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<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">=========================================================================</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">L O W L A N D S - L - 24 February 2008 - Volume 04</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">=========================================================================</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">From: </span><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" class="HcCDpe"><span class="EP8xU" style="color: rgb(91, 16, 148);">M.-L. Lessing</span> <span class="lDACoc"><<a href="mailto:marless@gmx.de">marless@gmx.de</a>></span></span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Subject: </span><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" class="HcCDpe">LL-L "Language politics" 2008.02.24 (02) [E]<br><br style="font-family: times new roman,serif;">
</span><div style="font-family: times new roman,serif;">Hello Mike & all,</div>
<div style="font-family: times new roman,serif;"> </div>
<div style="font-family: times new roman,serif;">I think it all is about what is a _nation_.
Somewhere deep inside human nature, a nation is not simply something cultural,
with a language and songs and art, but also something that has, well, an army.
And a government. And borders. As soon as people feel to be a nation, they want
all these things. These feelings must come from the many thousands of
decades of stone age, and unhappily such heritage is not easily eliminated.
Hope for as many years of evolution in peace and harmony, and the successor of
human being then living will wish for no armies anymore! :-)</div>
<div style="font-family: times new roman,serif;"> </div>
<div style="font-family: times new roman,serif;">Marlou</div><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">----------</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">From: </span><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" class="HcCDpe"><span class="EP8xU" style="color: rgb(121, 6, 25);">denis dujardin</span> <span class="lDACoc"><<a href="mailto:dujardin@telenet.be">dujardin@telenet.be</a>></span></span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
Subject: </span><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" class="HcCDpe">LL-L "Language politics" 2008.02.24 (02) [E]</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
Hi Mike, (Hi Ron)</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">That is indeed the same situation
Belgium is in. I stress upon the fact that everything which is spread
in the world concerning our small country of 10000000 inhabitants, is
allways influenced by the French-speaking media ( - in France -), who
generally tend to sympathize with the french speaking south of this
surrealistic country.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">I hope my message - in all modesty-
can be spread in order to tell the world, that the stories being told
about the flemish are in many cases disgusting propaganda</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">The
Flemish have allways been overpowerd by the French speaking minority,
and this minority, backed by a haute-bourgeoisie monarchy still tries
to get hold on the overall power. Belgium will - as far as my opinion
is concerned - disappear in times to come.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">This state where
there have been put together two completely different cultures, has
nowadays gigantic problems to create a federal government, because
finally after 177 years , the Flemish claim their rights for economical
autonomy . (The unemployment rate being far higher in Wallonia than in
Flanders). But also here it is a matter of language. Around Brussels,
monolinguistic frenchspeaking upperclass citizens go and live in
flemish speaking villages, and they dont want to adapt to the language
spoken there. They claim the territory and in certain areas they have
become majority. The opposite is unthinkable. There are areas where
there is a Flemish minority in Wallonia, where they are insulted for
being nazi or facist. This aspect is linked to the fact that in WWII
the Germans promised to provide the Flemish the linguistic rights which
they were stolen by the wealthy overpowering french speaking haute
bourgeoisie.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Which means that the Flemish, as soon as they on
a democratic electoral base ask for more cultural or economical
independance , they are treated as extreme right facists.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">This
is really abhauling. Especially, when one finds out that linguistic
courteoisie was allways reigned in one direction . Flemish are
bilingual. They allmost all speak French as well, whereas, Flemish
(Dutch) is considered by the majority of Walloon and Brussels (which is
majority French spoken) as the language of peasants and is worthless as
a language. So if they go into Flanders they just speak french,
regardless of the language of the terrritory they are on at that moment.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">The
politician which is called Yves Leterme, who is about to become prime
minister in Belgium (if they succeed in building this government),
wondered in an interview , before last years elections, that -
ironically spoken - the french speaking people who immigrated in the
flemish area , perhaps lacked any intellectual potential to at least
learn a second language? He was booed by all french speaking media, but
he was right. French having longtime been the lingua franca in Europe
has lost its importance, but some people in Belgium still believe they
live in the Middle-Ages. To resume. If in Europe - which is
multilingual -you do not even make an effort in learning at least the
language of your neighbours, then I think you are , or extremely
selfish, or you are extremely stupid.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">The
multilinguist-attitude of the Flemish (most of the younger generations
speak three languages) resulted also in an economical power which is
far more important than the Walloon economy, which have the appearance
in cities like Charleroi and Liege of an industrial cemetry.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br></div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">I
agree with you, Mike, that Europe should be a multicultural-continent
political power, in which cultural independance is far more important
than the 19th century systems of nation-power (like France, who were
the champions in killing minority languages ,such as flemish, breton ,
catalan and alsassisch)</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br></div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Best greetings,</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br></div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Denis Dujardin</div><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Flanders</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
•
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