Racist bastard at dinner tonight

[cinema guy]

I remember reading that certain games, like Wolfenstein are banned in Germany for the simple reason that the games have Nazis and Nazi symbols in them, even though you're fighting against the Nazis.

A couple of years ago the French government wanted to outlaw any website that sold Nazi memorabilia, because the sale of such items was illegal in the country (I think ebay was included).

I recall an item on the news a while ago where a vintage German boardgame that centred around the Luftwaffe against the RAF was auctioned in the UK, because it could not be sold in Germany.

A German wargamer on a forum that I frequent was concerned about ordering a copy of http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/home/detail.php?qsID=1314&qsSeries=41 because there is picture of a ship with a flying a swastica flag on the back.

It is good to know that there is concern about the glorification of the Nazi regime, but sometimes it seems kind of overblown.

[FuzzyKitten99]

I take the auto-manufr from a different perspective. While Toyotas may be starting to be made here in the US, their profits still go right back to Japan. And many people still view Ford, GM, and Chrysler/Dodge as American, because they all started out here-their roots are American. Toyotas started out made in Japan, so most people still view them as such. It is the socialist-style unions and government taxes on top of taxes (that keep going up) that have driven many companies out of the US, not actual labor costs alone. Even then, labor costs are a fraction of what a company pays out. Ask any business owner, and they will likely tell you their tax bills are what hit them in the pocketbook the hardest.

I don't buy 100% new cars anyway, so whenever I buy a car, it is always used (likely will continue to be), so my money goes to the dealer himself. But if I were to buy new, I already have my eye on either another Impala (i love mine) or a Monte Carlo when my '00 Impala dies-i got 150K on it so far, and it is still going strong. The only major repair I have had to do is the ignition switch.

I got rearended a few months ago, and I was at a dead stop and the girl who hit me was going at least 30mph in a Honda minivan. My car sustained less than $1000 damage. The bumper didn't even crack, just a huge scrape along the bottom. All that needed to be done was replace the bumper pads under it and strip & repaint the bumper itself. Her van was so messed up that it wouldn't start at the scene, and had to be flat-bedded. Mine was able to be driven right to the mechanic who deemed it mechanically sound. Just needed the aforementioned stuff.

So for the rental, I drove a Toyota Corolla for two weeks while my car was being repaired. I felt like the car was made as sturdy as a soda can. When I was going down the freeway one morning, it felt like there was nothing between me and the 18-wheeler next to me, blowing the car all over the freeway with it's draft turbulence. Then there was the back-seat headrests that stuck up so high, it obstructed my view. The accelleration of that Corolla was next to nothing. Getting up to highway speed at in a decent amount of time was a joke.

Without getting too long here, my husband and I rented a car while out in Vegas for a week, and used to to drive all over, and even to Santa Monica for a daytrip. We had a Chrysler Sebring convertible. I really enjoyed that car (as did DH) and I think I may include it in my choices when the time comes for a new car. It was comfortable, decent accelleration, quiet and was an overall nice ride.

[Estil]

Once upon a time black folk used terms like "National Association for the Advancement of Colored People" and "American Negro College Fund". Now, they assume you're racist if you happen to use those terms.

Go figure.

Those are still the offical names of those organizations.

[ReverendBSB]

My grandfather is like this. After I bought my new Toyota truck he went on about how it was wrong to buy japanese because of WW2. The only reply I had was "Didnt grandma used to drive a german car?"

[protege]

I bet that went over well

When I bought the Mazda, my grandfather didn't say too much about it. He did though, enjoy how it handled on the twisty road near his house. That one did have the soul of a sports car I don't ever recall him making a snide comment over foreign cars...and my family's had a few over the years--a pair of Volvos, a 1970s Corolla, plus a VW 412 wagon. Lately though, my parents love Saturns. Not bad cars...but the first one they had, a '97 SL (base model, no power steering, 5-speed, etc.) always felt a bit crude after getting out of the Tercel. Maybe I was a bit biased, maybe it was because the Tercel's steering and gearchange was better, but it always felt that way the few times I had to drive that car--the SL2 they had later was better. But, of course, the much-lighter Tercel would eat them both for lunch at the lights

[Dreamstalker]

My grandfather is like this. After I bought my new Toyota truck he went on about how it was wrong to buy japanese because of WW2.

My grandmother used to go absolutely batshit when anything "foreign" (my mom and I used to joke that that meant "non-Roman-Catholic-Polish") crossed her threshold. I am and always was big into Japanese stuff, especially candy. One long-ago day she actually did use the "Remember Pearl Harbor!" line...I was tempted to tell her what percentage of stuff in the house was made in Japan, but didn't want a huge fight.

[tollbaby]

So for the rental, I drove a Toyota Corolla for two weeks while my car was being repaired. I felt like the car was made as sturdy as a soda can.

