The Greatest Nation on Earth

dttq · 27-10-2012 3:58pm

PizzamanIRL wrote: »

Kazahkstan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pv5jLsLoYcE

gallag · 27-10-2012 3:58pm

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

Part of the "obsession" ( which in this thread is one post) is because they were pretty bad running Ireland. Your post misses the other stuff, as late as the 60's the empire was engaging in ethnic cleansing and mass killings against independence movements. .

"They were pretty bad running Ireland" aww come on man, must resist the obvious rebuttal.

And how bad their past is has to make getting to were they are now more impressive. Anyway it's all about Swaziland.

dttq · 27-10-2012 4:01pm

I vote for China as they are not only a hard working people with a long, respectable history, but also because they seem to be the only country at this stage of creating a bipolar world to counterbalance the United States with it's unilaterally minded government and military.

27-10-2012 4:02pm

Richard Hillman wrote: »

They inverted democracy, free speech and capitalism.

fyp :pac:

Jan Hus · 27-10-2012 4:03pm

golden lane wrote: »

yes, they are all idiots......won't be long before they starve to death......on the moon..

All imported talent my dear fellow. They can't grow any of their own.

Archeron · 27-10-2012 4:03pm

Fraggle rock. All those little edible buildings, and when you feel pissed off, you can punch a doozer.

Duggys Housemate · 27-10-2012 4:03pm

gallag wrote: »

"They were pretty bad running Ireland" aww come on man, must resist the obvious rebuttal.

And how bad their past is has to make getting to were they are now more impressive. Anyway it's all about Swaziland.

Where are they now? A mediocre country with the same GDP as Ireland? Ireland which didn't invade the world and kill millions to enrich itself ? Ludicrous. And I'd the "obvious rebuttal" is "we can't run ourselves" show me a famine.

dttq · 27-10-2012 4:03pm

CJC999 wrote: »

Australia. No explanation required.

Actually there is.

Jan Hus · 27-10-2012 4:04pm

dttq wrote: »

I vote for China as they are not only a hard working people with a long, respectable history, but also because they seem to be the only country at this stage of creating a bipolar world to counterbalance the United States with it's unilaterally minded government and military.

We could grow our own EU into an alternative. A European Federation gets my vote.

Duggys Housemate · 27-10-2012 4:07pm

golden lane wrote: »

does that hurt......??????

nobody else outside ireland seems bothered.....

Lol. Look, you have no idea. The mao Mau rebellion is big in Kenya, the Opium wars are big in China, the Indians remember the famines under the British, the middle east remembers the Balfour declaration.

You just imbibe British media. So little do you know.

WoollyRedHat · 27-10-2012 4:07pm

What do you define as great?

Jan Hus · 27-10-2012 4:07pm

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

Where are they now? A mediocre country with the same GDP as Ireland? Ireland which didn't invade the world and kill millions to enrich itself ? Ludicrous. And I'd the "obvious rebuttal" is "we can't run ourselves" show me a famine.

A country that every billionaire in the world covets citizenship of ... and some of its football clubs

bfocusd · 27-10-2012 4:08pm

Russian prison systems are mental, makes ours look like a playground, that's one this we need to excel. I'd have to say Italy, not too hot not too cold, great food and good looking men

moprice3 · 27-10-2012 4:10pm

Germany! Loses 2 wars and still runs europe, in a similar vein to japan, fantastic and rebuilding themselves

Jan Hus · 27-10-2012 4:11pm

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

Lol. Look, you have no idea. The mao Mau rebellion is big in Kenya, the Opium wars are big in China, the Indians remember the famines under the British, the middle east remembers the Balfour declaration.

You just imbibe British media. So little do you know.

Remind me.... what African nation escaped colonisation ah yes... Ethiopia.

gallag · 27-10-2012 4:11pm

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

Where are they now? A mediocre country with the same GDP as Ireland? Ireland which didn't invade the world and kill millions to enrich itself ? Ludicrous. And I'd the "obvious rebuttal" is "we can't run ourselves" show me a famine.

