Now, if everyone responded like this^ then we really would have a great forum for debating....rather than the usual decent into name calling and petty snide remarks.
Much better to have a lengthy insulting anecdote than a short to the point post?
What's my point? My point is, someone posts a video and you use it as an opportunity to label every New Yorker based upon your own personal experiences. It's dumb and it's bigoted. That's my point.
Then your point is not a sound one. What did I "label" New Yorkers as? You won't even say. In a later post I say outright that New Yorkers are "intense" and "bold." Ooooh, you must bleed from that wound. Who could go through life bearing the shame of being intense and bold? I do believe that New Yorkers are that way, and countless New Yorkers describe themselves that way -- proudly. They are not shrinking violets. And if you don't notice that, maybe it is because that is simply NORMAL for you in New York.
But you know what I would have been impressed by? If you had managed to take your mind off of the task of taking offence for a few moments so that you might have noticed the stereotype about Canadians that is reinforced by my friend's anecdote. He said he didn't want relish on his hot dog. He said he doesn't like relish. So what did he end up doing in the face of pressure from people around him? HE ORDERED A HOT DOG WITH RELISH! A hot dog he paid for! And what is the popular stereotype about Canadians? Overly-polite to the point of being doormats for anybody who will take advantage of their disinclination for confrontation. Frankly, I would have been proud of my friend if he had taken a leaf out of the book of New Yorker behaviour and told the people around him to mind their own damn business. Why? Because boldness can absolutely be a GOOD thing in the right situation.
Then your point is not a sound one. What did I "label" New Yorkers as? You won't even say. In a later post I say outright that New Yorkers are "intense" and "bold." Ooooh, you must bleed from that wound. Who could go through life bearing the shame of being intense and bold? I do believe that New Yorkers are that way, and countless New Yorkers describe themselves that way -- proudly. They are not shrinking violets. And if you don't notice that, maybe it is because that is simply NORMAL for you in New York.
But you know what I would have been impressed by? If you had managed to take your mind off of the task of taking offence for a few moments so that you might have noticed the stereotype about Canadians that is reinforced by my friend's anecdote. He said he didn't want relish on his hot dog. He said he doesn't like relish. So what did he end up doing in the face of pressure from people around him? HE ORDERED A HOT DOG WITH RELISH! A hot dog he paid for! And what is the popular stereotype about Canadians? Overly-polite to the point of being doormats for anybody who will take advantage of their disinclination for confrontation. Frankly, I would have been proud of my friend if he had taken a leaf out of the book of New Yorker behaviour and told the people around him to mind their own damn business. Why? Because boldness can absolutely be a GOOD thing in the right situation.
You certainly don't live up to that stereotype about Canadians. My problem with what you said wasn't the fact that it was totally unrelated to the thread content. It wasn't even about the douchebag hot dog vender. It was the "every single New Yorker I ever met is" yada yada. The reason I said it could be seen as bigoted was because if someone posted a comment like that about a whole range of different places the thought police would come down on them.
Maybe if you'd talked about the vendor without trying to make out everyone in a city of 9 million people is like that i'd not have a problem with it. "That's what New Yorkers are like" said your friend. We all spend our days in hot dog queues mouthing off at the poor visiting Canadians? Give me a break. Fact is i've NEVER seen anything remotely like that happen at a street vendor. Nobody cares whether someone has relish on their hot dog. People are too busy getting on with their own lives to worry about trying to frighten a visitor.
Besides, there are so many people visiting the city we don't recoil in horror at someone visiting who chooses to eat their overpriced junk food in particular way.
Much better to have a lengthy insulting anecdote than a short to the point post?
I think someone is getting his knickers in a twist,especially as MoreTears gave a perfectly reasonable explanation to his post.
I was commenting on his response to your reply. I thought he held himself well and with dignity...a lesson a few of us could learn.
I think someone is getting his knickers in a twist,especially as MoreTears gave a perfectly reasonable explanation to his post.
I was commenting on his response to your reply. I thought he held himself well and with dignity...a lesson a few of us could learn.
Do you think so? Presumably "a lesson a few of us could learn." is one of those petty snide remarks you don't care for.
You certainly don't live up to that stereotype about Canadians.
Trust me, I've had to work at it. I used to avoid plenty of confrontations out of a desire, created from the way I was brought up, to not appear rude or -- God forbid -- "make a scene."
