# Diana being in the top 10 Greatest Britains of all time. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 1, 2002, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803 "2002-11-01T06:34:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/81 "2002-11-04T16:41:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Libertarian \* > \*\*I should have asked before beginning to watch, but I was ignorant and myopic. \*\* Simon Schama’s [A History of Britain](http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/programmes/hob/index.shtml) is one of the best history documentaries I’ve ever seen. You have my permission to watch. Now run along, there’s a good chap. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/82 "2002-11-04T16:49:12Z")
If that’s the one with Simon Schama, yes, it’s definitely worth watching. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/83 "2002-11-04T16:54:40Z")
Francesca I haven’t called you “a bunch of savages”. And my “shithead” was a reaction to your “racist”. And I don’t doubt that you are not homogeneous people — I’m confident that at any moment a dissenter among you will surface. ---
**Author:** ![Francesca](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9fc348/32.png) [@Francesca](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francesca)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/84 "2002-11-04T16:57:59Z")
My mistake. You called us “a bunch of drunks in a gang bang” instead. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/85 "2002-11-04T17:01:08Z")
One would have to be drunk to think I’m a racist. ---
**Author:** ![Francesca](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9fc348/32.png) [@Francesca](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francesca)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/86 "2002-11-04T17:05:13Z")
You’ll notice I didn’t call you a racist. **Gary Kumquat** did. And - surprise! - we’re not the same person. I’ve never met the man - we may have completely different personalities. The only thing we currently know we share is that we live in the same country. But please, don’t let that stop you from treating us as identical just because we’re English. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/87 "2002-11-04T17:08:07Z")
Maybe I should rename myself CrazyChick or something. ---
**Author:** ![Stanislaus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stanislaus/32/3391_2.png) [@Stanislaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stanislaus)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/88 "2002-11-04T17:10:02Z")
> [@](#): > > One would have to be drunk to think I’m a racist. To be fair, you applied a negative attribute to a large and arbitrarily defined group of peope on the basis of flimsy evidence and in the face of readily accessible facts. Racists, by dint of contrast, apply negative attributes to large and arbitrarily defined groups of people on the basis of flimsy evidence and in the face of readily accessible facts. It’s a strong term, I’ll grant you, but it’s not too difficult to see why people in the group you tarred with such a broad brush would feel that it applied to your statements. And as for whether you should watch the History of Britain, I would say, if you were sincerely asking my opinion, that it would be a good idea to watch it with a view to learning the history of Britain, and a bad idea to watch it with a view to being told what to think about every single British citizen, past, present and future. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/89 "2002-11-04T17:14:48Z")
**Lib** , has it occurred to you that we might be calling you on this because we perceive the correction of your opinon to be as silly as the preconception you once had? Sure, there are lots of Brits who are interested in this thread because of the subject matter, but there are also non-British in this thread who are saying the same thing to you. I don’t think they’re living out “the very stereotype that [you] thought [you] had learned was false”. I am sure you don’t mean what you appear to be saying, but you haven’t done much towards correcting this misunderstanding. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/90 "2002-11-04T17:25:30Z")
Readily accessible facts? Where would I get these facts? I watched the news during the days before, of, and following Diana’s funeral. What I saw with my own eyes contradicted what I had seen all my life in movies and on television. I changed my mind. I just don’t understand why the hell are you demanding my scalp. And yes, it impresses me as mighty small-minded of anyone who would begrudge Diana actually making a difference in someone’s attitude. It’s downright Twilight Zone. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Kumquat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gary\_Kumquat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Kumquat)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/91 "2002-11-04T17:34:34Z")
I wonder if there’s any way we can we just all shake hands, try to accept there’s been some dreadful misunderstanding, and generally try to end this event with some dignity? ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/92 "2002-11-04T17:38:01Z")
