Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Wangja]

[SHANE02]

[contrarian]

Israels nuclear program was pretty well indigenous. When one considers that the Manhattan pojects prime scientists were Jews (Einstein' Bohr, Oppenheimer, Enrico Fermi, etc., that should be no great surprise.

The program borrowed much and stole a little from the Americans bought some civilian technology from the French (who also supplied the Iraqis) , got their uranium and their testing through South Africa and even aquired South Africas existing nujes when they gave up their program.

French technology is generally first rate. It military prowess died at Waterloo. Since then they have been cheese mujching, wine sipping surrender monkeys.

[Zoobot]

[Adventurer]

[darkhorse_NZ]

[contrarian]

indeed, i never said they couldn't be dastardly, arrogant and backhanded. but i would never call them cowards or irrelevant.

I would call them all of that and leave the cowardly and irrelevant in.

[swetepete]

How can you call the French cowardly? Are you insane? Check out the French kid from the South Park Movie. That little dude was brave.
"Though I die...La Resistance...lives on."
here's a link to the song...french kid's not in it though.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=WJ-jHmgwMqg&mode=related&search=

[bourbon street]

I am a 41 year old American citizen and have lived and traveled all over the planet. Taught in Korea for 3 years and have been teaching collectively for 15 years.

The truth of the American/ French matter is this: Most Americans DO NOT hate the French. Furthermore, most Americans are completely in the dark regarding French culture, language and otherwise. This ignorance is not the American people's fault. The education system in America is highly insular, as are most things in America, resulting in an unaware psyche regarding much of the world. Their is also a political faction in the USA that continually spouts how terrible and selfish the French are. Because many Americans are not aware of what REALLY goes on in the rest of the world, these very Americans tend to buy into this French bashing.

Americans are very media minded and unfortunately many Americans choose to simply buy into the media status quo without any informational verification. Someone stated in a previous posting that America and France are very much alike. I agree wholeheartedly and further agree that this similiar, insular, attitude towards the rest of the world is certainly one of the reasons why the USA and France seem to always be at odds. But, "being at odds" and "hating" are two very different things. When I was in Paris I was treated with kindness. Of course I had to leave my "American" mentality in America. I tried my best to speak some French (hell, learning French is a cake walk compared to learning Korean), would abide by French customs, and was very polite and respectful.

Next time you hear an American French bashing, ask that person to tell you three things unique to the French aside from wine, cheese, and fashion as these things are by no means unique to the French. Go ahead. Ask them. That'll shut 'em up!

[Vicissitude]

I am American and I do not hate the French. My experiences with them have been quite good. The French generally do not like the English, nor English speakers in their country. I can fully understand and appreciate that because I've studied the history. Unfortunately, I don't speak any French, but I can sure discuss the history with them (in English )and they find out that I know quite a lot about things they never really thought about. I have some of my heart and soul buried there on French soil... my heroins, so many of them, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Christine de Pizan, Joan of Arc etc.

[cosmo]

[SPINOZA]

Further to my previous comments in this thread (and to continue the theme of France and nukes), I much admire the French for their nuclear policies. Chirac in 2006 said he'd be prepared to use nukes against a terrorist-sponsoring country: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4627862.stm

Got to admire a strong stance against such sub-human feces. That of course doesn't include Iraq. To our cost, we know that Iraq had no connection with terrorism when Saddam was in power. His regime's survival depended upon its huge oil contracts with Russia and - hehehe - France (before they went nuclear although the relationship did continue, with France getting a lot of oil products from Saddam's Iraq). Actually, Saddam's Iraq was not much more than a French and Russian colony. Saddam assumed that because the French and the Russians are permanent UN Security Council members, any attempt at regime change would be veteoed by Russia and/or France because of the oil relations he'd engineered between Iraq and Russia/France, thus guaranteeing his regime's survival. He was wrong of course, but, dare I say it, perhaps the world and Iraq would be better places with Saddam still in power. Is this point reason not to hate the French?

French electricity is 80% derived from nuclear power too - the best source since it does not emit greenhouse gases and is 50 years tried and tested (the leading world country in its production of nuclear power). In France, nuclear energy is accepted, even popular. The thought of being dependent for energy on a disgusting region of the world such as the Middle East disturbed many French people. The French need nuclear much more than us (no resources of their own), but that's gonna change VERY soon and the more we need it, the less we'll fear it. It's all based on fear of the unknown anyway. Fearing radiation more than fearing driving a car is completely irrational.

Other reasons to admire the French? Banning headscarves from schools; being vigorously anti-Israel; French security and intelligence services have rounded up hundreds of extremists in the past year; the Anglo-French Concorde - an awesome if strangely useless machine (too expensive, too loud and cannot fly supersonic over land, basically nowhere near as useful as the Boeing 747 - but still, supersonic planes are just COOL! End of story).

[swetepete]

In Defense of the Frogs:
1) Parkour is pretty cool.
2) They have the best soft cheeses.
3) French women are hot.
4) Jamie Oliver isn't French.