martes, 29 de enero de 2013

Blighted Blighty

When you travel you will see how people of the same nationality often greet each other enthusiastically. 'We're from Athens too!', or 'Hey, we're Syrian as well!'. They seem so pleased to meet someone who shares their cultural heritage. Not so the British. If they hear a familiar accent they automatically go dumb, revert to sign language, and head for the door. The last thing they want is to bump into someone from 'back home'. Because, despite the occasional flush of nostagic patriotism, the British are not too happy with their lot, and the idea of travelling is to flee from anything that smacks of 'back home'.
The Guardian published today (http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/gallery/2013/jan/29/immigration-britain-ministers-gallery) a number of spoof posters aimed at keeping out those untrustworthy, job stealing immigrants who foolishly believe that UK is a lot wealthier than, say, Bulgaria or Rumania. It is difficult to see if these posters are trying to give reasons not to come, or reasons not to stay.
Yes, it is a strange land, where nobody is content, and bloody proud of it too! Individually, at least.