Quoted:
snip

You Yanks sure get butthurt when someone questions your fake ethnicities.

Quoted:


You give yourself too much credit.  





You don't even know what to question.





The hilarious part of course is your Americanization and loss of your own cultural identity.

 

Quoted:

You don't know anything about my cultural identity.

Quoted:
[Looks like we found another one!

You Yanks sure get butthurt when someone questions your fake ethnicities.

Quoted:
He said in English on an American firearms enthusiast board while arguing the validity of other Americans cultural claims.



So, seen "Fury" yet?  
 

Quoted:



My sense of who I am isn't "fake" in the slightest--and I find it curious that you might insist otherwise.

What is your paycheck in all of that?

Quoted:

I'll repeat my assertion: your schtick is lame as shit.  Let it go.

Quoted:



Just an as an observation, I think the more likely explanation is that Swede tends to be more likely to post in threads where there is a European element, because he is European.

The fact that he happens to post in the same threads as UK posters is probably more to do with common "continental" interests, rather than him "following" UK posters.

While the EU as an organisation is an utter travesty, the various nations of Europe do tend to from a daily close "community" by virtue of their proximity to each other.  naturally any thread where one of the neighbours is mentioned is going to attract interest.

Quoted:

Cry me a river.

Quoted:



Just an as an observation, I think the more likely explanation is that Swede tends to be more likely to post in threads where there is a European element, because he is European.

The fact that he happens to post in the same threads as UK posters is probably more to do with common "continental" interests, rather than him "following" UK posters.

While the EU as an organisation is an utter travesty, the various nations of Europe do tend to form a fairly close "community" by virtue of their proximity to each other.  Naturally any thread where one of the neighbours is mentioned is going to attract interest.

Quoted:



I remember when they were selling Humber Pigs in The Shotgun News for about $13,000.

Oh, take a closer look at the rifle.  It looks to be an SP1 semi.  It could have a drop in auto sear or lightening link though.

I have got to get to the Imperial War Museum one of these days.

Quoted:

Interesting photos, and some of the perceptions and misconceptions about the Northern Ireland Conflict on here.

From the cultural/hyphenated/ethnicity perspective, I don't think anyone has an issue with people recognising their own heritage and asking questions about it.   I think the general disdain comes from those who are 2nd or 3rd generation Americans, have never been to or even attempted to understand the history surrounding their adopted identity, but claim to be some form of hyphenated American, and try to speak with authority about an issue where their knowledge is based on soundbites and very poor historical context.

Yet, particular to this site, there are posters who do that to people constantly, to people who don't fit that description.

The "plastic paddy" aspect of this holds it's roots in the fact that throughout the troubles the USA and predominantly the east coast cities of New York and Boston seem to have had a romanticised and rather naive view of the complexities surrounding the Northern Ireland question.  They would claim to be "Irish American", celebrate St Patrick's day, drink Guinness and talk about "the old country" having never been there.  They would also fund terrorist activities and equip them with arms and explosives through a variety of routes without having any concept of the kind of atrocities they were supporting through what was essentially organised crime and terrorist organisations.

So are these real people, or are they assumptions?  You say that like it's a guaranteed thing, yet I've never met anyone like that.   Maybe it's just an east coast thing, have you seen it personally?


They are real and yes I have come across them. I think there is an element of ingrained Anti-Monarchy stuff going on in the US anyway - it's what you get taught in schools about the War of Independence, so that is understandable....the UK were the bad guys from your perspective in that set-piece.  While some people move beyond the "us and them" aspect, others continue with the adversarial perspective and adopt the Irish as the poster boys for struggles against the Monarchy, almost under the assumption that it is some way still ongoing.  It seems much more prevalent in people from the North East of the US than in other areas where it seems (to me at least) that people have a more forward looking perspective.

It did not go unnoticed how the reaction to the Boston Marathon bombing and the 9/ll attacks was one of outrage and fury, which say many people and places designated as targets for the funding, supporting, preparation and undertaking of terrorist acts.....most notably by those "plastic paddies" who had previously supported such acts elsewhere.

I suppose it's the same as countries starting to question the effects of British Colonialism.  Just... on a much shorter less impactful way.

