The Stig Was Arrested!

[Momentum57]

The man thinks that Dennys hash browns are good that speaks volumes to his bad taste

 

[Jay]

OK, now I am CONVINCED that Jeremy is a lurker here. So on that:

Dear Mr. Clarkson,

Having read your article in the opinion section of the Times Online, I must offer you this: Please, do not, of your travels of America, be spoiled by the very few who seemingly caused irratation.

We are a still a young nation. In fact, I could say we are going through our teenage years, raging hormones and all. We feel awkward and uncertain at times, and sometimes our brazen attitude irks our elders to no end. But we mean well, we really do. And many times you have seen the real America, and it did make an impression on you, be it good or bad.

The real America is filled with people who work long hours, pay their taxes, go to church or the synagouge or the temple or the mosque and set upon their life and their childrens life, traditional morals which anyone from any part of the world can readily recognize. We love our country and our values and are not ashamed to say so. We may come across as ignorant, brash and brazen, but when the chips are down for our brother neighbor, we will go above and beyond to help out.

Such was the case of September Eleventh, and of Hurricane Katrina.

Sadly, what you saw in New Orleans, be it from the media or from your own eyes, was proverbial rock of socialism kicked over, and all of its ugliness that was underneath it. 40 years of bad government programs made a small population of New Orleans impotent to good judgement and common sense. But did you, Mr. Clarkson, hear or see the good that happened after that? The thousands of people who threw their doors open to the victims of this disaster? The nation as a whole whom selflessly and unselfishly came to the aid of their neighbors in Louisiana? Did the media that you frequent ever televise or put that in print? I do hope so.

When terrorists struck down our people on a fateful September day, we did what we thought and still feel is right: Find all who is or was responsible and mete out an appropriate punishment. Complacent as we may come across to visitors to our country, we are not the the types who will take a beating and whimper in the corner. Ask your fellow countrymen the same question, and the answer would in all probability be the same!

I am not a journalist or a writer by any stretch of the imagination. I live in the Midwest with my wife, have a mortgage, pay taxes, go to church and above all, after reading your opinion mentioned above, am not ashamed to to call myself American. I am proud of this nation as a whole, but my patriotism, like MANY Americans, is not blind nationalism, but a reaction to the world that we share.

Thank you for reading, sir.

-Jay.

 

[Jay]

I do hope that fellow international members of this board read what I typed, too. It pains me to think that the rest of the world thinks we are stupid, fat, lazy, etc. and not take the time to get to know your fellow man. Please consider that!

"Do not judge me as a group, but as an individual, as I would do the same for you.."

 

[nomix]

I do hope that fellow international members of this board read what I typed, too. It pains me to think that the rest of the world thinks we are stupid, fat, lazy, etc. and not take the time to get to know your fellow man. Please consider that!

"Do not judge me as a group, but as an individual, as I would do the same for you.."

I've read it. I find it very informative, and it has alot of good angles. Nice quote btw.

But one thing I did react on.

When terrorists struck down our people on a fateful September day, we did what we thought and still feel is right: Find all who is or was responsible and mete out an appropriate punishment. Complacent as we may come across to visitors to our country, we are not the the types who will take a beating and whimper in the corner. Ask your fellow countrymen the same question, and the answer would in all probability be the same!

So, "an appropriate punishment" for the action of a group of criminals, is to bomb the country they live in to smithereens?

And to be frank, I fail to see the need for asking questions to people who is going to buy a computer like, "are you going to use this computer to make weapons of mass destruction?". I'm sure alot of terrorists are taken down because of that.

And about the first article, I think it was a very negative aspect that Clarkson were asked if he was going to use a .50 in a movie against Bush or against the war, eh?

Not Government policy, but still stupid.

With best regards, Simon.

 

[Jay]

nomix - fair points you have. lets go back in time:

Its April 9th 1940. If your country had the military resources as America has, what would Norway have done? Norway DID show the world that despite an overwhelming military invasion, they fought the best they could and for the next 5 years made Germanys occupation as miserable and complicated as possible.

There is a place for negotiations, and there is also a place for fighting. Both have their justification within the realms of politics and warfare.

 

[jetsetter]

I think it was a very negative aspect that Clarkson were asked if he was going to use a .50 in a movie against Bush or against the war,

Private citizen's opinion. It should not make anyone feel negative.

 

[Cuervo79]

meh! this one was a little bit more of a rant than the last one, less humor in it. Felt like he was only whining...

 

[Raven18940]

I live in America and I can say it is pretty bad here. The problem here is that when you do something stupid and hurt yourself, you can sue........but in America you can actually win. :shock: This had lead to warnings, everywhere! I was amazed when I visited switzerland that we were allowed to walk right up to shear cliff faces if you wanted to have a look. You can't do that in America, you might fall.

