Talking with a German Engineer today - and he said something scary

[Taverner]

We were joking about Bush and the sorry state of American Politics, and he made a comment "Well, it's your turn now" - meaning that Germany went batshit crazy in the 1930's, and tried to kill everyone - and now its our turn to go batshit crazy and try to kill everyone.

[Tyler Durden]

1. This shocks me very, very little.

Such is the death of nations, kicking and screaming and lashing out at all around them.

[Taverner]

2. It doesn't shock me, but it scares me

We are on this road right now. Germans know their own history, so when they see a similar pattern they can spot it.

[LeftyFingerPop]

3. Scares me too.

Too many comparisons can be made to that dark period of German history.

[Taverner]

5. Even scarier is the last days of the Weimar Republic

IT swung Right, with a lot of Nazi sympathizers supporting the Right Wing candidates. Then it swung left, with a coalition of Socialists, Social Democrats and Communists. Then after all the infighting and corruption, Hitler swept in the next election. Game over.

[Connonym]

4. We were sort of discussing this at Easter dinner

My daughter mentioned that the Swedish exchange student at school has many times stated that "all of Europe" hates America. We're definitely not being seen as the good guys by a great deal of the world.

[billyskank]

6. Actually that's part of the problem.

We don't need America to be the "good guys" and the problem is not that America used to be the "good guys" and they aren't any more.

America should just see themselves as "the guys" along with everybody else: neither better than most nor worse. The same should go for everybody else. Then, and only then, we might have a chance at all getting along.

[Connonym]

8. good point

We've got to always be the hero of the story and if we can't be the hero we're going to be the antagonist because of a distorted sense of the US's position in the world. Most Americans I think really do have a superiority complex. We're sure as hell not team players unless we get to always be the team captain.

[Taverner]

11. A nation of Alphas

[Perry Logan]

7. Fortunately, neocons lack the balls and the brains of real Nazis.

[Squatch]

9. You know, I've got to say

"Batshit crazy" is definitely in my top 3 of favorite euphemisms.

[Karenina]

10. There's a very famous comedy routine...

It was years ago so I can't quote precisely but it was something to the effect of "For 60 YEARS we've been the ASSHOLES of the world. Then along comes GWB!!! We should THANK him!"