LL-L "Image" 2004.09.30 (09) [E]

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From: Global Moose Translations <globalmoose at t-online.de>
Subject: LL-L "Places" 2004.09.30 (05) [E]

John Feather wrote:
> Apart from that I don't think one should worry too much about this kind of
> usage. The implication is bossy, not all the other things we (not
> unreasonably) associate with Nazism. Would it have been OK to allude to
him
> as a "Hauptmann [von Köpenick]"?

No, that would not have been better at all. First of all, a "Hauptmann" is
simply a military rank, even today. Secondly, the German public in general
is so extremely un-militaristic that most people more or less forget that we
still have an army at all - it plays no role whatsoever in day-to-day life,
and neither do militaristic patterns of behaviour. Germans on the whole tend
to be rather easygoing and laid-back these days (unless, of course you ding
their cars or dilute their beer...).

Also, the "Hauptmann von Köpenick" was a sassy impostor, and that's how the
term is used. It would therefore not fit the picture at all. Better not use
a simile unless you are completely familiar with what it means.

If you think that a foreigner's behaviour stands out so much that it
warrants a comment, then there is only one non-offensive way to refer to him
or her: use the same term, in your native tongue or the language to happen
to be currently speaking, that you would use for your next-door neighbour at
home (assuming he's a native, same as you). Because all types of people are
found within all nations. Hearing the kind of language and stereotype that
became popular in bad post-war B movies really hurts me - not even because
of the racial or cultural implications, but because it is so "stoopid" and
never even to the point - if you absolutely feel like you have to promote
bias and clichés, then at least make sure first that you really know what
you are talking about!

By the way, John, I don't mean YOU by "you" in the above, this is generally
speaking.

And yes, I do find the "Obersturmbannführer" extremely offensive, because
this military rank was only used during the Nazi period (no more than ten to
twelve years in German and Austrian history, by the way!) and therefore
implies that the person you refer to actually believes in Nazi "ideals".
Mindless repetition of such terms just hurts and usually make me ashamed -
not for my country's past, but for the speaker! The Third Reich is no joking
matter, Europe is not a theme park, and WWII (or WWI, for that matter) is
not just an excuse for an entertaining series of First Person Shoot 'em Ups.

By the way, now that they have woman officers in the Bundeswehr, too, they
are trying to come up with a new, gender-neutral term for "Hauptmann" - they
haven't been very successful so far.

Gabriele Kahn

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