Happy Europe Day, Everyone!

[John Skelton]

As to why I live in Europe, well, I don't. I live in Britain, due to the fact that it is the country of my birth and ancestry.

I was born in a hospital. But that doesn't mean I live in a hospital.

At least I hope it doesn't. (Who are those strange people and why are they looking at me like that?)

Of course, it would be just stupid to claim descent from a hospital ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ni6UhWf4fO0

Doh.

[ahinton]

I was born in a hospital. But that doesn't mean I live in a hospital.

At least I hope it doesn't. (Who are those strange people and why are they looking at me like that?)

Of course, it would be just stupid to claim descent from a hospital

Quite. What puzzles me (among other things) about Mr Pee's assertion here, for all that it is his prerogative to decide not only where he lives but why he chooses to do so, is that he claims to live in Britain "due to" the fact of its being the alleged country of his birth and alleged ancestry (I write "alleged country" since Britain is not, as has already been noted here, a country but a union of three of them that has an association with a fourth, i.e. the United Kingdom of Great Britian and Northern Ireland - but let's not quibble about such matters, since we know that Mr Pee lives in England and he has not said otherwise); why and how on earth could (still less should) the fact of having been born in a particular country determine that one must continue to live there? Surely one's place of abode is a matter of personal choice rather than personal history?

Anyway, more important than all of that is the fact that Mr Pee has yet to tell us, despite being asked politely, to what location outside Europe and under whose authority he moved Britain from the place where I last saw it on a map; it is not even a "sceptr'd isle" any more, since the opening of the Channel Tunnel made it possible to travel by land to what was once thought of as the continental mainland, but that's rather beside the point that is instead the fact that, geographically, the countries of Britain belong to Europe just as does Ireland to their west and Norway to their north-east, even though the latter remains for the time being outside EU (but then lots of other European countries are also outside EU for the time being, but that does not make them non-European).

[Flosshilde]

It has been suggested that the UK is the 52nd (or is it 53rd?) state of the USA, so perhaps Mr Pee feels more American than European. Or, given his love of all things SKY he perhaps feels more Australian? (Although Rupe has changed his nationality at least once, so clearly feels less attached to the land of his birth than Mr Pee).

[eighthobstruction]

Am I allowed to live in this country....now I am no longer a bona fide STRIVER....??

[ahinton]

It has been suggested that the UK is the 52nd (or is it 53rd?) state of the USA, so perhaps Mr Pee feels more American than European. Or, given his love of all things SKY he perhaps feels more Australian?

I have no idea; that would be for Mr Pee to confirm or deny as appropriate, should he feel so disposed. What is surely of greater importance to the rest of us, however, is that, irrespective of whether is has been suggested that UK is one of the USA, it isn't, purported "special relationships" between the two notwithstanding - and what is perhaps of greater importance for Mr Pee is that being a European (which he is) makes him no less English; indeed, how could it and why should it?

[Beef Oven]

It has been suggested that the UK is the 52nd (or is it 53rd?) state of the USA, so perhaps Mr Pee feels more American than European. Or, given his love of all things SKY he perhaps feels more Australian? (Although Rupe has changed his nationality at least once, so clearly feels less attached to the land of his birth than Mr Pee).

Why don't you all leave Mr Pee alone now?

[ahinton]

Am I allowed to live in this country....now I am no longer a bona fide STRIVER....??

There's no law against you doing so, to my knowledge, but there might eventually be one that precludes my living in England following Scottish independence (if indeed that occurs).

[ahinton]

Why don't you all leave Mr Pee alone now?

I think that he already is! That said, no one is accusing Mr Pee of anything in the recent posts - merely enquiring as to the meaning of certain things that he has written.

[eighthobstruction]

There's no law against you doing so, to my knowledge, but there might eventually be one that precludes my living in England following Scottish independence (if indeed that occurs).

The SNP might do quite nicely if they started fielding candidates down south....

[Beef Oven]

I think that he already is! That said, no one is accusing Mr Pee of anything in the recent posts - merely enquiring as to the meaning of certaoin things that he has written.

Perfectly obvious what he means. I am certain (sp.) of one thing - Britain is my 'country', even though technically I am 25% British, "25% Italian, 25% Austrian & 25% Serbian. I am British 'through and through' as we say. I adore Europe, but Mr Pee's right, it is an unhappy place because of this stupid political union fiasco.

[Flosshilde]

Why don't you all leave Mr Pee alone now?

Oh, all right then. Shooting fish in a barrel gets a bit boring after a while anyay.



But he does rather let himself in for it.

[John Skelton]

Why don't you all leave Mr Pee alone now?

Do people deep down think of themselves as "European"? I'm pretty sure I don't, actually. I don't particularly think of myself as English; being English isn't something I feel to be internal rather than accidental, but more or less ditto "European". Living in Eastern Europe felt very different from living in France. I can see that people might think of being European in some Ideal way, but that rubs up against a great deal of historical and contemporary contradiction / grit.

So I'm not sure I was getting at Mr Pee by saying I was born in an hospital. Hmm.

[ahinton]

Why don't you all leave Mr Pee alone now?

Perhaps Mr Pee doesn't want to be alone!

[ahinton]

Perfectly obvious what he means.

Is it? He says that he does not live in Europe but in Britain, so perhaps it is obvious what he means even though it's technically incorrect.

I am certain of one thing - Britain is my 'country', even though technically I am 25% British, "25% Italian, 25% Austrian & 25% Serbian. I am British 'through and through' as we say.

Well, that's fine, of course! - but all of the ancestry that you declare here is European, so I do not imagine that you would deny that you are a European as Mr Pee seems to want to try to do.

I adore Europe, but Mr Pee's right, it is an unhappy place because of this stupid political union fiasco.

Much of it has indeed become an unhappy place for a number of reasons and on quite a few occasions, but no more because of a common currency adopted by a mere 17 of its nations or because of the political union forged by the formation and expansion of EU than because of what happened before EU's launch, not least its part in two world wars.

[ahinton]

Do people deep down think of themselves as "European"? I'm pretty sure I don't, actually. I don't particularly think of myself as English; being English isn't something I feel to be internal rather than accidental, but more or less ditto "European". Living in Eastern Europe felt very different from living in France. I can see that people might think of being European in some Ideal way, but that rubs up against a great deal of historical and contemporary contradiction / grit.

So I'm not sure I was getting at Mr Pee by saying I was born in an hospital. Hmm.

Interesting points. I suppose that what really matters is how imporatn it is to any particular individual to state, or to feel, that he or she is a "European". I am a Scot but have lived for most of my life outside Scotland. I do not see that, as a Scot, I should not think of myself as a European, but what's more important to me is the level of importance that anyone might place upon regarding himself or herself as European, Scottish, French, Albanian, Moldovan, Irish or whatever else, especially given the extent of racial mixes among Europeans such as Beef Oven has informed us about in his own case. I do regard myself as a European because I am one, but I don't prattle on about it.