Nazi symbols and "immersion": boundaries?

DarkFish · 06-26-09, 05:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stealhead

Quote:

Originally Posted by Urge

Stealhead wrote...

Quote:

Sie erhalten den Käse, und ich werde das Weißbier, dann werden wir ein paar Frauen.

Babelfish translation ...

Quote:

They receive the cheese, and I become the white beer, then we become a few women.

I think something was lost along the way or I just don't get it.

It basicly says: You get the cheese and I will bring the white beer then we will find some women.

That is not litteraly what it says but a fulent german would understand it that way.You got some of it right though

You can always use google translate but it is not really perfect it does not always get context like sie can be you or they and erhalten can mean recive or get amoungst other things and I am about at a 3rd grade level with the German grammar but it would be more than enough to get by I am very rusty now used to talk to germans all the time when I was stationed over there.Just dont ever bring a german woman white flowers you will not like the result unless maybe she is very goth in that case the result may be vigorous.

actually babelfish got it pretty right here...
In combination with another verb 'wir werden [other verb]' can also mean 'we will [other verb]' but since there is no other verb here it does mean 'become'.
But since you're not a fluent German speaker most germans would understand what you mean and not think you're a transvestite

You're entirely right about Sie, there's one small difference though: you=Sie and they=sie. But since Sie it is the first word of this sentence you can't tell the difference.

Weshalb soll man eigentlich keine weiße Blumen verschenken? Hab das nie gehört... naja, ich bin denn auch nicht Deutsch

Schroeder · 06-26-09, 05:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkFish

Weshalb soll man eigentlich keine weiße Blumen verschenken? Hab das nie gehört... naja, ich bin denn auch nicht Deutsch

Ist mir auch neu.

Never heard of that too. But maybe it differs from region to region. I think most Americans are stationed in the south of Germany, well you know Southerners are always different, no matter the country.

*Edit*
O.K. asked around a little and it seems that white flowers are usually used on graves only.

Stealhead · 06-26-09, 11:19 AM

Yeah I recall they told everyone that during the culturial breifing they give out to all the folks who come in each week. Pretty useful info you any single men unless of course the girl is goth then like I said it may have a very positive reaction.

I guess I would talk in german better than type it I never really focused much on writting it.I found most germans if they realized you spoke a little german they gave you alot more respect becasue you showed the respect to at least speak a little german rather than be the "I speak English you kraut(insert insult for other nation jerk american might be) so I wont bother saying thank you or hello or know how to order food and drink in german."
By the way I once saw a drunken american solider call a german cop a stupid f...... kraut even though the two cops where actually being very nice to him and one said in english "Sir your nose is bleeding." and solider wiped his nose and it was not and he said "what are you talking about?"
the cop then punched him dead on the nose and said "Your nose is bleeding." The solider deserved it though he had been talking some big time crap and this was a DUI stop so he was endangering peoples lives. Some americans tried to rat the germans to the MPs but they where outnubmered by the americans who lied for the germans.And many MP felt that if flapped your mouth to a german cop you deserved the german responce.

Another thing they told us was not to turn down a german's who considers you a friend inviataion to a party or event (unless for very good reason) because it can be taken as an insult not to want to come.

I think it is a good idea to have a basic understanding of a nations language and culture if you are going to be there. In some cases something that would mean nothing to you could be an extreme insult in another culture. Some people stationed in Germany did not leave base much or they went to only places where mainly other americans went...boring. My friends and I went to the bars where the local germans went it was much more fun and you got to know people.What a shame for the ones who "stayed on the reservation" they missed out.

I liked the diffrent festivals that you could find from town to town and the weekend markets you dont see this kind of thing much in the US.Also while drinking with germans your fluency in german goes up notabily.I was in Kaiserslautern by the way Schroeder dont know where you are from I went to most parts of germany at some but not much along the coast.

At Darkfish yeah I did mess that one part up a bit though it would sound kind of funny to hear someone say it that way you would be pretty drunk to become a woman.I would assume that Dutch is largely simular to german or is more like Spanish to Portuguese? There was a guy in my unit who figured a good ice breaker for him when talking to a german woman would be say something funny so he came up with the line:My underwear smells like chocolate. I dont think it was a great success for him he usualy went to red light district in the end so much so that "Red Light" became his nickname maybe he gave out too many white flowers.

DarkFish · 06-26-09, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stealhead

At Darkfish yeah I did mess that one part up a bit though it would sound kind of funny to hear someone say it that way you would be pretty drunk to become a woman.I would assume that Dutch is largely simular to german or is more like Spanish to Portuguese?

