1. World War I: No point in repeating myself: The French won, the Germans lost.2. Dien Bien Phu: Be careful. If being taken prisoner is an ignominy, then the 70,000 Americans who surrendered at Corregidor should be ashamed. Do you really want to go there?
3. Peugeot, schmeugeot: you probably never even drove one. Trust me, it works fine - as I said, a lot better than most models Chevrolet. But this is a stupid topic.
4. French women: A picture is worth a thousand words.
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6 comments:
Brian,
Did a French woman break your heart? You sound like a pouty teenager when you make these silly generalizations about the French being "losers." No nation on Earth can objectively be called "losers;" every nation is a mixture of human beings who are successful to varying degrees at varieties of things. It's very hard to take you seriously! For example, did you know that the French have the most highly rated health care system in the world, according to world polls? For some reason, you're angry at the French. Please fess up!
Tom,
I'm an American woman, but still I agree with you that French women generally are more attractive than American women, although let's acknowledge that these grand conclusions are anecdotal and not derived analytically! The difference is due to the contrast of our respective fashion, cuisine and lifestyle, rather than genetics. Women simply look better in dresses, sarongs and saris because they flatter our shapes. A little lipstick* doesn't hurt either. Why would American women want to emulate frat boys (jeans, sneakers, baseball hats, outdoor gear) 24/7? It's good to be "sportive" to stay in shape, but why not just wear this stuff when actually working out? Admittedly, I lived in France in the 70s, so perhaps French women now mostly wear jeans, too. (Would like to get some updates on that point from readers of this blog.) Even if the the fashion gap has narrowed, French women eat significantly smaller portions, and they eat more real food as opposed to "foodlike substances," as Michael Pollan describes all those highly processed, highly fattening objects in boxes and plastic bottles lining our supermarket aisles. Extreme levels of high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oil, salt and sugar results in our obesity epidemic, despite the fitness craze Jane Fonda and others started thirty years ago. Lifestyle could be the most important factor of all. I noticed French women in the countryside are a bit plumper than the urban women who get around on foot all day, and that holds true in America too. *Footnote on lipstick: About ten years ago, I suddenly wondered how many sticks of lipstick I had actually digested in my lifetime, and what was in it, and that's when I switched to an edible brand. "You are what you eat."
(Please forgive my 3rd post, but I'm on a roll:) Tom and Brian's cyber argument raises the issue of "NETIQUETTE," or unspoken rules about how we behave in cyberspace. Email and blogging lacks tone, gesture, facial expression and body language, so it's more easily misunderstood. How can we tell here if Tom and Brian are angry or just kidding around? This way of communicating is a whole new ball of wax. I guess that's why someone invented those facial "wingdings," or whatever you call them. (Poor substitutes for the real thing.)
Another issue it raises is boundaries. I happpen to like the fact that "democracy is messy." Freedom of expression invites a wide range of personalities, and sometimes I learn the most from those who disagree with me. So the question is: where's the limit, and who gets to say? As in any human group interaction, bloggers have different levels of tolerance for confrontation. When they reach their limit, they either leave (temporarily or for good) or their post gets removed by the blog administrator, who acts as a bouncer at the bar, but could be a "98-pound weakling" for all we know :-) There! See? I'm smiling!
Well,
This is all about are subjective perception. I am so tired of our culture being hard on fat women. Skinny women are no more attractive than overweight woman. I guess I have an issue with the who damn concept of French women being more or less of this or that. I am tired of women being evaluated as dolls. We are people. I think I am staying fat just to not be skinny-The hell with skinny people.
Gail,
I do agree with everything you said, but wanted to clarify what I meant. Obesity (more than 30 lbs over normal weight) is different than overweight. Obesity is a serious threat to one's health, longevity, and well-being which includes self-confidence. The other extreme of anorexia, as promoted by the fashion industry whose female models resemble malnourished adolescent males, is equally dangerous. Obesity has become an epidemic in the U.S., even among children. One's image, although it's related to self-esteem, is not nearly so important as one's health, longevity and well-being. That's why I think we should examine the causes of obesity in our culture, and how we compare to other cultures who don't have this problem and why. If instead we simply continue in this direction without questioning our behavior, we shortchange ourselves and our children by curtailing the quality of our lives. That's one of the reasons I think travel is the best education. It forces us to question our cultural assumptions and exposes us to alternative ways of life.
Thanks for the clarification. I agree with your explanation. There is a difference between being healthy and obese. For instance, I just recently lost 25 pounds and now weigh about 230. However,I have dense bones and can carry more weight and not look sloppy fat. My normal weight is 170-180. To most, this would be considered obese but for my frame this is not. I also think that different cultural groups actually like bigger women. I agree that it is important to travel to see the variations in body type. However, why dont we talk about men's body build. I wonder if we are accustomed to seeing women as sex objects but men as more human and thus not subject to such scrutiny. I argue that we need to examine mens body types to even the discussion.
Thanks
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