 

[jetsetter]

I live in America and I can say it is pretty bad here.

It aint that bad here. Are you suffering in some way?

 

[llpc60]

^ yes

land of the free? my ass


"then go back to your country" yea, but then I wont have my miata. I like everything here, except for the people, ehehe

 

[GM_IV]

he needs to start coming to canada to film, i dont think that we would give him such a hard time

A Clarkson article in which he was nice wouldn't work though - the whole fun of it is when he rants on! The only thing to rant on about when in Canada is the neighbours

Well there could be a few things to poke around. For one we have the most useless governments of any western democratic country. Our governments make US congress look productive, Toronto city council is the definition of useless. Our justice system is a joke, convicted killers or rapists can go on bail and avoid jail...maybe we should be allowed to carry guns. In Ontario the government was so bored that it banned a breed of dogs, pitbulls to be exact. We have legalized marijuana clinics in British Columbia. Our governments gives just about everything to satisfy Quebec yet it still prefers to separate. Show a picture of George Bush and Stephen Harper to a high school student and they will only know who Geroge Bush is. Many many things wrong here although less funny but stupid.

 

[bartboy9891]

(I only do hope that the US are not really as bad as reported )

It is not as bad as Clarkson reported. Actually more British people are coming to America now then a few years ago.

people always complain about the US. But living here my whole life, i really dont think its that bad at all. I cant see myself living anywhere else.

 

[llpc60]

people always complain about the US. But living here my whole life, i really dont think its that bad at all. I cant see myself living anywhere else.

maybe because doing something 'different' to you, means goin to starbucks, or buying something not on sale at walmart?

 

[mautzel]

US Police have GUNS, British Police are armed with. ....
Scarcasm - you have been warned.

They have batons. Seen'em demonstrated in training vids, seems effective enough.

(I only do hope that the US are not really as bad as reported )

To quote "Suzie" in episode 8 in season 8 of M*A*S*H;

"How you peepel got to be world power I don't know!"



Jetsetter: More and more people play World of Warcraft. That don't make it a good game. Give me numbers that show how many brits RETURN.

If it was as bad as Clarkson says it is then people wouldn't come back. I read a 100+ page journal of a British man who crossed the US on a motorcycle and he had plenty of good things to say. Of course there were a few problems but thats they norm for any country.

Phew, that's a relief - I probably will make my very own picture one day anyway, nothing better than experiencing something personally.

 

[zenkidori]

So far we?ve looked at the problem in America of power without responsibility. Step out of the loop, do something unusual and you?ll encounter a wall of low-paid, low-intellect workers whose sole job is to prevent their bosses from being sued. As a result, you never hear anyone say: ?Oh I?m sure it?ll be all right.?

Pretty correct on this. Lawyers have us by the balls.

You know the Stig. The all-white racing driver we use on Top Gear. Well, we were filming him walking through the Mojave desert when lo and behold a lorry full of soldiers rocked up and arrested him. He was unusual. He wasn?t fat. He must therefore be a Muslim.

Could they have been on US govt. property? The military does a lot of things in the Mojave, and it makes sense they would take interest if anyone stepped on thier turf.

Americans can punch their address into the key pad and replenish their tank. Europeans have to prove they?re not terrorists before being allowed to start pumping.

I have never even heard of this. I've never been able to do anything but swipe my credit card at the pump to get gas. This is probably a prototype system and being such, it makes sense that europe wouldn't be supported.

The main problem I suspect is a complete lack of knowledge about the world. I asked people in the streets of Vegas to name two European countries. The very first woman I spoke to said: ?Oh yes. What?s that one with kangaroos??

We do have a lot of "geographically challenged" people here, just watch a segment of "Jay Walking". One thing tho, europeans kind of need to know this stuff, we don't. I bet most europeans couldn't name many states. You're over there, we're over here. It makes sense that you would care more about your part of the world. I bet that person could name a few countries directly south of our own border. But yeah, we have a lot of idiots, as do the british. idiocy is something you can't escape.

Then you?ve got New Orleans, which, nearly a year after Katrina, is still utterly smashed and ruined. Now I?m sorry but insects can build shelter on their own. Birds can build nests without a state handout. So why are the people of Louisiana sitting around waiting for someone else to do the repairs?

because anyone who says anything to the effect of, "get off your lazy ass" is called a racist. stupid.

I tried to help out. I tried to give a car I?d been using to a Christian mission. But I was threatened with legal action because the car in question was a 91 and not the 98 that had allegedly been promised. A very angry woman accused me of ?misrepresentation?.

How very Christian of them

Not everyone in America is deranged, of course. Sammy certainly isn?t...

No we aren't all insane, stupid, fat and war-mongering, but yes, our healthcare system is pretty shitty for such a rich nation.

And I really don?t like the way that every small town looks exactly the same as every other small town.