Either drunk or just been promoted to "Wild Night in Bangkok"

Dutch words are usually very similar to their German counterparts (one crazy exception: Dutch "zee" (sea) is German "Meer" while Dutch "meer" (lake) is German "See") but Dutch grammar is much easier, almost identical to English grammar.
Example:
English: The dog bites the man and the woman
Dutch: De hond bijt de man en de vrouw
German: Der Hund beißt den Mann und die Frau

If you'd turn these sentences around, keep the cases and delete the woman (because of singular/plural problems):
English: The man bites the dog
Dutch: De man bijt de hond ---- now means: The man bites the dog, just as in English
German: Den Mann beißt der Hund ---- still means "The dog bites the man"
To get the same meaning as in English it would be: "Der Mann beißt den Hund"

karamazovnew · 06-26-09, 10:41 PM

As far as fighting skills go, I place the germans along side the Spartans. If wars would only be fought and felt on emtpy battlefields, I'd despise wars less. Soldiers are only humans, once they are conscripted, they bring with them all of their education and morality that was forged during their civilian life. Drowned in propaganda, seeing their friends die daily, that base of their conscience dictates if they remain human or turn into monsters. Since the germans were by large more educated and disciplined than many other nations, it's no wonder that we are more appaled by the Holocaust than the russian death wave of the 30's. In both cases however, only the the leaders can be blamed. We call them the nazis and their symbol was the swastika (the entire flag I mean). If I want to honor the bravery of the soldiers, I don't need that symbol. The true german symbols are the Iron Cross and the Eagle.

06-26-09, 11:19 AM	#3
Stealhead Navy Seal Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Kentucky Posts: 5,421 Downloads: 85 Uploads: 0	Yeah I recall they told everyone that during the culturial breifing they give out to all the folks who come in each week. Pretty useful info you any single men unless of course the girl is goth then like I said it may have a very positive reaction. I guess I would talk in german better than type it I never really focused much on writting it.I found most germans if they realized you spoke a little german they gave you alot more respect becasue you showed the respect to at least speak a little german rather than be the "I speak English you kraut(insert insult for other nation jerk american might be) so I wont bother saying thank you or hello or know how to order food and drink in german." By the way I once saw a drunken american solider call a german cop a stupid f...... kraut even though the two cops where actually being very nice to him and one said in english "Sir your nose is bleeding." and solider wiped his nose and it was not and he said "what are you talking about?" the cop then punched him dead on the nose and said "Your nose is bleeding." The solider deserved it though he had been talking some big time crap and this was a DUI stop so he was endangering peoples lives. Some americans tried to rat the germans to the MPs but they where outnubmered by the americans who lied for the germans.And many MP felt that if flapped your mouth to a german cop you deserved the german responce. Another thing they told us was not to turn down a german's who considers you a friend inviataion to a party or event (unless for very good reason) because it can be taken as an insult not to want to come. I think it is a good idea to have a basic understanding of a nations language and culture if you are going to be there. In some cases something that would mean nothing to you could be an extreme insult in another culture. Some people stationed in Germany did not leave base much or they went to only places where mainly other americans went...boring. My friends and I went to the bars where the local germans went it was much more fun and you got to know people.What a shame for the ones who "stayed on the reservation" they missed out. I liked the diffrent festivals that you could find from town to town and the weekend markets you dont see this kind of thing much in the US.Also while drinking with germans your fluency in german goes up notabily.I was in Kaiserslautern by the way Schroeder dont know where you are from I went to most parts of germany at some but not much along the coast. At Darkfish yeah I did mess that one part up a bit though it would sound kind of funny to hear someone say it that way you would be pretty drunk to become a woman.I would assume that Dutch is largely simular to german or is more like Spanish to Portuguese? There was a guy in my unit who figured a good ice breaker for him when talking to a german woman would be say something funny so he came up with the line:My underwear smells like chocolate. I dont think it was a great success for him he usualy went to red light district in the end so much so that "Red Light" became his nickname maybe he gave out too many white flowers. Last edited by Stealhead; 06-26-09 at 11:46 AM.

06-26-09, 10:41 PM	#5
karamazovnew The Old Man Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bucharest, Romania Posts: 1,403 Downloads: 151 Uploads: 0	As far as fighting skills go, I place the germans along side the Spartans. If wars would only be fought and felt on emtpy battlefields, I'd despise wars less. Soldiers are only humans, once they are conscripted, they bring with them all of their education and morality that was forged during their civilian life. Drowned in propaganda, seeing their friends die daily, that base of their conscience dictates if they remain human or turn into monsters. Since the germans were by large more educated and disciplined than many other nations, it's no wonder that we are more appaled by the Holocaust than the russian death wave of the 30's. In both cases however, only the the leaders can be blamed. We call them the nazis and their symbol was the swastika (the entire flag I mean). If I want to honor the bravery of the soldiers, I don't need that symbol. The true german symbols are the Iron Cross and the Eagle.