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>>>I'm never sure which ancestors I'm supposed to research :o) Do I consider the American Indians? Or the Norwegians? Or the Germans? Or the English? I can go back the furthest on my father's side (Norwegians), but even two generations ago the people were harsh (as a grandchild I considered them mean) and lived hard lives. The Germans, well, I won't go there :o) The English? My English ancestors don't have a lot to be proud of either. However, the Anishinaabe's have the most interesting stories, were the most snobbish actually (everyone except my great grandmother stayed within the tribe) - and they insist they are the first people so there ya go :o) My daughter has to consider the Scots as well...
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>>>I love the comment that "people are the same everywhere." I've been to a LOT of places and it just hasn't been my experience in every case....
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>>I don't find people even vaguely similar, a lot of times. <s>
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>>I remember when I first discovered one strain of my ancestors had been in this country for almost 300 years and the great sense of pride a superiority that gave me. It was only when I factored in the singular lack of accomplishment in those three centuries that I got some perspective. You would have thought that somebody would have had the sense to buy an acre of farmland in lower Manhatten Island in the 18th century and just be smart enough not to be swindled out of it, go to Harvard College when you could still get in, or at least go to California and buy a cheap orange grove.
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>>A good friend came of a family of Polish Jews who arrived when my grandfather was in his thirties, ignorant of English and with no more skills than what it took to push a cart. They currently own at least an acre of Lower Manhatten ( and Long Island and Westchester county and ... )
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>>BTW, ( thinking of my ancestors made me think of this ) finally saw "Winter's Bone". Wow. It was hypnotic on a level I never expected.
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>Me too. I'm Scottish/Irish/Indian that I know of. That comment about people being the same ignores history, but you know have stubborn facts can be. The jews are way over represented in the achievement group. Look at any list of intelligence, wealth, genius, etc and it will be dominated by the jews.

I have English, Irish, German, French-Canadian, and American Indian blood that I know about. (My grandfather's grandmother was said to be a full blooded Penobscot, although that is disputed). There is another word for it -- American. This is why my blood boils when people b***h about Hispanics, Arabs, and so on. Other than Native Americans, we all came here from somewhere else. Immigration is the history of this country. And I think without exception every new group has been subjected to discrimination. Germans, Irish, Italians, Greeks, Jews, Asians, on and on and on, were all discriminated against. Blacks, needless to say, who came here less willingly than the others. "They won't assimilate," people said. "They keep their old ways." Guess what? They did assimilate. I have some ongoing issues with the U.S. government, we're too damned powerful, but the American people never fail to inspire me, even those I disagree with. This is the most audacious experiment in democracy in world history. Don't say Greece, even though they more or less invented it. Demos kratos. They were homogeneous. We are not. We are a roaring cacophony of competing interests and viewpoints.

I am proud to live in a country with a black President. I am proud to live in (near) Chicago, which has a new mayor who was born in Israel. Not because they are black or Jewish per se, because it proves anyone can make it here. Your birth is not your destiny. Brains and drive will take you anywhere.

Not sure how much you know about Rahm Emanuel but he is an interesting character. He was a key aide to Bill Clinton, famous for his profane tirades. Supposedly he once stabbed a steak knife into a restaurant table when when the name of an opponent came up. "Dead! Dead! Dead!" One of his brothers is a doctor and the other one is a Hollywood agent who is the basis of a character on "Entourage." It won't be boring. The Daley years passed into a coma years ago so we can use a breath of fresh air.