Thank baby-boomers and the middle class obsession with suburbs for that one. Living in any suburb neighborhood where each house wasn't stamped out from a pattern will cost you, and only the upper middle and upper classes can afford that.

But it?s the idiocracy that really gets me down. The constant coaxing you have to do to get anything done. ?No? is the default setting whether you want to change lanes on a motorway or get a drink on a Sunday. It?s like trying to negotiate with a donkey. Once, I urged a cop in Pensacola, Florida, to use his common sense and let me load a van in the no loading zone, since the airport was shut and it would make no difference. ?Sir,? he said, ?you don?t need common sense when you?ve got laws.?

Anyone with a job that has authority has someone above them with more authority that more often than not, they are afraid of. So by following strict(and often stupid) rules they can avoid getting into trouble. I do this myself at my own work. I have about 4 different bosses telling me different things, and then thier bosses tell me different as well. My best course of action is to do whatever it is I was told last, and if questioned, just go, "well X told me to...". This is pretty common.

That said, there are plenty of smart, levelheaded cops out there, but they are usually promoted out off the street where you won't deal with them. I've actually been let off for drifting a corner at over 55 MPH when the posted limit was 10, in a CLOSED national park. Nobody was around, it was the middle of the night, and we weren't harming anything, and the cop knew this. On the other hand a buddy of mine got a 25 point "exhibition of speed" ticket for doing a donut in a school parking lot, during the summer when school wasn't in session, and the parking lot was empty. The ticket was later dropped however, by a smart DA. One thing about the beat cops is that anyone doing such meanial work as parking duty at an airport probably isn't smart enough to get promoted, thus we are stuck dealing with them on a daily basis. They can write you a ticket for damn near anything, but go to court, and it'll likely be dropped. A hassle, yes, but you won't go to jail or anything for parking incorrectly.

Also, I've found that it's best just to go about your business and not ask for permission, for almost anything. It's easier to ask forgiveness than permission, and most of the time if you know what you're doing or at least act like it, nobody will bother you.

I blame the south, mostly. The souther part of the US is well, horrible. We could really have done with letting them all go before the civil war. They are really the reason for a lot of bad things, like Bush, for example. They have a lot of votes and not a lot of smarts, bad combination.

 

[zenkidori]

Also, keep in mind that when you step off your home soil, you'll see a lot of things that seem wierd to you. I know many of my friends have remarked at how wierd some things in europe are, how odd some of the laws are, etc. It's just a different system that you aren't used to dealing with, so in many cases you don't know what to do, or do the wrong thing. We've learned to deal with most of what a foreigner would consider odd, and when dealing with idiot people, you always go to thier superior untill you get what you want.

What JC has said is true, from his point of view. America has a lot of bad things about it, but a lot of good as well. Just from reading JCs articles I see that the UK is much the same.

 

[Peter3hg]

The main problem I suspect is a complete lack of knowledge about the world. I asked people in the streets of Vegas to name two European countries. The very first woman I spoke to said: ?Oh yes. What?s that one with kangaroos??

We do have a lot of "geographically challenged" people here, just watch a segment of "Jay Walking". One thing tho, europeans kind of need to know this stuff, we don't. I bet most europeans couldn't name many states. You're over there, we're over here. It makes sense that you would care more about your part of the world. I bet that person could name a few countries directly south of our own border. But yeah, we have a lot of idiots, as do the british. idiocy is something you can't escape.

I think you would be suprised how many states the avergae European could name. I reckon I could name over 20 which ain't bad, I could also name quite a few South and Central American Countries.

 

[zenkidori]

I'm sure the average european could name three, California, New York, and Texas. Other than that, I really don't know. All of my experience with that sort of thing comes from european immigrants who are learning about thier new country.

Also, it's somewhat of a thing for people to "play dumb", especially if there are cameras about. Watch Jay Walking and you'll see what I mean. Anyone who passed high school has needed to know basic geography, including information on europe. But yes, there are people who forget everything they don't use on a daily basis, and most people think that sort of thing is irrelevant.

 

[Peter3hg]

I'm sure the average european could name three, California, New York, and Texas. Other than that, I really don't know. All of my experience with that sort of thing comes from european immigrants who are learning about thier new country.

I think your being a but harsh, I'll see what I can name (I'm not cheating).
Alaska, Florida, California, Mississippi, South Georgia, Texas, New York, Washington, Masscetusist (You know the one I mean), Nevada, New Hampshire(?), New Jersey, New England, Illinois, Tennesse(?), Alabama, Rhode Island(?), Pensylvania.
18 and I'm stuck. I wouldn't say I know more than a typical European though.

 

[Blythy]

Such was the case of September Eleventh, and of Hurricane Katrina.

Is it just me, or is it that every time september 11th is mentioned it has to have it's own paragraph?