To be fair, the only reason Ireland does not have a history of invading countrys and killing millions to enrich itself is it lacked the ability to do so. In the times all this empire building **** was going down it was survival of the fittest, it's not like it was a moral reason to not build an empire. And is famine the benchmark for a well ran country now?

Duggys Housemate · 27-10-2012 4:12pm

Jan Hus wrote: »

A country that every billionaire in the world covets citizenship of ... and some of its football clubs

Yawn. What's left of the Empire is the premiership. Ok. Best country in the world for proles and Russian billionaires. Who are avoiding tax.

Jan Hus · 27-10-2012 4:15pm

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

Yawn. What's left of the Empire is the premiership. Ok. Best country in the world for proles and Russian billionaires. Who are avoiding tax.

Rome still looms large in global affairs... how long is its hard power empire gone, 1700 years? Britain's is only gone 50 years.

Duggys Housemate · 27-10-2012 4:15pm

gallag wrote: »

To be fair, the only reason Ireland does not have a history of invading countrys and killing millions to enrich itself is it lacked the ability to do so. In the times all this empire building **** was going down it was survival of the fittest, it's not like it was a moral reason to not build an empire. And is famine the benchmark for a well ran country now?

.

It would be a good benchmark on how badly a country is run, for sure . It's possible Ireland would have been as bad as the UK , or a Jewish run central European power would have been as bad as the Nazis. Counter factual histories are pointless.

Ellis Dee · 27-10-2012 4:16pm

Rudyard Kipling: The sun never sets on the Empire.:rolleyes:

George Bernard Shaw: If the sun never sets on the Empire, it's because God wouldn't trust the English in the dark.:):):)

Duggys Housemate · 27-10-2012 4:17pm

Jan Hus wrote: »

Remind me.... what African nation escaped colonisation ah yes... Ethiopia.

Colonised by Italy. What's the point of that post? Are you saying that Aricans are genetically inferior and deserved to be colononised?

Jan Hus · 27-10-2012 4:17pm

Its colonies still want France (world's third greatest nuclear power) to act as policeman in Mali. What more could be said of the UK?

Duggys Housemate · 27-10-2012 4:17pm

Jan Hus wrote: »

Rome still looms large in global affairs... how long is its hard power empire gone, 1700 years? Britain's is only gone 50 years.

And all that's left is the premiership.

27-10-2012 4:18pm

WoollyRedHat wrote: »

What do you define as great?

Good question.

A country that provides a safe & secure environment for all of its citizens would be high on the list.

Jan Hus · 27-10-2012 4:22pm

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

And all that's left is the premiership.

In the European agreements to take place in the next month the UK is expected to play a major part. It still holds a seat in the security council. Plus I am simply pointing out that the closer other nations were to the orbit of Europe, the better they are. The only people in the world who are genetically inferior are Americans. ( stupidity problems)

ejmaztec · 27-10-2012 4:27pm

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

Part of the "obsession" ( which in this thread is one post) is because they were pretty bad running Ireland. Your post misses the other stuff, as late as the 60's the empire was engaging in ethnic cleansing and mass killings against independence movements. .

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

Where are they now? A mediocre country with the same GDP as Ireland? Ireland which didn't invade the world and kill millions to enrich itself ? Ludicrous. And I'd the "obvious rebuttal" is "we can't run ourselves" show me a famine.

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

Lol. Look, you have no idea. The mao Mau rebellion is big in Kenya, the Opium wars are big in China, the Indians remember the famines under the British, the middle east remembers the Balfour declaration.

You just imbibe British media. So little do you know.

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

Yawn. What's left of the Empire is the premiership. Ok. Best country in the world for proles and Russian billionaires. Who are avoiding tax.

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

.

