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[pscocoa]

A loud mouthed circa 50 year old American in a cafe/bar in Farnborough yesterday  - "if it hadn't been for us they's all be speaking German" - overhead by my son's mother in-law who glared at him. After getting the evil eye he continued along same theme but just to his 6 mates and not the rest of the people present.

Moron.

[Varche]

Yes we have a lot to thank the Yanks for.

[tigers_gonads]

Should have reminded them that WW2 started in 1939 but they didn't turn up until 1941.
Did they get lost ?

[MR MISTER]

He should have had it explained to him that, if it wasn't for us, he wouldn't exist. Oh, and could he stop bastardising the ENGLISH language we gave him please.
Also, it should have been explained that the cowardly bastards only joined in because Japan bombed the shite out of Pearl Harbor, which is also spelled incorrectly.

[Shackeng]

Sorry, can't agree. We were getting materiel assistance from Roosevelt  -against Congress' wishes - long before they declared war, and, IMHO, without them, we would have lost. It is true they extracted a high price from us, which we only paid off within the last year or so.

[Rog]

Sorry, can't agree. We were getting materiel assistance from Roosevelt  -against Congress' wishes - long before they declared war, and, IMHO, without them, we would have lost. It is true they extracted a high price from us, which we only paid off within the last year or so.

For sure. But there are certain types over the Pond that like to bang on about it. No tact or finesse whatsoever.

[pscocoa]

This is what surprised me - I have been to the US many times and never heard this line of thinking before. Maybe I need to get out more.

[Rods2]

After the battle of Britain it was unlikely we would be invaded and lose the war, but we were never going to be strong enough to win it on our own.

Once Hitler invaded Russia and failed to capture Moscow, they were in the unenviable position of having to fight a war on two fronts. Once Russia gained the initiate on the Eastern front, it was inevitable they would lose, but we would then have had a Russian dominated Europe.

So what did the yanks do for us: They provided us and Russia with vital war equipment, but for us under lend-lease at the cost of our empire, and once they were actively involved with the fighting they helped to shorten the war.

So they help save Western Europe from Soviet domination. But if Roosevelt had taken the much tougher line that Churchill wanted at the Yalta Conference then Eastern Europe MAY not have been as dominated by the Soviets as it was.

Their participation in WWI was probably more critical to the allied success, where the Germans broke through the English / French line in a spring 1918 offensive into open country, and it required the US troops as a reserve to stem the tide. After this initial setback 1918 was a year of victories for the allies.

[wakeyomega]

Regardless of the rights and wrongs of the American involvement in WW2, what you don't do is come as a visitor to this country and insult the 'natives', but I don't think its an 'American' problem. I'm afraid there are bigoted, rude, ill informed, people everywhere in the world (even here at times!), luckily they are outnumbered by the reasonable majority. 

[Kevin Wood]

I wonder when we'll get paid back from trotting off behind them on their "war on terror"?

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

Should have reminded them that WW2 started in 1939 but they didn't turn up until 1941.
Did they get lost ?

The same with WW1.......or the 1917-18 war as the yanks call it.

[Shackeng]

And let us not forget the Marshall Aid plan after WW11, which was aimed at preventing a recurrence of what happened after WW1, and, arguably, as a result of which, has led to a more or less, war free -cough cough- Europe since.

[MR MISTER]

Regardless of the rights and wrongs of the American involvement in WW2, what you don't do is come as a visitor to this country and insult the 'natives', but I don't think its an 'American' problem. I'm afraid there are bigoted, rude, ill informed, people everywhere in the world (even here at times!), luckily they are outnumbered by the reasonable majority.

Fat, Pat.......you forgot FAT.

[Gaffers]

You should have reminded him that if it was not for us then they would be speaking German too.  In the early days of the newly independent America they were speaking a number of different languages but the main ones were English and German. They had a vote to decide which would be their one official language and thanks to a little influence from us they chose English by the narrowest of margins.

Not many Americans will know of this fact

[MR MISTER]

You should have reminded him that if it was not for us then they would be speaking German too.  In the early days of the newly independent America they were speaking a number of different languages but the main ones were English and German. They had a vote to decide which would be their one official language and thanks to a little influence from us they chose English by the narrowest of margins.

Not many Americans will know of this fact

Shoot 'em up if you go to live there, Matt.