[0362] Rousing Speech
└ posted on Monday, 26 March 2012, by Novil
- Echo: In the long history of the world, only the foxes have been granted the role of controlling vermin in such a wide range of habitats. I do not shrink from this responsibility; I welcome it!
- Echo: Let every species know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and the success of the fittest.
- Echo: And so, my fellow rodent, ask not what your fox can do for you; ask what you can do for your fox.
- Sid: As much as I admire foxes, I won’t let you eat my legs.
- Echo: Why do you hate America, you rotten little nut-eater?
![[0362] Rousing Speech](/comics/2012-03-26-0362-rousing-speech.png "[0362] Rousing Speech")
*hearty applause* YYYAAAAY WHOO! No, not you, Woo. Get out of here. *starts “Echo” chant* ECHO!!!! ECHO!!! ECHO!!! ECH-!! EC-! Ec-! Ec-. E-. e-. …
(Affecting an ourageous python-esque french accent) why do i hate america? BECAUSE I AM FRENCH, YOU SILLY AMERICAN FOX-TYPE PERSON!
Let’s be honest comic, I feel the need to insult you because the praise I deliver wouldn’t be nearly as believable otherwise. There are other methods to accomplish this. However, I respect your creators enough to not ask questions when I either already think I know the answer or don’t wish to play stupid mind games.
Sadly, Jokes seem to loose their flavor when they are overtly analysed or abused and quite honestly I cannot follow through on what would certainly be a tragic example of how not to tell an inside joke. Please note that I would rather not bring politics into this as that would only make the whole thing seem vain and childish.
That having been said one should always remember… NOTHING CAN STOP THE U.S. of A!
As someone who lives in North America (USA) I would like to point out that we call ourselves american…because we are american. United States of AMERICA. What else are we supposed to call our selves? It sounds to me like the people commenting on this don’t realize that we refer to people of Canada,Central America, the Carribean, and South America as americans as well. Also, usually we don’t refer to our country as a whole the USA we say we are North America. Depending on the context we may or may not be including Canada as well. Does South America not refer to themselves as just that when speaking of the whole continent? All in all I don’t see why we have any less right to call ourselves American like every other American. I truely am curious as to what other people of the Americas refer to themselves as? Most of the time I say I’m Californian because that’s the state I was born, raised, and still live in. However does this mean I can never refer to myself as American. That just makes no sense to me. Comments? I really do wish to know whether or not other Americans occasionally say they are American. I’ll admit there are ALOT of dumb people in my country that may think we are the only americans, but lets be honest here. Stupid people can be found all around the world :/ Sadly.
Hmph. I’m told JFK’s ‘ask not” speech was adapted from a speech the headmaster at Groton (JFK’s prep school) used regularly. “Don’t ask what Groton can do for you, ask what you can do for Groton.” Yeah, great speech, only, moron, strikes me the parents of the Groton students paid big bucks to send their boys there for what they expected Groton could and would do for their sons. As for scholarship students, they busted their bones to win a place there because they figured Groton would be worth it, so guess what! Groton better EARN its way, headcase! As for JFK’s adaptation, hey guess what; do stuff for my country, absolutely! But no freaking way does that mean my country and its representatives get to ask anything of me! Loyalty’s a two-way street, boyo; my country is going to be worthy of me! None of that ‘send me off to war, then when I come home deny me medical care, foreclose on my house while I’m risking my life” idiocy!
HardWearJunkie wrote:
I do. I also see Mexicans as Americans, Brazilians as Americans, and Jamaicans as Americans, because we all are. And I believe people from the US get this, too. When Ron Goldman’s family was in Toronto in the 1990s talking on the radio about OJ, their daughter caught herself in mid-word referring to her country as “America” and suddenly said “United States” instead. Again, no country in Europe or Asia is so arrogant as to usurp the name of the whole continent to itself, and I think the more aware people in the US get that that’s what they’ve been doing. The ship has probably sailed in the English language, but that still doesn’t make it right. I’m American. Same as you.
Person wrote:
Nobody’s taking issue with less; the problem is assuming you have MORE right than anyone else. I don’t dispute that the US is, at least currently, the per-eminent single country in our hemisphere. But every continent has one. The Russians haven’t taken away the right of the Dutch to call themselves Europeans, nor the Chinese the right of the Japanese to be Asians. People like me would simply like our birthright to be “Americans” )the same way they’re all “Europeans” and “Asians”), without having to explain what we mean every time, recognized and respected.
