Re: German Mercuries rising

["Barton P. Chambers" <bartonc@mailhost.infi.net>]

Eric leaps out of the bushes, makes a run for the buzzer and...

> BZZZZttttttttttttt....  Scott your a little wrong on this one.  As 
> someone who has shot several promo films, lot's of commercials and about 
> a dozen training and orentation films for MB, I know for a fact that MB 
> goes by MB both here and in der fatherland.  All pre 1966 cars are 
> refered to as Daimlers in the company and Post 1966 as MB's....  In fact 
> all of my invoices were remited to MB N/A...

[SPLOOOOOOOSHHHH...]

[Oooops, someone should have warned the learned Eric that the merry pranksters 
had wired that old buzzer up to the release on a huge barrel of water rigged
up overhead...]

(hundreds of happy buzzer-victims lustily cheer at the highly visible award of 
"Just" deserts, buzzer-wise... Boy! They must think ol' Eric was *thirsty*...)

Because the fact is, Eric, old rutabega, although Yer Kindly ol' Unka Bart has
only lived in Dear Old Deutschland for some 4 1/2 years total, he's never
heard any of his many Deutsche kamaraden refer to a Merc as anything *other*
than a "mer-said'-es."  (oooops, not "ies" as Scott said, but, picky, picky
picky...)

On the other hand, the lovely Scott did make one other teeeeeny error, but 
again, picky, picky picky...

> Well, a little German Faterlund etiquette trivia might be in order here (and
> prolly prosed better by yer Kindly Unk Bartfater)...

(unwarscheinlich) Uh oh...(pfffffbbbbbgggt...Phew!)

> In Europe one refers
> to the term "Benz" Truck Division - the thousands of Benz TRUCKS that stomp
> the grounds in Europe....  To refer to your SL as a Benz is forbottin, and
> most disrespectful of the accomplishments of Daimler et.al. in automobile
> excellence ......  One refers to the coveted car mark as Mercedes, not merc,
> not benz, not MB, and not Daimler......   And further, it is pronounced
> "mer-said'-ies" not "mer-say-deeees" as the Amerikaners like to enounce..

[Of course, Scott's pretty close on the detail; other, of course, than the BIG
one, the "coveted car mark being more correctly pronounced "Por-sha"...]

>   And altho you may not agree the hierarchy of automobiles is WELL
> established in the cultures of Europe, Germany by far the most militant.....
>  In fact, if your Mercedes is passed on the autobahn by say a Golf (vr6
> irrelevent), the obligation of the owner, no matter what speed you FEEL is
> comfortable, is to pass that uppety Golf with the pride the marque
> deserves..

Amen to that!  Anyone else here remember being passed by one of the old V-8
BMW sedans (508 series, I think...)?  Like old Harleys, you could tell one was 
coming just by the sound they made (but unlike Harleys, BMWs *whistled*...).

> aufvitysen
> 
> Scott

'Chus

Yer Kindly ol' Unka Bart