It would be a good benchmark on how badly a country is run, for sure . It's possible Ireland would have been as bad as the UK , or a Jewish run central European power would have been as bad as the Nazis. Counter factual histories are pointless.

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

And all that's left is the premiership.

Definitely no obsession.:P

SEPT 23 1989 · 27-10-2012 4:30pm

Japan and Germany

Is this some sort of joke?

GalwayGuy2 · 27-10-2012 4:36pm

The only people in the world who are genetically inferior are Americans. ( stupidity problems)

****in' hell that's bigoted:O

Jan Hus · 27-10-2012 4:38pm

GalwayGuy2 wrote: »

****in' hell that's bigoted:O

But nonetheless true

Da Shins Kelly · 27-10-2012 4:39pm

Jan Hus wrote: »

I hate to generalise but Americans in my experience tend to lack basic intelligence. This is after all the nation of Sarah Palin, she is fairly representative of most Americans.

It's also the same country that put man on the moon, invented the foundations for the internet, the lightbulb and the camera, and produced the scientist who first observed that the universe is expanding; it produced the writings of William Faulkner, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Mark Twain and Sylvia Plath; it is the country to produce the pioneers in pretty much every form of popular music - jazz, soul, rock n' roll, hip hop; they produced great icons of civil rights like Martin Luther King Jnr. and Malcolm X.

It continues to produce great minds in the forms of linguist and writer Noam Chomsky, arguably two of the greatest living authors Cormac McCarthy and Thomas Pynchon, the co-discoverer of DNA James Watson, Alan Guth, who has revolutionised our understanding of the Big Bang Theory. It is Americans who have transformed communication in the form of social networking on Facebook and Twitter, and made advances in technology with the invention of iPods and iPhones and all these other gadgets that seem to have become a part of many people's daily lives. And there are many, many more examples.

It's a huge country, so obviously there will be a greater chance of producing a lot of less than intelligent people, but it's pretty unfair to make a generalization that all Americans are lacking in basic intelligence when American minds have and continue to make huge contributions to the world.

golden lane · 27-10-2012 4:41pm

Duggys Housemate wrote: »

Lol. Look, you have no idea. The mao Mau rebellion is big in Kenya, the Opium wars are big in China, the Indians remember the famines under the British, the middle east remembers the Balfour declaration.

You just imbibe British media. So little do you know.

i know 24 irishmen were prepared to wipe out an indian village (men women and children)..at the little big horn.....

history is no secret....it is there for all to read....

try...reading all of it.......you will be amazed.....

Furious_George · 27-10-2012 4:46pm

RossyG wrote: »

Well, that didn't take long.

He is kinda right tho. I have no prob with the british at all but the british media at the minute seem to be obsessed with how great britan is, what made britan great, etc. At the same time the government are taking a very isolated position when it comes to europe.

golden lane · 27-10-2012 4:51pm

Furious_George wrote: »

He is kinda right tho. I have no prob with the british at all but the british media at the minute seem to be obsessed with how great britan is, what made britan great, etc. At the same time the government are taking a very isolated position when it comes to europe.

surely.....you don't read that crap......

or, any newspapers......they are published to make a profit.......

with regard to europe.........yes, they are fed up giving handouts .....

ejmaztec · 27-10-2012 4:58pm

Furious_George wrote: »

He is kinda right tho. I have no prob with the british at all but the british media at the minute seem to be obsessed with how great britan is, what made britan great, etc. At the same time the government are taking a very isolated position when it comes to europe.

It's a concerted effort by the British government to try and persuade the British people that there are no problems, plus they're still trying to earn a few quid off the back of the Olympics.

RossyG · 27-10-2012 4:58pm

Furious_George wrote: »

He is kinda right tho. I have no prob with the british at all but the british media at the minute seem to be obsessed with how great britan is, what made britan great, etc. At the same time the government are taking a very isolated position when it comes to europe.

A couple of TV shows with a "look, we're not so bad really" subtext aren't indications of conceited self-obsession.

