AIBU to laugh at the batty old bloke in the supermarket?

[Sidge]

I seem to attract the batty ones.

I was waiting in the line at Lidl today when the man also waiting in front of me turned round and started with the "cheer up love, it might never happen" and so on.

I smiled politely but then he started ranting on about the state of the country now, and how (I quote) it's not the same since all those bloody forriners took over, he fought the Nazis in the war and now the bloody Germans rule a third of the world and Germany runs the EU and tells the UK what to do and it's all gone to hell in a handbasket.

I then couldn't resist pointing out to him that he was in the wrong place to rant about the Germans, doing his shopping in Lidl

No Brownie points for me today then?!

ssd - I totally see what you mean but its a sticky wicket condoning racism because of age isnt it.

My father will be openly homophobic and I gently try and talk with him about it - I dont just agree with him because he is old.

Is making comments about the Germans taking over the EU racist?

I've just been crying at Time Team this morning (Day Three Blues seem to have hit rather late) it was looking at the Home Guard during the war. Seeing how real it was, how oridinary citizens were expected to give their lives to stop an invasion. It made me realise just a little of what we owe.

I always want to hear war stories, however brutal they are. We need to keep these stories alive, we need to remember what people went through for us. There has never been a war like it in our history and we should never forget.

I thought the 'germans' were a nationality and not a race so it can't be racism but maybe I am wrong there?

giantkatestacks - had your father seen an army of homosexuals kill and torture his fellow servicemen or had watched his comrades being blown up by them maybe you would be a little more sympathetic! That is a totally stupid arguement.

Well I think we can all be 100% thankful that the Nazis did not overrun Britain because that would have been horrendous all round. Can't imagine anyone thinks otherwise.

I do think we need to dissociate today's Germans and from the Nazis of WW II though. THat might be hard for an old man to do but I think you can listen and say, I'm so glad the Nazis never got here but thank goodness we are all friends these days and that kind of thing is past.

What's harsh is the title of this thread but what the OP actually said about Lidl being a German supermarket was not nasty

Thats what I thought MC. I wouldnt class his remarks as 'racist' at all.

MadameCastafiore - I never said I wasnt sympathetic to men who had fought in the war - calm down. I was saying that its better to go gently with these things - neither just accept them at face value - ie condone people saying things that are wrong however they have come to that opinion nor shoot them down in flames.

ZZZen has put it best there I think.

Still a stupid arguement!

It is not racism. And fucking patronising to say to someone who was willing to give up their life for their country 'Oooohhhh at least we all friends now!!'. It will never ever be past for them. They will live with the sights and the smells and the sounds forever.

No, I know it will not be over for them or for anyone who in any way was involved in those ugly years and I feel your anger and I understand it.

There is a differnce for us nowadays (or at least there is for me) between the Germans of those days and the Germans born after the war though, that is what I meant

I think actually we do a very bad job in this country (or the British Isles lets say) of moving on with things - places like Germany and Japan have fared much better in this regard.

We seem to be very against any sort of truth and reconciliation as practised elsewhere and I dont think its very helpful for the culture as a whole.

If its not racism then what is it - just straightforward prejudice? Born of experience so it makes it ok? Then theres no hope for places like Northern Ireland and South Africa is there...

But you have to be compassionate ZZZen not to bring that up to someone who fought in the War.

The Germans aren't a race so it isn't racism.

It's ok, I see what you're saying MC

Blimey ssd sorry for winding you up so much.

FWIW no I don't have an old doddery parent yet. My dad died 2 months ago at the age of 60 so I won't have that experience. However I do have an old doddery grandad who was a Polish POW. I was a military nurse and have spent years nursing ex-servicemen with terrible tales to share and ALWAYS treated them with respect and compassion.

I realise now that my thread title was inappropriate and apologise. The man was probably not batty, however the language he used was in my opinion offensive and the manner he said it was truly nasty. I know that can't be easily conveyed in a post and my point that I badly made was that he was ranting about Germans whilst shopping in a German supermarket (not the only place in town to buy your groceries by any means). It was the irony I should have laughed at rather than him.

I still think that making offensive comments about any one race be it German, Pakistani or African is wrong regardless of your age or history.

German is not a race! AAARRRGGGHHH.

OK I'll rephrase it; making offensive comments about any one nationality is wrong.

Seem to remember a legal case a few years ago about an Irishman who claimed racial discrimination against his employer, so if being Irish is a race, then presumably so would being German?

I used to live in a town where a veteran would wear his badges every day. He would walk to the War Memorial, salute, have a pint and walk back to the sheltered housing where he lived.

Funny thing was, I once said to him 'thanks for fighting in the war..' and he thought I was totally off my rocker!

nastiest,meanest post?...blardyell ssd..you need to get on here a bit more!

The op did not have a go at the gentleman or was mean in any way to him ..she merely ribbed him back.
My dad fought in ww2 and quite ofton would come out with comments about german people and indeed jewish people.He liked nothing more than someone to pull him up on it.

It is not racism - it is xenophobia.

Both my grandfathers fought in the war and managed to survive and live to a ripe old age remembering those they lost with sadness and pride but without hating Germans.

Erm....

A lot of germans were killed by the nazis in WW2 as well... I believe there were Germans of Jewish descent and disabled germans and ones who disagreed with the regime who didn't fare terribly well.

It is lazy to say "the germans". It was the Nazis and their supporters & sympathisers. Of whom there were quite a few in the UK incidentally.

To hate an entire nation, man woman and child, because of what one group did some decades ago is ridiculous. Hate the Nazis. Fine. Hate "germans" now, not fine.

I think the comment re Lidl was spot on personally, very quick witted.

I dont think the OP was particularly mean to this old man. He was being xenephobic and being old is not an excuse.

If he really does hate Germans he may be greatful that OP told him he was shopping in a German owned shop. He now has the information he needs to boycott German goods. Its unlikely he was aware if he was shopping there if he DID know it was German he clearly isnt as bothered as he makes out.

I would understand the anger towards the OP if she had been taunting him or being abusive. She wasnt.

Being old doesnt automatically make you nice anymore than it automatically makes you batty.