Well, my aforementioned Swiss ancestor who emigrated from Switzerland was the 15th of 15 children. True, about half his siblings died in infancy, but still he probably decided there wasn’t going to much land left for him once they divvied it up when his parents died.
Something like that makes me pause to reflect. Fifteenth of 15 children. If his parents had just stopped at #14 – and who would have blamed them?!? – I wouldn’t be here.
I have primarily English and German ancestry, but no I do not feel any particular affinity toward either country. I mean, we’re all fond of England because of the shared language and culture but I do not feel any particularly strong bond just because I had ancestors come from there two or three hundred years ago.
I am Jewish from Russia. I feel no connection either to Russia or to USA.
Are you a US resident now? A citizen? If either, why did you move here if you felt no connection? If the latter, why did you seek to become a citizen?
Loyalty, certainly not. Emotional, not really. I’m Chinese and I don’t have any strong connections to China.
Culturally, we keep a few connections, but I don’t even speak the language. Connections are mainly food-based + Chinese New Year.
Wow. Just… wow.
None.
My clan is not even sure of which country we hail from.
Citizen since '89.
One side of my family arrived in the US between 200 and 400 years ago, from a variety of places. I feel no connection.
On the otherside, all 4 of my great-grandparents were immigrants. My grandparents were bi-lingual, and there are scattered words and traditions that have been carried over in family conversation. There is contact with cousins in the old country, and occasional visits. So yes, almost 120 years later, I still feel a connection.
They hunted my people down. They stripped them of their lives, their dignity, their heritage, their humanity, their safety, their businesses, their homes, their property, their husbands, wives, children and parents. They destroyed their written records. They jerked the very teeth from their heads for the gold. They made soap from their bodies. They burned their homes, their books, their Torahs, their birth records and their clothing. They raped the women, tortured the children and brutally worked the men and boys until they were wraiths, devoid of strength life or hope.
Most of my direct ancestors died in the camps. My father had a gun jammed against his skull at the age of 7 by a soldier demanding he raise his forearm and hand and Heil to Hitler.
Emotional connection? I’m half German and Germany can go and fuck itself over a nail-studded barrel while having bleach and salt rubbed into the bleeding wounds.
There’s my ancestral homeland and your emotional connection.
Reading of Poland’s suffering in WW2, my heart went out to them.
Reading of Ireland’s occupation made me hot under the collar as a boy.
Reading of Southeastern Europe…made me glad I was born in the USA.
No. While my last name is Irish that’s only because they crossed the channel to avoid a dispute involving the ownership of a horse. 
In France the name was about ten letters long and started with chez…
It’s true that antisemitism is prevalent at German schools these days, but the culprits are almost exclusively Turkish, Arab or other Muslim immigrants (who form the majority in many German schools these days anyway, especially in Berlin). Since this an inconvenient fact of life, the authors of that article try to give it a right-wing or neo-nazi twist which is more politically correct. The situation is the same in many French, Belgian, Dutch, or Swedish cities.
Actual neo-nazi incidents are extremely uncommon in Germany, but when they occur, they are covered extensively by the news media.
My answer stands. My ancestors were decimated by their homeland. Blaming Muslims for Naziism won’t wash.
I can accept the first part. As to the second part, this is not what I wrote.
And as to the reality of Jewish life in Europe in the 21st century, keep an open mind and don’t bark up the wrong tree.
Northern European all the way back (until we find the right descendant to prove that drop of Abenaik blood through mRNA). England, Scotland, Ireland, the Rhineland Palatinate (wasn’t Germany at the time they left), Sweden/Finland. (Side note: Wondering if I’m related to anyone else who has Mayflower ancestry here, or Qadgop since I had ancestors that came to Massachusetts in the 1630s.)
I do feel a connection with Sweden, mostly probably because my favorite grandfather was the son of immigrants and he always had stories to tell. So now I live here.
When trying to convince people you are not a Nazi apologist, it is usually helpful NOT to tell them what to think.
Furthermore, nobody needs you to “accept” historical fact. They are verified facts even if you don’t accept them.
Cool it, Cartooniverse. Being German doesn’t make someone a Nazi apologist.
All four of my grandparents were born in Ireland, and came to the U.S. in the 1920s, albeit for VERY different reasons.
My Dad’s family came to America to get jobs, make a little money, and lead a better life. MOST of the family came to America, so I have very few paternal relations in Ireland, and we never stayed in close contact with them. By the time they died, my Dad’s parents regarded themselves as Americans, not really as Irish any more.
On the other hand, my Mom’s family were hard core Fenians who’d fought passionately against the British and even more passionately against the Free Staters. They left Ireland (some after serving time in prison during the civil war) reluctantly because they were too fiercely patriotic to live under what they considered a quisling Irish government (they wanted to keep fighting until the six counties of the North were free from British tyranny). My Mom’s family always thought of themselves as Irish and of America as a land of exile. They still talk of the potato famine as if it happened last week, and hate Prince Charles as if he were Oliver Cromwell.
As for me… I have some sentimental attachments to Ireland. I love the music and much of the literature. I love even bogus “Irish” Hollywood kitsch like The Quiet Man. I love to visit Ireland. I root for Irish athletes in the Olympics, except when they compete against the USA.
But I’m far closer to my Dad’s family in my attitudes toward Ireland. To me, Ireland is a beautiful country with a lot of very nice people… but it’s not home.