You're comparing apples and oranges here. You drive an Impala, for pete's sake. It's only natural you'll feel like you're riding in a tin can in a COROLLA (a SMALL car, especially compared to an IMPALA). I drive an Aveo. Tiniest Chev you can get. I love her to pieces, but I don't consider her heavy-duty by any stretch of the imagination. I drove a Camry last Christmas before I got this car (it was a rental). It felt like a bloody tank. I hated it, because it was too big. It's got nothing to do with whether the car is an import or domestic. If you want to give a fair comparison, drive a Camry or an Accord around and THEN decide

[FuzzyKitten99]

You're comparing apples and oranges here. You drive an Impala, for pete's sake. It's only natural you'll feel like you're riding in a tin can in a COROLLA (a SMALL car, especially compared to an IMPALA). I drive an Aveo. Tiniest Chev you can get. I love her to pieces, but I don't consider her heavy-duty by any stretch of the imagination. I drove a Camry last Christmas before I got this car (it was a rental). It felt like a bloody tank. I hated it, because it was too big. It's got nothing to do with whether the car is an import or domestic. If you want to give a fair comparison, drive a Camry or an Accord around and THEN decide

Actually the Aveo is made in Korea, then assembled in China, in a subsidiary factory that also produces Suzukis and formerly Daewoos.

[tollbaby]

Actually the Aveo is made in Korea, then assembled in China, in a subsidiary factory that also produces Suzukis and formerly Daewoos.

I'm aware of that The Aveo/Swift/Wave is a former DaeWoo model that was sold to several different manufacturers after they went out of business. It's still a Chevy though

[protege]

It's still a Chevy though

Gotta love badge-engineering

The British were masters at it--the BMC/BL (or BPSL, British Phelgm-Sucking Leyland) sold their 1100/1300 series under at least 6 different nameplates: Morris, Austin, MG, Vanden Plas, Wolseley, and Riley. The only reason they did it, was to keep those names alive, as well as help contain design costs. What they *should* have done, was kill off most of them and concentrate on one. Instead, they segmented the market, and wasted too many resources building too many similar cars

Not even Rolls-Royce was immune from this--at one time, the only difference between a Rolls and a Bentley was the grille, and some minor details. Now, Rolls sells ugly sedans, and Bentleys are more sporting

[Bella_Vixen]

drove a Camry last Christmas before I got this car (it was a rental). It felt like a bloody tank. I hated it, because it was too big.

I have a Cavalier. My mom has a Buick Regal. I HATE driving her car!! It't freaking huge, and heavy, and just a pain in the ass. And I'm saying this AFTER having had an Explorer.

God, how I hate her car...but she hates mine, too.

[wagegoth]

The NUMMI plant is not far from me, and several foreign car companies have plants here in the U.S., especially in the South. I find it important that they are providing jobs here. Employees pay taxes, and while they may not be as much as the corporation itself pays (which, remember, is tacked onto the price you pay), they have jobs they can take pride in and support their families with. And those jobs mean they can buy the cars they make.

[Mighty Girl]

Ah yes. Ignorance can be amusing to watch. There's a Honda plant in Marysville, Ohio. I drive a '96 Honda Accord, and it runs great with regular maintenance. My husband drives a '01 Ford Taurus that is in the shop about every five minutes. And when he was under the hood trying to figure out what the hell was wrong this time- he noticed several parts that said "made in China". My father in law is one of those staunch american-only car guys. I'm sure they think I totally brainwashed my husband because we have both sworn that we'll never buy another "american" POS again. I've driven a VW Rabbit, Dodge Omni, Mercury Topaz, Chevy Lumina and two Honda Accords. Guess which ones didn't always have something broken on them. The VW and the Hondas.

As far as safety, I was in an accident in 2001 with my Accord coupe. It was NOT pretty. I was going straight and this idiot 16 year old girl turned left right in front of me. I slammed on the brakes, but it was too late. I hit her broadside. She was driving an early '90s Thunderbird. I drove away, her car was totaled and had to be put on a flatbed. I just had a broken head light, the windshield washer bottle thing was broken and there were some dents and a torn bumper. That was it. Her car was bigger, and mine just obliterated it. I'll buy Hondas for the rest of my life.

[RebeccaOTool]

My grandfather was raised in the south, and tends to be a bit prejudiced, although its never to people's faces. He always buys a certain brand of american car, and for a long time I assumed it was due to some sentiment he had about forigen cars.
Turns out he used to work at that company and gets a major discount.

[Sofar]

I have a Cavalier. My mom has a Buick Regal. I HATE driving her car!! It't freaking huge, and heavy, and just a pain in the ass. And I'm saying this AFTER having had an Explorer.

Why is it everyone's always down on huge cars? I love huge cars! Besides, you ain't driven a land yacht until you've driven a 1961 Lincoln Continental suicide-door convertible. (Which was still a foot and half shorter than the previous year's model.)