People are free to devolve from the commonwealth if they choose. We just had a referendum where the Scots voted to remain part of the UK, so these things are always subject to change.  The people of Northern Ireland choose to remain British and should they change their mains they can opt for a referendum to gauge what direction they wish to take and separate if they wish to do so.  Colonialism as it was carried out is long finished but even so, the issue was far more complicated than most people will ever appreciate.  The new form of Colonialism is what the USA  and others do now, particularly where there are resources that they want.  Influence and back door colonialism by the installation of sympathetic Govts have pretty much the same effect.  However when these countries protest or their people launch attacks against the US, they are branded terrorists and targeted. There is a n element of duplicity and hypocrisy that many fail to acknowledge

Another thing that seems odd to non-Americans is the desire to be hyphenated.  It almost seems that people are desperate to add something to their identity to make themselves appear more interesting perhaps.  I think this is an interesting trait and believe it may have something to do with the Americans admirable appreciation of history, and the relative youth of their own nation. It is not necessarily a bad thing, it just leave the rest of us non-Americans somewhat confused as to why being American on it;s own is not good enough.

I can see where that would be hard to comprehend.  Imagine a hypothetical scenario... Where Scotland chased millions of people out of England through land grabs, economic tinkering, and creating false resource scarcity.  Now imagine you are the son of one of these people forced to flee, and born in Africa.  Would you consider yourself African?  

Yes, I would consider myself African.  Africa would be where I was born and that would be my community and home.  If I had designs of returning to England under the hypothetical scenario you suggest and becoming English again then I would do so.  I wold not sit in Africa with no interest in going back too live in England, and then claim to be English-African.  


America is a great country and you guys should be proud to be an unhyphenated American, without feeling the need to dilute your heritage.  Chemically you are probably 100% American.  Your cells will be made almost entirely from American Air, Land and Water........You are therefore truly American at a molecular level.

Yet the genetics won't lie.  It's amazing to think the UK Spawned the modern understanding of evolution, and you came up with that...   whatever it is you were trying to fabricate.  Gross.

I don't think you understand how genetic works.

You are an American. It's a fact. I'm sorry if you do not like it. You are not Irish. You have never even lived there and been able to claim any real affiliation. No amount of pontificating twattery by someone telling you otherwise will change that.  It's cool that you are into your heritage and want to find out more, but you put your credibility at risk when you start to claim you are something you are not.  Had you lived in Ireland for a decent portion of your life, then your claim would have more credibility.

Your genetics are irrelevant. Ireland was not an isolated genetic pool and has never been.  Your genetic makeup at best places you as a a caucasian male of European Descent.  My ancestry lies in the North East of England and my family have roots in Scandinavia.  However I do not claim to be anything other than English. My Wife has irish roots.  Her mother is Irish and her grandmother was in the thick of the fighting back in the early 20th Century, but my wife was born in England and considers herself to be English.  Genetically there will be virtually nothing different between us, so the genetics argument really doesn't hold water.

Hell, you should be proud to be an American. When Ireland was brought under British Rule your ancestors bailed out and made a new life in America.  America is your heritage.  Being pissed off because your ancestors had the common sense to flee instead of fight, and the perilous journey they made to start a new life should be a huge source of pride and be the leading identifying marker for you.  That is a remarkable chapter in your ancestry that you perhaps should truly focus on, not the romanticised bullshit of "struggles" and colonialism that you seem so obsessed about.  Be proud of your American identity, not the one you wish you had.  You have a lot to be proud about.

I hope that adds a little context to the discussion.   As I said....nobody has any issue with people who are genuinely interested in their heritage and want to learn about it.
Except when it's posters here who immediately go on the attack claiming "plastic Paddy this" and "Plastic Paddy that" when no one is really talking about it.

People call it as they see it, I guess.  Lots of statements being made by people who have never been to Ireland, let alone lived there or been born there, have little no understanding of the culture or history, yet who claim to be Irish out of some romanticised notion based on what they see are the woes of colonialism and monarchy, or whatever else gets them riled.  There is a focus on a short period of history that is rather narrow in it;s perspective but nonetheless popular with those who feel the need to identify with being oppressed.  It centres on the rejection and sulking over British rule, but fails to acknowledge the British driving force behind their own economies and success stories, the Industrial Revolution, law and order, protection from other would be colonisers etc.  

