Posted on 12/22/2016 12:02:42 PM PST by Steely Tom
Edited on 12/22/2016 12:58:10 PM PST by Jim Robinson. [history]
Remember all the snarky comments about how JFK made a fool of himself when he told millions of Germans Ich bin ein Berliner back in 1963?
(Excerpt) Read more at dw.com ...
I used to have an old German friend, and she concurred. JFK was saying that he was a pastry.
Maybe the Germans are using the phrase on their signs for America’s benefit?
No, I’m not better at it than Germans. I do know, however, that the use of the indefinite article changed the intended meaning from “I am a resident of Berlin” to “I am a Berliner” as would any German speaker. These people holding placards are no doubt using the Kennedy phrase due to it’s notoriety, not due to it’s correctness because it’s incorrect.
What’s next, claiming that Jimmy Carter didn’t say he had an erotic desire for Polish people, when he “intended” to say he wanted to learn the desires of the Polish people for their future.
Yep, just as surely as that "Aspirin Factory" sign in Iraq was intended for US consumption.
When Carter went to Frankfurt, Jeff MacNelly drew him with his usual grin, saying, “Ich bin ein Frankfurter.”
Jeff MacNelly was the best, a genius. Gone much too soon.
“No, I’m not better at it than Germans.”
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And you can’t produce anything other than a repeated urban legend that the Germans were laughing at him, per your claim. But you are, obviously, welcome to believe what you choose. Das macht nichts.
Well, JFK didn’t give the same speech in Hamburg, did he? ;-)
it made me proud......Good. Those crazy, emphatic bastards need recognition. They didn’t have to, but they did.
What JFK "meant" to say in no way alters what he actually said. He said he was a Berliner. A Berliner is a jelly doughnut.
I was a icky president.
-James Earl Carter.
“Well, JFK didn’t give the same speech in Hamburg, did he? ;-)”
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Good thing he didn’t speak at Fotze.
I just couldn't believe that these Berlin people were standing out in the cold holding signs saying precisely what JFK was criticized for saying.
As you can see if you read some of the responses on this thread, even that evidence is not enough for some people.
Kind of a lesson there.
Well, speaking of grammar Nazis, from 1982...
http://www.nytimes.com/1982/02/26/opinion/essay-bin-ich-noch-ein-berliner.html
Safire uses the article.
I think some Berliners just rehabilitated JFK, whether they intended to or not. The pic is proof: "Ich bin ein Berliner" is correct German for "I am a citizen of Berlin." It's how real Berliners talk.
The caption on the original photo (found here) reads:
A mixed choir of locals and refugees prepare to sing 'We Are the World' near the site on December 21 in Berlin, Germany.
BTW, Google translates "Ich bin ein Berliner. Ich bin Berliner." as "I am a Berliner. I am from Berlin.". Note that "Berliner" is capitalized in the translation. Bing translates both sentences as "I am a Berliner," which is not correct.
Here was the original scene:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Ha9GJwlus8
The crowd does not giggle; they cheer loudly.
Oh, that’s funny. A PBS promo with their version of “patriotic” music mixed into the soundtrack and a canned cheer track just as canned as applause for any game show.
That was my understanding. He said, essentially, I am a a Berliner.
Not really THAT much of an error.
Here is an unmolested video, please note the laughter at 0:40 when JFK thanks his translator.
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