I'll give you another anecdote, one that illustrates both the way Canadians in general are, and my determination to break that stereotype, at least in my case. This happened to me about five years ago. I went into a 7-11 store to buy something -- a bag of chips (or rather, a "packet of crisps," for the Brits reading this). I grabbed the chips and went up to the front of the store to pay, joining a line with three people in front of me. There was one cashier working and he was on the phone talking. He continued to talk on the phone while the line of people wanting to pay for their items was getting longer. After about three minutes with the guy still on the phone, I looked behind me and saw that the line was now 12 people long. And then it hit me: I asked myself, "What the hell is wrong with us? Why are we just standing here like timid sheep, waiting for the guy to do his job? Are we AFRAID to tell the idiot behind the counter to get off the damn phone and start ringing up our purchases?" So I acted. I stepped out of the nicely formed line of polite people (so the guy on the phone could see me), and without yelling, but in a firm, measured voice, I said, "Get off the phone -- right NOW." The guy hung up the phone immediately and stepped forward to serve the first customer in line. I actually felt good about what I did, and then I looked at a couple of the people in front of me and they shot dirty looks at me. At ME. The guy on the phone, he was okay. It was apparently our duty to stand patiently waiting for him to finish his phone conversation till the end of time. I created "a scene." Very bad form in Canada. I was out of line.
Now tell me, BrooklynBoy, in New York, how long could a 7-11 employee do what I have described above, when customers are waiting for service, before somebody did something about it? Would any 7-11 employee in New York DARE to do that?
Trust me, I've had to work at it. I used to avoid plenty of confrontations out of a desire, created from the way I was brought up, to not appear rude or -- God forbid -- "make a scene."
I'll give you another anecdote, one that illustrates both the way Canadians in general are, and my determination to break that stereotype, at least in my case. This happened to me about five years ago. I went into a 7-11 store to buy something -- a bag of chips (or rather, a "packet of crisps," for the Brits reading this). I grabbed the chips and went up to the front of the store to pay, joining a line with three people in front of me. There was one cashier working and he was on the phone talking. He continued to talk on the phone while the line of people wanting to pay for their items was getting longer. After about three minutes with the guy still on the phone, I looked behind me and saw that the line was now 2 people long. And then it hit me: I asked myself, "What the hell is wrong with us? Why are we just standing here like timid sheep, waiting for the guy to do his job? Are we AFRAID to tell the idiot behind the counter to get off the damn phone and start ringing up our purchases?" So I acted. I stepped out of the nicely formed line of polite people (so the guy on the phone could see me), and without yelling, but in a firm, measured voice, I said, "Get off the phone -- right NOW." The guy hung up the phone immediately and stepped forward to serve the first customer in line. I actually felt good about what I did, and then I looked at a couple of the people in front of me and they shot dirty looks at me. At ME. The guy on the phone, he was okay. It was apparently our duty to stand patiently waiting for him to finish his phone conversation till the end of time. I created "a scene." Very bad form in Canada. I was out of line.
Now tell me, BrooklynBoy, in New York, how long could a 7-11 employee do what I have described above, when customers are waiting for service, before somebody did something about it? Would any 7-11 employee in New York DARE to do that?
Nice story. Without conducting a survey of New York 7-11 employees i have no idea if any of them would dare to do that. Maybe they would, maybe they wouldn't. It all depends on whether they'd likely live up to the myth or not. I've not seen someone on the phone at a counter myself. They tend to be serving customers. What any of this or the hot dog story has to do with the subject of the thread though is beyond me. I'm afraid we don't all walk around putting guns in peoples faces or saying "hey, how you doin?"
What any of this or the hot dog story has to do with the subject of the thread though is beyond me.
Thread discussions evolve, go off on tangents, right? In this thread, people almost immediately started talking about the guy who took the video footage and how he was freaking out. The hot dog story was posted in reply to Lyricalis, who said about the camera guy: "He's a heart attack waiting to happen if he gets riled at everything." That comment reminded me of the hot dog story my friend told me. Now before elaborating, I'll pause for a second and ask you, Can you really not see the connection between the camera guy getting all riled up over something that wasn't his business and the hot dog story? Think about it. My friend tries to buy a hot dog without relish, and a New Yorker gets "riled up" over somebody wanting to eat a New York hot dog without relish on it -- in other words, something that wasn't any of his business. Now contrary to what you said above in one of your posts, I wasn't implying that New Yorkers in general care about what condiments out-of-towners have on their hot dogs. It was the business of getting "riled up" over something that, let's say, "more shy" people would leave alone that struck a chord with me, that made me think, "Yeah, that does fit the well-established stereotype about New Yorkers."
