On the subject of English Americans,my favourite scene from a prettyaverage film is an old mafia dude trying to call out his WASP CIA handler and getting his arse handed to him:
Joseph Palmi: Let me ask you something... we Italians, we got our families, and we got the church; the Irish, they have the homeland, Jews their tradition; even the n****s, they got their music. What about you people, Mr. Wilson, what do you have?
Edward Wilson: The United States of America. The rest of you are just visiting
On Mamdani and co. I always found progressive Muslims in the West—especially college-degree holders—to be a source of; frustration, endless jokes about their imagined victimhood, but I couldn’t at times suppress my admiration for their efforts to interpret Islam in a way that can be inclusive towards communities such as gays and lesbians!
Now, there is no Vatican in Islam, no central authority, no CCP, which means that it’s open to diverse interpretations and sociopolitical expressions! From genocidal, crazed, ultra patriarchal, hyper-angry expressions, to transcendental, Sufi dancing and wine drinking ones!
And because Islam is the second biggest religion in the world, a religion that didn’t submit fully -yet- to the forces of post-modernism and secularization, this means that we all feel its tumultuous inner struggles!
As Zaineb Riboua rightly observed, most Gulf Arabs, at least the ones who follow US politics, (and there are hundreds of thousands of Gulfies who were educated in the states) felt instinctively that there is something deeply off with Mamdani’s ‘aura’ and messaging! This comes in sharp contrast to Donald Trump’s big man attitude towards power, money-making and women.
Take for example, Trump’s pride in his ‘beautiful’ kids who carry his ‘precious genes’—this is music to people’s ears here! It’s not that Gulf Arabs love vulgarity, but they genuinely like the honest and uncompromising Trumpian approach towards the nicest things life can offer!
I also think lots of people here do like Trump’s unfiltered, brazen, and at times big-hearted exchanges with his foes! For example, his patting Mamdani on the shoulders, telling him that it was alright to call him a fascist, was hugely commented upon and laughed at.
It seems Trump is still -at heart- a white American boy from the 1950s, who wasn't touched by the revolutionary spirit of the 60s and 70s! He simply likes masculinity; he’s at peace with it, and feels at ease with men from cultures that put a high premium on strength and high status!
I saw this amusing comment regarding "centrism" as a reply to a Nathan Cofnas post:
""Centrism" is just fascinating to me as an etymological concept. Center of what? Who decides that? Is it sheer numbers on both sides or distance of beliefs that counts? How often is the position of the "center" recalibrated? In practice just an appeal to authority, but still"
"I wonder if 1776 will see a revival of English-American identity, and people will recall the words of William Bradford: ‘Our Fathers were Englishmen which came over this great ocean, and were ready to perish in the wilderness, but they cried unto the Lord, and he heard this voice and looked on their adversities.’"
It's a little known fact that the modern "find your ancestry" industry first took off after the bicentennial of 1976 and the showing of "Roots" on television the following year. Roots was a miniseries based on a book on the history of black Americans and especially their experiences with slavery. At a time before cable TV (let alone satellite or streaming), there were only a handful of channels so large numbers of Americans watched it. In spite of the show's message of a need for "White America" to redeem itself for the historic crimes of racism and slavery (this was not long after a previous burst of what we would call "wokeness"), there was afterwards a huge burst of interest among White Americans seeking out their own "roots".
Re: It’s an almost perfect example of a welfare system creating perverse incentives and outcomes.
I don't know about perverse incentives, but a system designed with the notion that people are honest is a system that will attract and enable all sorts of fraud and con-mannery. I don't know the specifics of Minnestota social services but sounds to me like it should be more secure and keep Mikhail Gorbachev's advice in mind: "Trust but verify".
Re: It’s a funny line, except that almost all of Benchley’s family in fact came from Britain, even if they were mostly from Wales or from the Border folk.
About half of my ancestry was British (English, Scotch and Scotch-Irish). The other half was German, with a possible Native American in the mix. I wonder if surveys of ancestry allow for such almost evenly mixed ancestry. I am however one of those people who, if asked "What are you" will answer "American". (People should ask about my ancestry, not me, if that's what they want to know).
"I wonder if 1776 will see a revival of English-American identity..."
Speaking as a sort-of Englishman, I do wonder if our problems would be improved by becoming the 51st State. We'd get to be top dog again, without having to move house.
"The British Right are more anti-immigration than their American equivalents,"
Then they're not really "equivalent," are they? They're just wearing similarly-colored t-shirts or something vibe-y.
"... and (more obviously) less socially conservative."
Then what do they really have in common, other than the label? If factions labelled "right" don't have the same ideology, we might as well call them the Hoosiers and the Buckeyes, because there's no more there, there than there is to sportball fandom.
On the subject of English Americans,my favourite scene from a prettyaverage film is an old mafia dude trying to call out his WASP CIA handler and getting his arse handed to him:
Joseph Palmi: Let me ask you something... we Italians, we got our families, and we got the church; the Irish, they have the homeland, Jews their tradition; even the n****s, they got their music. What about you people, Mr. Wilson, what do you have?
Edward Wilson: The United States of America. The rest of you are just visiting
yes, love that line. I think I've even used it in a post.
