or just filing all soft drinks under "Coke" like we tend to do in the South) than sound.

Still, I'm very much a North Carolinian before an American now. That will almost certainly feel silly to some Europeans, but it's all I've got to lean on at the moment. To that, I would say that most Europeans probably still referred to themselves as English, or German, or Danish, or whatever other country-level demonym rather than "European" when the EU happened.

I always find it odd when Americans can point to 8 generations back to say they are Swedish (genuine example from one of my colleagues in Chicago) to me in the UK who says ‘yeah mostly Irish, a bit Scottish but actually English’ but in reality after 3 generations I don’t have a clue.

 

[Alan]

I always find it odd when Americans can point to 8 generations back to say they are Swedish (genuine example from one of my colleagues in Chicago) to me in the UK who says ‘yeah mostly Irish, a bit Scottish but actually English’ but in reality after 3 generations I don’t have a clue.

I think the idea of the US as a "melting pot" is hugely romanticized by our schooling, which plays a part. We're simultaneously taught that we aren't from here but also that we have a right to be here (Manifest Destiny wrapped in a pillow). I'm only three generations removed from my family's "first generation" immigrants, which I think is just recent enough that it fosters a curiosity around "what was life like for my great-grandparents? Why did they come here?"

I'll put it like this. I want to be proud of my Southern heritage. But that heritage is rife with the most abhorrent violence and racism in America's history. "I'm from the South and I love that about myself" is an incredibly freighted statement given the racial extremism that is part and parcel with Southern history (not that the North was as equitable as it is often portrayed, but removing the risk of lynching from the equation can't be overstated).

So, for my parents, my sisters, and myself, there's less guilt/shame attached to reaching into a heritage we don't actually know anything about. I'm French, Italian, and German, but nobody left in my family speaks even a little bit of any of those languages. Genealogy to European ancestors is as much an escape hatch from the sins of my actual heritage as anything else.

Apologies for being long-winded; it's a nice distraction to talk about American things that aren't about how fucking braindead we've been for the last decade or so.

 

[Tredman]

I think the idea of the US as a "melting pot" is hugely romanticized by our schooling, which plays a part. We're simultaneously taught that we aren't from here but also that we have a right to be here (Manifest Destiny wrapped in a pillow). I'm only three generations removed from my family's "first generation" immigrants, which I think is just recent enough that it fosters a curiosity around "what was life like for my great-grandparents? Why did they come here?"

I'll put it like this. I want to be proud of my Southern heritage. But that heritage is rife with the most abhorrent violence and racism in America's history. "I'm from the South and I love that about myself" is an incredibly freighted statement given the racial extremism that is part and parcel with Southern history (not that the North was as equitable as it is often portrayed, but removing the risk of lynching from the equation can't be understated).

So, for my parents, my sisters, and myself, there's less guilt/shame attached to reaching into a heritage we don't actually know anything about. I'm French, Italian, and German, but nobody left in my family speaks even a little bit of any of those languages. Genealogy to European ancestors is as much an escape hatch from the sins of my actual heritage as anything else.

Apologies for being long-winded; it's a nice distraction to talk about American things that aren't about how fucking braindead we've been for the last decade or so.

That’s a great response.

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

Out of interest, as I genuinely don't know how this shit works in the states, but what sort of security clearance does Melania Trump have as first lady?

I can't see the other security council members being overly willing to provide their meeting papers to her in the build-up to this meeting.

 

[Alan]

Out of interest, as I genuinely don't know how this shit works in the states, but what sort of security clearance does Melania Trump have as first lady?

I can't see the other security council members being overly willing to provide their meeting papers to her in the build-up to this meeting.

I actually don't know what the First Lady is and isn't allowed to be party to. I'm not sure it's ever really been something that anyone needed to think about until this.

 

[Jack Regan]

I'm assuming its so she can give them all tips on how to put up with the insufferable twats behaviour and constant childish temper tantrums.

Although I'm assuming from her general demeanour when she's with him at any public appearance it will just amount to staring vacantly off into space wishing you were somewhere else. Which after one meeting with him they've probably already got down pat.

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

Well I am pretty sure that first ladies don't normally get to be chair of a meeting that can decide military intervention. She is spectacularly unqualified, and the other permanent members are probably going to restrict her access to anything.