A few weeks ago a friend of mine (Canadian, like me) was telling me about something that happened to him during a trip to New York. He ordered a hot dog at a stand on the street, and he told the vendor that he didn't want any relish on it. The guy standing behind him in the queue overhears him and says, "What! No relish! C'mon, buddy, ya gotta have relish on your dog." My friend says, "No, it's okay, I'm not too fond of relish." Queue guy replies: "Get outta here!? You're not from around here, are ya? Ya can't eat a New York hot dog without relish on it." Then the fellow turns around and addresses other people milling about: "Hey! We gotta a guy here, from outta town, who doesn't want relish on his hot dog!" Somebody then shouts at my friend: "No way! No relish? New York dogs have relish, pal!" At this point my friend is stunned, and a little bit frightened, so he relents. He tells the vendor that he'll have relish on his hot dog. People around him cheer and pat him on the back.:) "That's what New Yorkers are like," my friend noted in concluding his story.
Well, yeah, there is at least an element in the story that is endearing, charming. Sure, my friend was rather bullied by people who should've minded their business, but there was a PASSION, a gusto, there, that has to be appreciated. And make no mistake, my friend was all smiles when he related his story. In the end these perfect strangers were cheering my friend, patting him on the back, like they were his good friends. Tourists go places HOPING they will return home with good stories like that, don't they?:)
How can a guy in a council tower block afford a good quality camcorder like that?
Sponges!
There are no such things as "council towers" in America. Social welfare housing in the US is usually referred to as "the projects" (as in "housing projects") and they are not right on regular streets. That guy with the camera was inside a standard apartment, or flat, as you would say in the UK.
There are no such things as "council towers" in America. Social welfare housing in the US is usually referred to as "the projects" (as in "housing projects") and they are not right on regular streets. That guy with the camera was inside a standard apartment, or flat, as you would say in the UK.
So if someone came round smashed in your back lights smashed in the rear end and shattered your back window - you would say oh you have hardly touched it.
I'd probably say "sweet.. the city is buying me a new car"
Comments
Much better to have a lengthy insulting anecdote than a short to the point post?
What a thoroughly irritating person!
Nah, it's just too easy....
Then your point is not a sound one. What did I "label" New Yorkers as? You won't even say. In a later post I say outright that New Yorkers are "intense" and "bold." Ooooh, you must bleed from that wound. Who could go through life bearing the shame of being intense and bold? I do believe that New Yorkers are that way, and countless New Yorkers describe themselves that way -- proudly. They are not shrinking violets. And if you don't notice that, maybe it is because that is simply NORMAL for you in New York.
But you know what I would have been impressed by? If you had managed to take your mind off of the task of taking offence for a few moments so that you might have noticed the stereotype about Canadians that is reinforced by my friend's anecdote. He said he didn't want relish on his hot dog. He said he doesn't like relish. So what did he end up doing in the face of pressure from people around him? HE ORDERED A HOT DOG WITH RELISH! A hot dog he paid for! And what is the popular stereotype about Canadians? Overly-polite to the point of being doormats for anybody who will take advantage of their disinclination for confrontation. Frankly, I would have been proud of my friend if he had taken a leaf out of the book of New Yorker behaviour and told the people around him to mind their own damn business. Why? Because boldness can absolutely be a GOOD thing in the right situation.
You certainly don't live up to that stereotype about Canadians. My problem with what you said wasn't the fact that it was totally unrelated to the thread content. It wasn't even about the douchebag hot dog vender. It was the "every single New Yorker I ever met is" yada yada. The reason I said it could be seen as bigoted was because if someone posted a comment like that about a whole range of different places the thought police would come down on them.
Maybe if you'd talked about the vendor without trying to make out everyone in a city of 9 million people is like that i'd not have a problem with it. "That's what New Yorkers are like" said your friend. We all spend our days in hot dog queues mouthing off at the poor visiting Canadians? Give me a break. Fact is i've NEVER seen anything remotely like that happen at a street vendor. Nobody cares whether someone has relish on their hot dog. People are too busy getting on with their own lives to worry about trying to frighten a visitor.
Besides, there are so many people visiting the city we don't recoil in horror at someone visiting who chooses to eat their overpriced junk food in particular way.
