Quote:
Originally Posted by Will21st
I've lived and worked among the Krauts and rest assured it is inherent to the German spirit to win and dominate,and to a bloody fault indeed. National Socialism didn't happen to the Germans by coincidence,but rather to a Nation that has looked up to and believed in superior authority emanating from a single leader/ruler for over a Thousand Years....
|
We have the Monarch and several references littered to God in our society. We too have the concept of a superior authority. I also think that it being inherent to win and dominate is rather vague, it seems a natural part of the human condition, and still no real basis on which to assume that Germany are especially bad for it. Again British History is rife with war, competition, oppression and domination.
Quote:
|
Well,but Britain also spread Democracy,spread it's educational system,helped build economies and did indeed found that Commonwealth that many countries today are happy to be a member of. The Empire did a lot of good as well as some bad.
|
We tend to overstate the positive and minimise the negative. Assuming we brought Democracy to the world is rather tricky, we tended to get kicked out of places for a lack of it, even if the subsequent Democracies were inspired by us afterwards. Let's not forget the pillaging of resources, the
concentration camps, or the
massacres. Whatever we may tell ourselves it's clear that the British Empire is not remembered with fondness amongst many of it's people.
Anyway my point isn't to say the British Empire was the moral equivalent of Nazi Germany, it clearly wasn't, but it does show a historic trait to dominate and invade other countries. If we're accusing Germany of having those characteristics then we have to apply them to ourselves. Interestingly you seem to be defending our Empire on the basis it did a lot of good. We may have invaded them but we improved them, sounds rather controlling to me, like we know best, it's almost
socialist 
.
Basically it's a bit rich for a British person to accuse other nations of being dominating. Someone who wasn't British would think it's a remarkably audacious accusation for us to make.
Quote:
|
What however wasn't the case was that the British believed that they were so much better than anybody else that other's must bow to it's bloody regime of fear and accept the King as the Leader,the one and only.And MOST CERTAINLY did Britain not make out one race or religion that was so inferior that it must be killed on an Industrial scale and wiped off the face of the earth.....
|
Well we clearly did have ideas of our own importance. We didn't want to wipe out an entire race of course, that is a particular kind of evil that I don't think we can say was a product of Hitler's time in Germany. Anti-Semitism was prevalent across Europe of course
Quote:
Who's talking genetics? I'm talking about psychological traits and patterns that do indeed get passed on from generation to generation,and every Nation has inherent strengths and weaknesses...
British are great at Music,French do Cuisine,Italians design and Germans are top Engineers.... just like people,and Nation's are indeed the sums of their people,we all have our little strengths.
|
It can be partly true but these are rather broad stereotypes. You need to look at the reasons why countries remain strong at certain tasks. British Music is helped by the sheer volume of acts for people to follow and be inspired by as well and the benefit of the language.
How has a Germany desire to dominate being passed down? If anything the horror of their history has calmed any such desire. Also why wasn't it passed down amongst the English?
Negative stereotypes cloud our judgement.