Canadians

[Wilson Gray]

When I was in the Army, our driving instructor used to caution us
against running over German "Peedee Stree Uns," It took me longer than
I care to recall to realize that he was merely jokingly mispronouncing
"pedestrians." Dumbest I'd felt since I failed to understand what
"anions" and "cations" were, on the physics final.

-Wilson

On 4/30/07, Dennis Preston <preston at msu.edu> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Dennis Preston <preston at MSU.EDU>
> Subject:      Re: Canadians
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Cute. My father always warned against running over Presbyterians while driving.
>
> >---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >-----------------------
> >Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >Poster:       James Smith <jsmithjamessmith at YAHOO.COM>
> >Subject:      Re: Canadians
> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >I can't remember how it started, but in my family
> >"canadian" is a deliberate replacement for "comedian".
> >  E. e., "You think you're a real canadian, don't you."
> >or "What a bunch of canadians."
> >
> >
> >
> >--- Marc Sacks <msacks at THEWORLD.COM> wrote:
> >
> >>  A long time ago I read something (in The New
> >>  Republic, I think) about
> >>  lawyers and judges in a courtroom somewhere
> >>  referring to Jewish lawyers
> >>  and clients as Canadians. Has anyone else run across
> >>  this?
> >>
> >>  Marc Sacks
> >>  msacks at theworld.com
> >>
> >>
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--
All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
-----
                                              -Sam'l Clemens
------
The tongue has no bones, yet it breaks bones.

                                           Rumanian proverb

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