I think someone is getting his knickers in a twist,especially as MoreTears gave a perfectly reasonable explanation to his post.
I was commenting on his response to your reply. I thought he held himself well and with dignity...a lesson a few of us could learn.
Do you think so? Presumably "a lesson a few of us could learn." is one of those petty snide remarks you don't care for.
Trust me, I've had to work at it. I used to avoid plenty of confrontations out of a desire, created from the way I was brought up, to not appear rude or -- God forbid -- "make a scene."
I'll give you another anecdote, one that illustrates both the way Canadians in general are, and my determination to break that stereotype, at least in my case. This happened to me about five years ago. I went into a 7-11 store to buy something -- a bag of chips (or rather, a "packet of crisps," for the Brits reading this). I grabbed the chips and went up to the front of the store to pay, joining a line with three people in front of me. There was one cashier working and he was on the phone talking. He continued to talk on the phone while the line of people wanting to pay for their items was getting longer. After about three minutes with the guy still on the phone, I looked behind me and saw that the line was now 12 people long. And then it hit me: I asked myself, "What the hell is wrong with us? Why are we just standing here like timid sheep, waiting for the guy to do his job? Are we AFRAID to tell the idiot behind the counter to get off the damn phone and start ringing up our purchases?" So I acted. I stepped out of the nicely formed line of polite people (so the guy on the phone could see me), and without yelling, but in a firm, measured voice, I said, "Get off the phone -- right NOW." The guy hung up the phone immediately and stepped forward to serve the first customer in line. I actually felt good about what I did, and then I looked at a couple of the people in front of me and they shot dirty looks at me. At ME. The guy on the phone, he was okay. It was apparently our duty to stand patiently waiting for him to finish his phone conversation till the end of time. I created "a scene." Very bad form in Canada. I was out of line.
Now tell me, BrooklynBoy, in New York, how long could a 7-11 employee do what I have described above, when customers are waiting for service, before somebody did something about it? Would any 7-11 employee in New York DARE to do that?
Nice story. Without conducting a survey of New York 7-11 employees i have no idea if any of them would dare to do that. Maybe they would, maybe they wouldn't. It all depends on whether they'd likely live up to the myth or not. I've not seen someone on the phone at a counter myself. They tend to be serving customers. What any of this or the hot dog story has to do with the subject of the thread though is beyond me. I'm afraid we don't all walk around putting guns in peoples faces or saying "hey, how you doin?"
I included myself in the ''a few of us could learn'' remark, so If I were being petty and snide then I was being petty and snide towards myself .:D .
That wasn't at all clear from your post.
Not necessarily no. Us can be used in a patronizing way as a figure of speech. It's not necesarily literal.
Thread discussions evolve, go off on tangents, right? In this thread, people almost immediately started talking about the guy who took the video footage and how he was freaking out. The hot dog story was posted in reply to Lyricalis, who said about the camera guy: "He's a heart attack waiting to happen if he gets riled at everything." That comment reminded me of the hot dog story my friend told me. Now before elaborating, I'll pause for a second and ask you, Can you really not see the connection between the camera guy getting all riled up over something that wasn't his business and the hot dog story? Think about it. My friend tries to buy a hot dog without relish, and a New Yorker gets "riled up" over somebody wanting to eat a New York hot dog without relish on it -- in other words, something that wasn't any of his business. Now contrary to what you said above in one of your posts, I wasn't implying that New Yorkers in general care about what condiments out-of-towners have on their hot dogs. It was the business of getting "riled up" over something that, let's say, "more shy" people would leave alone that struck a chord with me, that made me think, "Yeah, that does fit the well-established stereotype about New Yorkers."
This is why I loved New York!
Well, yeah, there is at least an element in the story that is endearing, charming. Sure, my friend was rather bullied by people who should've minded their business, but there was a PASSION, a gusto, there, that has to be appreciated. And make no mistake, my friend was all smiles when he related his story. In the end these perfect strangers were cheering my friend, patting him on the back, like they were his good friends. Tourists go places HOPING they will return home with good stories like that, don't they?:)
Sponges!
There are no such things as "council towers" in America. Social welfare housing in the US is usually referred to as "the projects" (as in "housing projects") and they are not right on regular streets. That guy with the camera was inside a standard apartment, or flat, as you would say in the UK.
sorry but i was being ironic
Nah, just read one too many of his posts.
Where was the disturbing part?
I'd probably say "sweet.. the city is buying me a new car"