Is this an offensive forward, or a really funny parody of an offensive forward?

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Dissident
freedom of speech is only allowed if you have a liberal or anti-war viewpoint.

Those people were out of line opening their mouths like that.

That's crap. They weren't disagreeing with her, they were trying to shut her up. They were trying to suppress her right to free speech. You do not have the right to use your rights to suppress the rights of others. Disagree and debate, don't suppress.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Azazel
wtf is a burka?

Those full body veils Central Asian women wear.

[Az]

well, full body veils are worn by some Iraqi women.

[Spiffor]

Burkas are also special because there is a grid in front of the woman's face, while Arabic veils most often are open at this location.

[Jaguar]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
Oh, and women from Iraq don't wear burkas.

I was waiting for someone to say that.

[Az]

well, if it is a true story, ( ) It could obviously be mistaken.

Oh, and che, that women was trying to suppress the cashier's right for free speach when she criticized her pin.

[Dis]

Che this is where you guys distort the truth. See what I mean about not being allowed to have a viewpoint that supports the U.S. That is not allowed by liberals.

They weren't trying to shut her up. It was her choice to shut up. She was a weak woman.

If I was her I would have continued talking about how the U.S. kills babies. It was her choice to walk away.

Now if they physically restrained her or threatened her with violence that would be a different story. It is amazing that liberals cannot see the difference between forcing someone not to express their viewpoint by force or threats, and just merely expressing their own viewpoint.

If you guys can't see that both sides were doing the same exact thing- there is no hope for you. I will pray for your soul . Think about it. Both sides were expressing their extreme viewpoint.

[Shi Huangdi]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
Gee, a heart-warming story about how people try and shut people they disagree with up. No one every debates anymore. No one every says, I disagree with you, but I'll defend your right to say it. No, it's our way or the highway.

The right has become more and more intollerant over the last two decades. You people are begining to scare me.

First, this story is likely to be ficticious. Next, freedom of speech is not an issue, the woman was allowed to say what she wanted to say. The other customers simply had a right to loudly disagree with her. You might say it wasn't an intellecutal debate statement they were giving, but neither is asking a cashier when they will stop bombing her country.

[Shi Huangdi]

dp

[yago]

Dissident, this is where you distort the truth. See what I mean about not being allowed to have a viewpoint that does not support the U.S. That is not allowed by misguided people who wrongly claim to be patriots, like that old fellow who abused a soldier for his rethoric.

They were trying to shut her up. She realized it was better for her to shut up. She was a weak woman, wheras everyone in line, and within hearing distance, cheered the older gentleman.

Now if they physically restrained her or threatened her with violence that would be really the top of it. Instead, they did it in a subtile, yet not misunderstandable way:"I'll gladly pay your way back to Iraq so you can straighten out the mess you are obviously here to avoid." Everyone in line, and within hearing distance, cheered the older gentleman, coming forward as they reached for their wallets.

If you Dissident can't see, that while the woman expressed her viewpoint, the other people made it clear, that of course she has a right to say what ever she wants to say, when she first enters a plane (at least they offered the ticket) and gets her butt out of the country.

Dissident, if you can't see that the woman in the afghan Burkha was blackmailed, there is no hope for you. But I won't even bother to pray for your soul. I don't belive that it's possible to petition the lord with prayers. Think about it. The woman expressed her viewpoint, the others blackmailed her to shut up.

And another thing. The soldier was neutral in this story. He was just used. He never said, which side he was on. Only self-rightours people had a loud talk.

[Dis]

blackmail

[yago]

Blackmail = exert pressure on someone through threats .

Says my English dix.

[Q Classic]

i dislike the story.

why? because if it's an email forward, it's fictional tripe. it is poorly written, sent willy-nilly, and far too moralistic.

that, and i don't see who we should be supporting... the older gentleman, as valid as his points might be, is obviously an ass by perpetuating the notion that if you ain't with us, you is against us, and you's best git on back to your own folk.

[yago]

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2003-03-03-anti-american-usat_x.htm

But if you're heading overseas, be prepared to have it. Again and again. If the past 100 years were widely considered the American Century, this new one is fast shaping up as the Anti-American Century.

Just ask tourist Colleen Frost, 33, who hopped into a cab recently on her first day in Berlin. An English-speaking driver demanded an explanation for what he called "America's megalomania."

"He wanted to know what I would think of my country if my brother or boyfriend was killed in a war," says Frost, a dental hygienist from Santa Fe. She says the ride was over before she could provide an answer for the disgruntled cabby.

How times have changed.


From Spanish plazas to Parisian metros, American tourists are being quizzed, grilled and even spat on by people who do not approve of the Bush administration's drive for a war against Saddam Hussein.


"I've spent 100 days a year for the past 30 years in Europe, and, generally, people always managed to differentiate a government's action from its citizens," says Rick Steves, a Seattle-based tour operator who specializes in Europe.

"But I have never seen this level of frustration in my lifetime. They just can't understand our push for war, especially the younger generation."

Steves says the current climate is in stark contrast to the "breathtaking" we-are-all-Americans sentiment that gripped Europe on Sept. 11, 2001. He is not discouraging his clients from traveling abroad now, and cancellations have been few. That said, his Web site features a flurry of concerned exchanges about overseas travel. Steves urges would-be tourists to pack the right attitude.

"Being defensive does no good. You have to keep things in perspective and listen," he says. "At its best, travel remains a vital force in promoting understanding."

But sometimes this antagonism filters down directly to the American tourist.

Laurel Scapicchio and her 13-year-old daughter were waiting for a train in the Paris metro a few weeks ago when their conversation was interrupted. Two men in their 20s overheard their American accents and shouted, "Pigs!"

"It brought us back to reality," says Scapicchio, 42, a freight forwarder from Saugus, Mass., who was on her first trip to the French capital. "It was a little spooky. But we shrugged it off. It wasn't personal. It was just because we were Americans."



"I am certain that a number of American visitors will be asked about the U.S. administration's policy on Iraq. But if indeed there have been some unpleasant encounters, I strongly believe that they are few and far between," says Patrick Goyet, vice chairman of the European Travel Commission in New York. "Furthermore, speaking as a European and for the vast majority of my fellow Europeans, I consider any such behavior idiotic and embarrassing."

Be ready for harsh words

In any country you're going to get people who do this," says Kelly, who was studying at the Madrid campus of Boston's Suffolk University.

However, fellow student Kate Perlis, 20, says the atmosphere was charged. "It seems that the only English a lot of people there know are the words, 'We hate Bush.' "

Joshua Eckblad, 28, an American high-tech manager living in Madrid, has had similar experiences. Daily he faces the comments of Spaniards who "feel free to say anything against America, who think Bush and his people know nothing about the world."

His sister, Vanina, 27, an architect living in Paris, has fared no better. She says that the other day a man on the street "told me to go back to where I came from."

His sister, Vanina, 27, an architect living in Paris, has fared no better. She says that the other day a man on the street "told me to go back to where I came from."

I hope this Vanina knows her place and keeps her mouth shut.

[Q Classic]

hey, maybe everyone should go on and git back to where they done come from.