My theory is that they just can't be arsed. "Hey, I answered 4 of his questions. What does he think this is, Mastermind??" Other recent trends are not to acknowledge you personally in an email, or even bother signing your name at the end. This is supposed to signify "I am so important, my time is so precious, my job is so high pressure and significant, that I just don't have time in my day to swap pleasantries with you." People are obsessing about their status in the everyday business environment. Of course, if you are a vendor requesting a response from a potential customer, you can go one better. The customer can be unavailable by phone, fail to answer messages and ignore emails. Well, that's my recent experience. And you don't even have to be American.
My boss used to sign off his emails to me, "Rgds, Gary" "Rgds"? WTF? I would sign my replies back to him, "Chrs, Loz". Eventually he stopped. I win.
Yanks.... the only people I know that when a tragic gun crime happens they go and buy more guns... If your a biker and like the yanks check out superstreetbike.com and you will soon grow to hate them. 2009 Ducati 848 - Super Streetbike Magazine
thats hideous. Why would you make something as nasty as that. Just because you can doesn't mean you should...
+1 That is so wrong thats words almost don't cover it. I'm not sure I'll ever get those riders that slam an excessively long swing arm into their bikes, but if it makes them happy
Yeah but beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it's very culturally conditioned. In the same way that big women are appreciated in Tonga, so the Americans like anything that looks like a drag bike or fast in a straight line. This makes sense for them - their roads aren't twisty enough (in the main, I assume, or for many people in the flat lands) for great handling to confer any real advantage or fun. No point having a bike that's quick around corners if there aren't any corners to go around. Whereas, quick off the lights if you live in the middle of a big grid system makes plenty of sense. Your frolics will come more from acceleration than being on your ear. In that idiom, I think that 848 looks great. I wouldn't want to own it, but I'm quite happy it exists. If you're going to have a pseudo drag bike, why not a Ducati pseudo drag bike? Variety is the spice of life, blah blah.
Ok what about stunting on a Desmo...lol Just out stunting my Desmosedici... - ducati.org forum | the home for ducati owners and enthusiasts and one for you Glid as you have a 999 in your profile http://rides.superstreetbike.com/ride/1202158/trpl9/2004/ducati/999bip/photos/2.html Should have been called RIP not BIP....lol Mmmm
I think it's important not to conflate what the American government gets up to with what I feel about the average American. I don't have a low opinion of them, particularly, but I do think that their society is flawed and that they are a bit bonkers. I also think they are very naïve. But then the British take on "Europe" is pretty naïve too (I'll take issue with that on the appropriate thread). I don't like their politics much but with the exception of their God-awful immigration officials, they are a pretty friendly crowd, especially if you're a Brit. The mistake the British make with regard to Americans is to see them as something like us because they speak a language we can just about understand and because we are inundated with their "cultural" offerings. This is completely wrong. The whole American mindset is totally different. We've probably got a lot more in common with the Dutch or the Germans than we have with the Americans, once you get over the language barrier. This may seem shocking to many, but I bet it's not wide of the mark. What do you really understand about a guy who lives in Nowheresville USA, has never been anywhere and thinks that life revolves around hunting and putting outsize wheels on his pick-up truck and going to church?
The last few times I've entered the US I've gone in through LA or transited via Toronto and cleared US customs and immigration in Canadia, I don't know whether it's because the West Coast lifestyle makes them more laid back or the ones in Toronto had been converted by the Canadian influence but it's a completely different experience, New York, Chicago, Orlando all complete humourless unfriendly nobbers, LA and Toronto it was almost a pleasure. LA in particular went from wheels down to in the bus queue to get the Hire car inside 30 minutes.
Orlando - Nov 2012 3 hours to clear immigration. 1 hour sitting in the plane because they were "so busy". 2 hours in a barely moving queue - just what you need after an 11 hour flight in the middle of the European night. The final interview was fractious, unpleasant and I was viewed with suspicion as I couldn't immediately remember the name of the faceless hotel my business partner had booked for us. When you consider that people flying to Orlando are essentially tourists going to theme parks, it's a pretty crappy way to start a holiday.
Ugh. Orlando is a sh1t-hole. Full of the worst excesses of American culture. If anyone is thinking of going there, I'd recommend that they DON'T!
Neat. Especially the monster rear tyre. Makes me think of something out of a Batman film. Just so long as you never want to go around a corner, must be a hoot.