Epic speech.
*sniff*
So patriotic. Especially while she’s standing on Sid’s tail.
Mmmmm….squrriel leg with a dash of patriotism.
HAH! as a wolf i totally agree! exept we take that vow on ALL animals! Fox population can get out of control if they themselves are left unchecked! so in eating animals we wolves are showing are patriotism!
Wolf in Bears Clothing (its the last thing they’d suspect)
@ Cinnamoon:
He is a European Squirrel…
Sid,U N NO LOVE AMERICA!?
wow, U is in place of Y…I r smart
@ Nighkus:
Could not have said it better myself. And thus I say unto you, Bravo. Bravo. *weeps tears of truth while riotously clapping*
@ Nighkus:
They did help the US with the revolution against the British.
@ Sterling Rodd:
Just to push the topic a little bit more, when you ask a (random) Mexican to describe an American, would they use a Brazilian to begin their description? If you had walked up to a Jamaican and asked her if she is American, what are the chances that she would say “Yes” immediately? As a species, we commonly view ourselves based on the closest geography, both physically and politically. We identify ourselves this way because it helps to get our foot in the door when socializing or getting a job. I suspect we wouldn’t be having this conversation if Canada was officially titled “The Canadian Provinces of America”.
I give you the point that there are people who consider themselves Americans but are not U.S. citizens; I just don’t think that is how a vast majority (who live in the Americas) refer to themselves as.
HardWearJunkie wrote:
I really don’t know; I gather in Spanish the term “American” has a lot more fluidity than it typically has in English these days. From what I understand, it’s at least as common for them to apply the term “norteamericano” (North American) to the people of the US… which, again, lets down the rest of us, though at least spares the people of South America. Spanish also has the term “estadounidense”, which would mean something like “United Stater” (more precisely, “United Stateser”; since the root is plural) in English, to apply solely to the people of the United States. So you see it is possible, if inelegant. But even the Czechs live with “Czech Republic” in lieu of a slicker name for their country since the 1990s.
Nevertheless, it’s beside the point. I don’t dispute that the term IS commonly used to apply to the US and its people; my point of contention is that it SHOULDN’T be. It should be the right of everyone in America to think of and refer to him/herself as an “American” without abridgement or apology, the same as Europeans do. It’s our right as much as yours. The only way that can every happen is if the rest of us who haven’t conceded the point speak up and get people thinking. Even cartoonists in Germany, who wouldn’t think twice about identifying as “European” and would probably resent anyone denying them that birthright.
I honestly don’t see why it is a big deal citizens of the US call themselves (and are referred to as) “American” in a sort of exclusive sense, so long as we recognize there are other countries on these two continents, and that being from the US doesn’t make anyone better than someone from anywhere else.
It’s a better-than-thou attitude (especially when coupled with poor logic like non-sequitars) that is really annoying. The US has its share of admirable people and much-less-than-admirable people, much like most any country. It has its strengths and weaknesses.
I’m so glad that we get to see Echo by herself! 😀 I always wondered what she would be like. She’s hilarious. XD
@ HardWearJunkie:
I was talking about individual international wars. i.e. 1-on-1. Nothing like the WWs, where multiple nations fought on each side.
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/jfkinaugural.htm @ Neospector:
@ Deo: Damned Commie French Delicious Squirrels
But Sid isn’t vermin. Sid is technically an endangered species in some places (and pretty much the only one of his kind in this place).
Nighkus wrote:
How convenient. Most people will realise how silly this is, however, since most wars involve multiple parties on each side. For example the Hundred Years war, where France kicked England out of europe, was basically France vs England. Because other countries got involved from time to time along the way however, you ignore it.
Similarly, France won several of the Napoleonic wars, which were separate events. The fact that France lost a rematch several years later doesn’t change this.
Also, you discount WWI yet France had more involvement than the US did, deploying twice as many troops, a similar number to Britain.
France was a superpower for much of it’s existance, and is still one of the most prominent countries in the world today.
Echo… I hate to break this to you, but… you’re not a rodent.
i can finally see what why Shadow and Echo are together with each other.