I’m glad that Di changed your view of Britons. The only problem is, the view is still incorrect. Let me try a different tack: “Because of the Woody Allen movies I’ve seen, I thought all Americans were neurotic, self-analytical urbanites. But then I saw John Wayne Gacy on TV, and I realised that they _can_ be bloodthirsty serial killers.” Silly? I think so, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/93 "2002-11-04T17:38:32Z")
What, and spoil all the fun? You damn English are all alike. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/94 "2002-11-04T17:42:01Z")
…except for Diana, of course. There was a piece in the New York Daily News newspaper today about how she used to show up for dates dressed only in jewels and a full-length mink coat. Whatta gal! ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/95 "2002-11-04T17:43:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Libertarian \* > \*\*Francesca > > I haven’t called you “a bunch of savages”. And my “shithead” was a reaction to your “racist”. And I don’t doubt that you are not homogeneous people — I’m confident that at any moment a dissenter among you will surface. \*\* **Lib** , would you mind stopping the petty digs in nearly every post? They’re not exactly helping matters much. ---
**Author:** ![Stanislaus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stanislaus/32/3391_2.png) [@Stanislaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stanislaus)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/96 "2002-11-04T17:49:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Libertarian \* > \*\*Readily accessible facts? Where would I get these facts? I watched the news during the days before, of, and following Diana’s funeral. What I saw with my own eyes contradicted what I had seen all my life in movies and on television. I changed my mind. I just don’t understand why the hell are you demanding my scalp. > > And yes, it impresses me as mighty small-minded of anyone who would begrudge Diana actually making a difference in someone’s attitude. It’s downright Twilight Zone. \*\* The question is, why did you place such a high value on “movies and television” as a source for your opinion of an entire nation? Did you really think that was a firm foundation? And then to scrap all of that on the basis of one televised event seems equally far-fetched. I think the problem people have is that you consistently show above average critical thinking skills, so it’s a bit of shock to see something so simplistic next to your name. As to why it’s “begrudged” I can honestly say that as a Briton, I don’t want to be defined by Diana, Charles, Douglas Bader, Patrick Spens, Churchill, Oswald Mosely, Kipling or Disraeli. Flattering or insulting, such opinions have nothing to do with who I actually am. On preview, I agree (particularly as a late-comer) that it would do all of us a lot of credit if we could move on. So I’ll shut up now. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/97 "2002-11-04T18:15:28Z")
AMRussell wrote: > [@](#): > > Did you really think that was a firm foundation? No, of course not. I never said that it was. In fact, I believe that I complained that it was rather flimsy. That’s why I was delighted to see hundreds of thousands if not millions of people breaking the stereotypes right before my eyes. * * * Gary wrote: > [@](#): > > I wonder if there’s any way we can we just all shake hands, try to accept there’s been some dreadful misunderstanding, and generally try to end this event with some dignity? Yes. I hereby apologize to all whom I’ve offended. I’ll make an effort in the future to form my opinions about people based upon my own interactions with them rather than upon what I hear about them ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/98 "2002-11-04T18:23:23Z")
AMRussell wrote: > [@](#): > > Did you really think that was a firm foundation? No, of course not. I never said that it was. In fact, I believe that I complained that it was rather flimsy. That’s why I was delighted to see hundreds of thousands if not millions of people breaking the stereotypes right before my eyes. * * * Gary wrote: > [@](#): > > I wonder if there’s any way we can we just all shake hands, try to accept there’s been some dreadful misunderstanding, and generally try to end this event with some dignity? Yes. I hereby apologize to all whom I’ve offended. I’ll make an effort in the future to form my opinions about people based upon my own interactions with them rather than upon what I hear about them ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/99 "2002-11-04T18:35:53Z")
Please ignore my last post in this thread. I don’t think it was a particularly constructive thing to say. ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2002, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803/100 "2002-11-04T18:50:43Z")
Please ignore my last post in this thread. I don’t think it was a particularly constructive thing to say. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diana-being-in-the-top-10-greatest-britains-of-all-time/134803.md?page=6)