From: Piotr Gasiorowski
Message: 777
Date: 2000-01-06
----- Original Message -----From: Piotr GasiorowskiSent: Thursday, January 06, 2000 12:57 PMSubject: Re: Odp: The relationship between Spanish, Galician and Portuguese----- Original Message -----From: Gerry Reinhart-Waller <waluk@...>To: Piotr Gasiorowski <gpiotr@...>; <cybalist@egroups.com>Sent: Thursday, January 06, 2000 1:29 AMSubject: Re: Odp: The relationship between Spanish, Galician and Portuguese> Gerry: Just because a place is rural doesn't mean it's backward. And
> please refer to my post just to verify the fact that I did NOT call any
> city in Spain "backward". Actually, I wouldn't know what a "backward"
> place is. And could you please tell me why you are so politically
> concerned about Catalan? Do you always root for the "second" in line?
> My father always rooted for the underdog sports team and would select
> Avis over Hertz because it was second best. Me, I prefer Hertz.
Dear Gerry,Please forgive me the mood of my last posting. I'm sorry I put words in your mouth. Personally, I have no stake in the future of Catalonia, and I should have left it to Miquel to defend it. My concern is not political, and its cause is probably a cultural difference. In some places asking a "dumb CA question" without checking the basic information first may be considered "potentially offensive", as pointed out by Gene Kalutskiy the other day. Regionalism is a delicate issue in Spain and (IMO at least) anyone who wants to discuss it should, out of respect to other people's sensitivities, tread with care and consult the most obvious sources before asking any questions; otherwise you run the risk of being regarded as a bull in a china shop. And you know what they do to bulls in Spain ;-).As for supporting the "uderdog team", I wouldn't do that in a fair competition. I'm not a zealous enthusiast of political correctness either. But I do tend to sympathise with people who have a justified claim to as much freedom and autonomy as is guaranteed by civilised norms. That's the consequence of my historical experience as a Pole; and I'd feel exactly the same about any ethnic minority in Poland if it were threatened by enforced assimilation or any other form of unfair treatment, let alone blatant persecution. I'm against bullying in general. I'm glad that in modern Spain the Catalans are infinitely better off than they were under Franco.As a linguist, I am always sorry to watch a language die and delighted to see it saved. I believe linguistic diversity is worth protecting.
> Who told YOU I didn't feel comfortable in CA?
Let me quote your own confession to that effect (Cybalist #772, just yesterday):Gerry [to Miquel]: I know exactly how you feel. I live in California now but I have absolutely nothing in common with these folks. We are different socially, politically, economically, religiously, educationally etc. However, I do relate to the United States and to Massachusetts in particular. And I'd much rather be living back east.I took the liberty to infer from the above that you "don't feel quite at home in California". Far be it from me to deny that CA is a very comfortable place to live in.A for pinyatas in Poland, if I see one of them around I'll zap it right between the ears with a baseball bat.Piotr