And the Conservatives have been wary of Europe since Thatcher toppled Heath.

The_Kew_Tour · 27-10-2012 5:03pm

Poland, Hungary or Wales for me.

Jan Hus · 27-10-2012 5:07pm

Da Shins Kelly wrote: »

It's also the same country that put man on the moon, invented the foundations for the internet, the lightbulb and the camera, and produced the scientist who first observed that the universe is expanding; it produced the writings of William Faulkner, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Mark Twain and Sylvia Plath; it is the country to produce the pioneers in pretty much every form of popular music - jazz, soul, rock n' roll, hip hop; they produced great icons of civil rights like Martin Luther King Jnr. and Malcolm X.

It continues to produce great minds in the forms of linguist and writer Noam Chomsky, arguably two of the greatest living authors Cormac McCarthy and Thomas Pynchon, the co-discoverer of DNA James Watson, Alan Guth, who has revolutionised our understanding of the Big Bang Theory. It is Americans who have transformed communication in the form of social networking on Facebook and Twitter, and made advances in technology with the invention of iPods and iPhones and all these other gadgets that seem to have become a part of many people's daily lives. And there are many, many more examples.

It's a huge country, so obviously there will be a greater chance of producing a lot of less than intelligent people, but it's pretty unfair to make a generalization that all Americans are lacking in basic intelligence when American minds have and continue to make huge contributions to the world.

England laid the foundations of the Internet and is the major pioneer in genetic sciences. Chomsky is undoubtedly a genius but (to some extent) the actions of his countrymen make him ashamed to be an American. The true discovers of DNA were two English scientists ( Rosalind and something). Plath would have considered herself British. The greatest living author is Marquenz. In mY view Hemingway was a terrible author. (I've never read Faulkner so I can't judge him). Tesla was far more brilliant than Edison... need I go on.
A country as large as the US was bound to produce a few aberrations especially if you comb through time.

gallag · 27-10-2012 5:08pm

When I read this thread title I thought how long until the brit bashing starts lol, thankfully the haters seem to be the vocal minority now and we finally seem to be fostering an attitude of genuine friendship between neighbors. The warm welcome the queen got in ireland and the roars from the british urging Ireland on in the Olympics silence the haters who would rather live in the past.

bb1234567 · 27-10-2012 5:09pm

The U.K were definitely the greatest and most important nation in the world throughout most of our planets history. The country is still extremely important today ,even though their population isnt that large. But there contribution to everything inventions,sport,literature, education,music,famous people,film,tv , world affairs, military ,history etc is phenomenal.
After that maybe sweden? germany,japan,switzerland..denmark even?

MaxSteele · 27-10-2012 5:11pm

Switzerland.

Furious_George · 27-10-2012 5:13pm

RossyG wrote: »

A couple of TV shows with a "look, we're not so bad really" subtext aren't indications of conceited self-obsession.

And the Conservatives have been wary of Europe since Thatcher toppled Heath.

Ya i know i wasnt really sayn the whole nation are conceited nd self obsessed ive just noticed a good bit of "great" britan stuff recently and what seems like nostalgia for a time when britan was an absolute powerhouse. Not surprising i suppose, im quite nostalgic for the few years when we were all quite well off and the future seemed bright and cheery.

I recon canada seems pretty great :-).

Capt'n Midnight · 27-10-2012 5:21pm

smurgen wrote: »

What in your opinion is the greatest nation/race on earth?

For me i'd pick Japan.

They still don't acknowledge what they did in China , never mind apologise.

Imagine having a mass in Cologne Cathedral today for convicted Nazi's in full uniform.

Justin1982 · 27-10-2012 5:25pm

Going by the amount of dopey Irish ***** going over to Australia cos "their cousin is making a fortune out in the mines" and "sher there is nothing in Ireland to keep me here". And judging by the amount of eegits that come back from Australia having visited all the fantastic sights to see over there when you couldnt pay the thick ***** to look at anything amazeball in Ireland, Australia is probably the greatest nation on Earth.