On Mamdani and co. I always found progressive Muslims in the West—especially college-degree holders—to be a source of; frustration, endless jokes about their imagined victimhood, but I couldn’t at times suppress my admiration for their efforts to interpret Islam in a way that can be inclusive towards communities such as gays and lesbians!
Now, there is no Vatican in Islam, no central authority, no CCP, which means that it’s open to diverse interpretations and sociopolitical expressions! From genocidal, crazed, ultra patriarchal, hyper-angry expressions, to transcendental, Sufi dancing and wine drinking ones!
And because Islam is the second biggest religion in the world, a religion that didn’t submit fully -yet- to the forces of post-modernism and secularization, this means that we all feel its tumultuous inner struggles!
As Zaineb Riboua rightly observed, most Gulf Arabs, at least the ones who follow US politics, (and there are hundreds of thousands of Gulfies who were educated in the states) felt instinctively that there is something deeply off with Mamdani’s ‘aura’ and messaging! This comes in sharp contrast to Donald Trump’s big man attitude towards power, money-making and women.
Take for example, Trump’s pride in his ‘beautiful’ kids who carry his ‘precious genes’—this is music to people’s ears here! It’s not that Gulf Arabs love vulgarity, but they genuinely like the honest and uncompromising Trumpian approach towards the nicest things life can offer!
I also think lots of people here do like Trump’s unfiltered, brazen, and at times big-hearted exchanges with his foes! For example, his patting Mamdani on the shoulders, telling him that it was alright to call him a fascist, was hugely commented upon and laughed at.
yes, and his interactions with the new Syrian president are genuinely warming: 'attractive, tough guy'. al-Sharra obviously was flattered!
It seems Trump is still -at heart- a white American boy from the 1950s, who wasn't touched by the revolutionary spirit of the 60s and 70s! He simply likes masculinity; he’s at peace with it, and feels at ease with men from cultures that put a high premium on strength and high status!
I saw this amusing comment regarding "centrism" as a reply to a Nathan Cofnas post:
""Centrism" is just fascinating to me as an etymological concept. Center of what? Who decides that? Is it sheer numbers on both sides or distance of beliefs that counts? How often is the position of the "center" recalibrated? In practice just an appeal to authority, but still"
https://x.com/passageatarms/status/1890774918515613899
"I wonder if 1776 will see a revival of English-American identity, and people will recall the words of William Bradford: ‘Our Fathers were Englishmen which came over this great ocean, and were ready to perish in the wilderness, but they cried unto the Lord, and he heard this voice and looked on their adversities.’"
It's a little known fact that the modern "find your ancestry" industry first took off after the bicentennial of 1976 and the showing of "Roots" on television the following year. Roots was a miniseries based on a book on the history of black Americans and especially their experiences with slavery. At a time before cable TV (let alone satellite or streaming), there were only a handful of channels so large numbers of Americans watched it. In spite of the show's message of a need for "White America" to redeem itself for the historic crimes of racism and slavery (this was not long after a previous burst of what we would call "wokeness"), there was afterwards a huge burst of interest among White Americans seeking out their own "roots".
I did not know that.
I learned in this fact in one class in archiving as well as a book by Rick Perlstein.
I didn’t realise that the Icelandics were the most avid readers in the world. Im guessing this must have something to do with the weather?
apparently they average 2.5 books per month on average!
I presume that's the main factor, but literacy is just very deeply imbedded, I think they've had high rates for centuries.
Interesting “arc” for Vikings!!🤣🤣🤣
Re: It’s an almost perfect example of a welfare system creating perverse incentives and outcomes.
I don't know about perverse incentives, but a system designed with the notion that people are honest is a system that will attract and enable all sorts of fraud and con-mannery. I don't know the specifics of Minnestota social services but sounds to me like it should be more secure and keep Mikhail Gorbachev's advice in mind: "Trust but verify".
Re: It’s a funny line, except that almost all of Benchley’s family in fact came from Britain, even if they were mostly from Wales or from the Border folk.
About half of my ancestry was British (English, Scotch and Scotch-Irish). The other half was German, with a possible Native American in the mix. I wonder if surveys of ancestry allow for such almost evenly mixed ancestry. I am however one of those people who, if asked "What are you" will answer "American". (People should ask about my ancestry, not me, if that's what they want to know).
You should do a list of most surprising feuds: Dominic Sandbrook v Eugene McCarthy; Tolkien v the Beatles; Malcolm Muggeridge v Monty Python.
Congratulations on the success of your stack!! I enjoy it.
"I wonder if 1776 will see a revival of English-American identity..."
Speaking as a sort-of Englishman, I do wonder if our problems would be improved by becoming the 51st State. We'd get to be top dog again, without having to move house.
"The British Right are more anti-immigration than their American equivalents,"
Then they're not really "equivalent," are they? They're just wearing similarly-colored t-shirts or something vibe-y.
"... and (more obviously) less socially conservative."
Then what do they really have in common, other than the label? If factions labelled "right" don't have the same ideology, we might as well call them the Hoosiers and the Buckeyes, because there's no more there, there than there is to sportball fandom.