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| Europe | |
| On one Danish island, no pizza if you’re German or French | |
| 2003-02-24 | |
| COPENHAGEN, Denmark - Aage Bjerre has three rules for dining at his pizzeria on the Danish island of Fanoe: No dogs. No Germans. No French. Beats the hell out of "no shoes, no service, no shit". The owner of Aage's Pizza said Monday that he's tired of French and German attitudes toward the United States, calling them "disloyal" and "anti-American" in their bid to thwart a possible U.S.-led attack against Iraq. Since hearing news of France and Germany's opposition, which has led to a rift in U.S. relations with Europe, a split in NATO and a feeling of malaise between old friends and stalwart allies, he's made it rule number one to bar service to any French or German tourists in Nordby, the North Sea island's largest town. "Hadn't the United States helped Europe in defeating Germany, there would have been photos of Adolf Hitler hanging on the walls around here," he said, referring to Nazi Germany's occupation of Europe in World War II. Boy, there's no speech quite as shocking as the plain spoken truth, is there? The island, 320 kilometers (200 miles) southwest of the capital, Copenhagen, is a popular spot for visitors from neighboring Germany. Of the approximately 100,000 tourists who come, some 60 percent are German, said Birthe Elstroem, head of the island's tourism office. The others are mostly Scandinavians and Dutch. There are few French visitors to the island, which has a year-round population of 3,300.
Where can I get one? The ban has yet to effect his business because tourist season typically starts after Easter and peaks during the summer. "I do what my conscience tells me to do," he said. Thereby breaking with 2000 years of European behavioural tradition Should Germany decide to participate in U.S.-led military action against Iraq, Bjerre, 44, said he would lift his ban. But the few French tourists who do visit the island will need to fill their bellies elsewhere. Frenchmen have "a lifetime ban here," Bjerre told The Associated Press. "Their attitude toward the United States will never change." And apparently, niether will their manners, clothes or bathwater. Does he have a website? Is there anyway we can send some note of thanks to this brave isolated soul of decency behind the lines in "occupied europe"? | |
| Posted by:Frank Martin |
| #15 Ok, I think we are all on the same page here. I dont think the "Danish Pizza Guy" is necessarily a "Racist". I do think he's used an elephant gun where a flyswatter would probably have been sufficient. I cede the point. Desireable as it is, probably not a good idea. Fun? yeah,sure but good idea?, no. |
| Posted by: frank martin 2003-02-24 22:53:46 |
| #14 Well, TGA is probably right. We let emotion of the moment take over. The pizza man should just have a sign saying that he reserves the right to serve Chiraq or Schroeder if they misbehave in his shop. All kidding aside, point well taken, says this fellow of Jewish heritage. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-02-24 22:17:43 |
| #13 Point taken TGA. True discrimination based on generalizations is usually ugly in reality and denigrates all involved. I would say that, while I truly abhor the Green influence in Germany and the French attempt at airs of superiority (even though it's all about ooiilllll for them), there are citizens of both countries that I love as friends and who feel about Iraq much as I do. That's the problem - all generalities are bad, right? ©¿© |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-02-24 20:53:57 |
| #12 Frank you don't get my point. "Racist" is not the right word, blatant discrimination is. That this pizza guy dislikes Chirac and Schroeder (like I do btw) is one thing. But if he didn't like Sharon and put up a yellow star saying "no pizzas for Jews" you would certainly not applaud. And re synagogues: They are going up in Berlin. The Germans just signed a concordat granting the Jewish religion the same privileged relationship the government has with the Catholic and Protestant faith. The intention is to bolster a stronger Jewish community. A German pizza seller putting up signs like "no Jewish customers" (or any other nationality or race) would be fined and even imprisoned in Germany for "incitement of the people". And free speech is cherished as much in Germany as it is in the U.S. |
| Posted by: True German Ally 2003-02-24 20:12:29 |
| #11 Hey, I going to order a pizza-to-go from this guy! What's his phone number? A man who takes a stand---I will write this one on the calendar. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-02-24 18:22:45 |
| #10 Fred - RE: Your highlights. I Agree. |
| Posted by: frank martin 2003-02-24 20:00:08 |
| #9 Since when is it racist to say "I dont like it when you behave in a morally reprehensible and dangerous way"? Disagreeable, sure, but racist? Is using the word "racist" a good way to stop free speech? Are people no longer free to say " I dont like you" without being painted with an epithet thet sits close to "child molester" in the accusative language of todays culture? He's not saying that hes superior, and that germans/french are inferior, hes just saying, "Not in My Pizza Store You Dont"! I'll start accepting German opinion on whats racism when I start seeing a few more synagogues go up in Berlin. |
| Posted by: frank martin 2003-02-24 19:57:09 |
| #8 Call it xenophobic then..lol. The Danish are not very fond of Germans anyway although most of the tourists on Fano are Germans (ummm or because of that rather). They have the obnoxious way of building sand bunkers on the beaches and sticking their flag into it. I suppose pizzaman Bjerre doesn't see a lot of French on his windswept sand island. They wine too much about the food anyway..lol |
| Posted by: True German Ally 2003-02-24 19:44:21 |
| #7 Well heck, I can't even get a pizza delivered to my door - talk about "sucks". The argument that he's racist may be a bit thin given the shared ancestry. |
| Posted by: Rex Mundi 2003-02-24 19:07:21 |
| #6 Life sucks! But where I live true Italian pizzas get delivered by rather cute italian pizza girls. I'm not terribly sad. |
| Posted by: True German Ally 2003-02-24 18:48:01 |
| #5 True German Ally: No pizza for you! |
| Posted by: Rex Mundi 2003-02-24 18:38:20 |
| #4 But if you like pizzas delivered very cold but with racist spices: Aages Pizza v/Niels-Aage Bjerre Fanø ph. 75161122 I only hope that the Danish government doesn't join the peace movement or he will have to ban his own folks and eat a lot of pizza himself... |
| Posted by: True German Ally 2003-02-24 18:37:25 |
| #3 I approve.... |
| Posted by: Ptah 2003-02-24 18:24:38 |
| #2 How would you feel if he posted "No dogs, no Jews, no Blacks?" Oh sorry, the "No Jews" were a German speciality and the "No Blacks"... errrrr |
| Posted by: True German Ally 2003-02-24 18:23:03 |
| #1 Point taken TGA. True discrimination based on generalizations is usually ugly in reality and denigrates all involved. I would say that, while I truly abhor the Green influence in Germany and the French attempt at airs of superiority (even though it's all about ooiilllll for them), there are citizens of both countries that I love as friends and who feel about Iraq much as I do. That's the problem - all generalities are bad, right? ©¿© |
| Posted by: Frank G 2/24/2003 8:53:57 PM |