If you were to go by general measures then the Germans or the Japs are amazeball. Problem is the second world war. Big black mark against them. Plus they arent exactly the most exciting races ever. Bit too serious are some of them, ant like behaviour scares the **** out of me and they are never going to take the comedy circuit by storm.

Switzerland really blew my ****in socks off when I went there. Although they are too keepy to themselves for my liking.

Ireland would be a great little country if we could only roof it and install a underground heating system nation wide. I think the Irish generally have a good case for being one of the great nations/races.

Jews/Israel also have a case. Seriously smart ***** in fairness. Israel looks like a military dictatorship on first glance but in fairness they are surrounded by a bunch of monkeys that would stop at nothing to kill them.

And having spent my youth listening to anti British propaganda I'd actually have to say the British are the greatest nation and race. Yes they have a serious amount of faults and have made an unreal amount of ****ups but if I was looking for a nation to watch my back when I was in the Vietnam jungle in the 1960's then I'd really prefer the Brits. Their history is second to none. These days their judgement is second to none imho when it comes to foreign affairs and they generally are not the bunch of bastards that they were in the past. Their leaders are generally top notch. Music, comedy, science, culture....they generally are at the forefront. They got serious ****in balls as well. They are responsible for America (I know they make a serious amount of **** ups as well). As an example just compare ex British Empire countries to ex spanish or ex French colonies. British really did leave them in a good state or at least made the ****in effort. Yeah I know they ****ed them over big time as well but they were different times where education was nearly non existent. And I like the fact that the British are open minded enough to basically allow every Tom Dick and Harry from every hole on the planet come live there these days.

Richard Hillman · 27-10-2012 5:29pm

Sulla Felix wrote: »

Wrong on all counts.

Whoosh

Justin1982 · 27-10-2012 5:31pm

Furious_George wrote: »

He is kinda right tho. I have no prob with the british at all but the british media at the minute seem to be obsessed with how great britan is, what made britan great, etc. At the same time the government are taking a very isolated position when it comes to europe.

The Brits know that the only lads they can fully trust is themselves. They want to be the best of friends with Europe but they dont want to get too caught up in the European rate race which is really a big experiment which the big economies would have to pay for. I'd say they are thanking their lucky stars they didnt get involved in the Euro dream!

losthorizon · 27-10-2012 5:35pm

All nations have their good and bad points.

I have been to Iceland twice.First for a football match and I liked it so much I went back there for two weeks driving around the country.

Amazing looking place unlike anywhere else I have been and really nice people however cant say I applaud their slaughter of whales.

If I was going to pick a country it would be France. Perfect outlook on life, very friendly people (friendliest in europe along with the muslim Bosnians), great weather and a great lifestyle and society however their foreign policy always bugs me.

Bazzo · 27-10-2012 5:35pm

The Scandinavians seem to be doin pretty well for themselves, I'd probably go with one of them.

ejmaztec · 27-10-2012 5:38pm

RossyG wrote: »

A couple of TV shows with a "look, we're not so bad really" subtext aren't indications of conceited self-obsession.

And the Conservatives have been wary of Europe since Thatcher toppled Heath.

The only problem that I had with watching "The British" tv programme was that interspersed between the various scenes were contributions from "learned" people like Jessie J, who probably never even went to school. I never got beyond the first episode.

Jonah42 · 27-10-2012 5:40pm

I think Sweden manage their business well. All the Scandinavians do in fact.

ejmaztec · 27-10-2012 5:44pm

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

They still don't acknowledge what they did in China , never mind apologise.

Imagine having a mass in Cologne Cathedral today for convicted Nazi's in full uniform.

I'm sure that if the Chinese were as pissed off as the people here seem to be about it, they would have nuked the UK by now, the only problem being that we'd be in the radiation zone as well.

The Greatest Nation on Earth

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