I personally think that it is a good thing. However, the notion of being a hyphenated American has become somewhat tarnished with regard to a few of such claims.
Or it's a small world view, really depends on how you look at it.


Indeed it does.

Quoted:
Great pics, thanks for posting. I know little about the conflict, other than it was I assume a fight for independence for Ireland?

Quoted:


Here is where the Israel nuthuggers running off Vito was a tragedy.

Ultimately, it was a economic fight wrapped up in a political one.

Quoted:


Here is where the Israel nuthuggers running off Vito was a tragedy.

Ultimately, it was a economic fight wrapped up in a political one.

Quoted:



It was a fight over bullshit that essentially boiled down to tribalism.

The Irish wanted a republic, which is an evolutionary step forward as a society.  

The British wanted to force their tribal chief (queen) on the men that wanted to break free.   Which is a step backwards.

Quoted:
Yes it is.  Not what I expected when I went there.  Their Holocaust floor is done very well--I think that it is better than our Holocaust Museum in DC.

Quoted:


There is an Irish Republic.  It derived from the Irish Free State and now calls itself the Republic of Ireland.  It just does not include all the counties of the island of Ireland.  The men who wanted to "break free" were upset that not enough of the other men there felt the same, and did not recognize the rights of many of those others to even live there.  Hence, violence.

Quoted:


And the anti-Semites prove once again they can't keep their opinions in check...


Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile

Quoted:
I thought this might be a Sterling but the magazine is on the bottom of the gun.  Not a Sten gun with that angled cocking knob and square sights.  I was thinking maybe a Beretta SMG?  I can't tell if he is holding a foregrip or his left hand in on the magazine.

http://static.bbc.co.uk/history/img/ic/640/images/resources/histories/troubles.jpg

Quoted:



It was a fight over bullshit that essentially boiled down to tribalism.

The Irish wanted a republic, which is an evolutionary step forward as a society.  

The British wanted to force their tribal chief (queen) on the men that wanted to break free.   Which is a step backwards.

Quoted:



It was a fight over bullshit that essentially boiled down to tribalism.

The Irish wanted a republic, which is an evolutionary step forward as a society.  

The British wanted to force their tribal chief (queen) on the men that wanted to break free.   Which is a step backwards.

Quoted:


There is an Irish Republic.  It derived from the Irish Free State and now calls itself the Republic of Ireland.  It just does not include all the counties of the island of Ireland.  The men who wanted to "break free" were upset that not enough of the other men there felt the same, and did not recognize the rights of many of those others to even live there.  Hence, violence.

Quoted:


There is an Irish Republic.  It derived from the Irish Free State and now calls itself the Republic of Ireland.  It just does not include all the counties of the island of Ireland.  The men who wanted to "break free" were upset that not enough of the other men there felt the same, and did not recognize the rights of many of those others to even live there.  Hence, violence.

Quoted:


There is an Irish Republic.  It derived from the Irish Free State and now calls itself the Republic of Ireland.  It just does not include all the counties of the island of Ireland.  The men who wanted to "break free" were upset that not enough of the other men there felt the same, and did not recognize the rights of many of those others to even live there.  Hence, violence.

Quoted:
However, most hyphenated Americans don't, they're desperate for a identity, but don't actually know anything about the ethnicity they claim as theirs.

Quoted:


Pretty sure he's talking about the original roots of the conflict which are a lot more complicated than that.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Home_Rule

Somewhat amusingly, it was the Ulster Unionists who first formed an armed group with the intent of attacking British authorities so they could avoid having a local Parliment.

Then after all the bloodshed and such they ended up with a local parliment anyway (and kept on oppressing their neighbors).

I'm fairly certain that if the Ulster Volunteers had sat down and shut up (or the previous Home Rule bills had passed), none of this would've happened and Ireland would be more like Scotland or Wales: connected to the UK but pretending to be upset about it at times.

Interestingly enough, NI may have the "best" gun laws in the UK. Of course, during the troubles it was exploited for secterian purposes. One known Unionist group member got a judge to sign off on a license for two M60s for the purposes of "controlling beavers". But, yeah, you can actually own handguns there. It's better than the Republic of Ireland, where even IDPA and IPSC are banned. Or so I've read anyway.