Thank you so much for posting this video; it was well worth just 7 minutes!
I was particularly struck by the interview with Timur Vermes, when he says:
"I was just struck by the contrasts. If you read Hitler’s Mein Kampf, you see, on the one hand, someone who holds himself up as a genius. And, on the other hand, someone begging for recognition from the very first page."
And also:
“Others said, ‘It’s great how he takes on Merkel! He tells it how it is!’ They’d very quickly forgotten who it was that was speaking to them.”
Vermes could easily be describing [clears throat] a certain public figure from the American political arena whom I will not mention by name, but I think you can very easily guess. I don’t want to commit a faux pas myself, so that’s all I will say.
That’s a problem I also have! I try really hard to read some names but sometimes I still get it wrong - and sometimes I give up and say just “hello”.
On the other hand, I lost count of how many messages I received with “hello Angelina” and other variations of my name - so I guess I might not be writing it so clearly either
Chinese people have one surname and two surnames. Usually, the name is also one word or two words.But I recently saw a person’s name. Her name consists of one surname and three first names. This is rare.
I’ve honestly never heard of this being offensive at all but I guess you are right to be safe rather than sorry. I think it would depend on the person; there’s no universal rule that I’m aware of.
I was under the impression that the sauwastika (left-facing) was the one that was a religious symbol in Eurasia, and it is the right-facing symbol that is not acceptable due to the Nazi association, but now that I’m reading about it, I’m not so sure I’m correct. Maybe it’s better to avoid it completely as they’re easily confused?
As far as I know, you can find both facing ways with both meanings, but there are tendencies. Most of the time, the nazi symbol is right-facing, yes. Sometimes, it is very clearly embedded in a Hindu/religious/luck setting/meaning, no problem with sending that. And at other times, the colors just scream nazi in your face, better avoid that one. It depends and it’s not always easily identifiable unfortunately. If it can be confused, I would not touch it or at least explain it on the back.
On the other hand, with Western countries where the religious swastika is not as well-known as the nazi symbol, an explanation could be a good idea in any case.
Same goes for Austria i would say. i would only add:
Don’t say Austria is like/part of Germany, because it isn’t and never was (except for WWII). No one likes it if their national identity isn’t recognized correctly…
Not so bad, but still going on our nerves: Austria isn’t Australia.
Comedy or jokes on modern politics is totally ok.
Nazi, Jew or concentration camp jokes in general you should avoid. It’s tasteless.
Yes, you are right, for me, it is nothing (because I am not very superstitious), but my parents and grandmother’s generation are very taboo.of course,most Of the Chinese people do not like to write their names in red. In ancient times, red ink was used in government offices to record the names of criminals. The Lord of the Underworld also used red ink when sketching the book of life and death. So even now, in addition to teachers to change the paper, accounting correction, also rarely use red pen to record matters, especially the name of the person, it is taboo to use red pen.
Please don’t worry, I don’t think most Chinese friends will care about this. After all, Chinese name order can easily confuse you, so we don’t think it is a big deal. However, to make it easier for you to write, I have omitted the surname and used only the first name as a user name (in China, to call someone by their first name is a sign of friendliness).
Thank you very much for setting up this topic. Sometimes I am not sensitive to the taboo of people in different countries when Sending many CARDS. But now, I have learned a lot and will pay attention to it in the future.
Wow this took a long time to read over and it was very informative.
The only add on I have is maybe not to send a postcard with only the number ‘4’ (like that is the only image?) because it mean death in my home country Japan.
It’s very ingrained to Japanese people, so many buildings do not have the fourth floor. And apartments will be: 1, 2, 3, 5
Yes it’s the same. Shi.
I think it applies for Chinese, Taiwanese, Korean and Japanese at least
I was even taught not to buy or give things in ‘4’
My mother disliked 4th of July which everyone celebrates here.
Even now when I see things packaged in 4 I’m like
When writing a postcard I normally use the Austrian “Servus” plus first name to address the recipient - and of course I explain the meaning of “servus” (hi).
I like to use stickers and I would like to know if a ladybug is a symbo of luck in all countries or if it has also a different meaning. Until now I avoid to use these stickers on postcards to non-european countries.
There are more and more Hong Kong people who are proud of their local culture and they want to distinguish themselves from China culture. So here are some advise:
Don’t write China after Hong Kong at the address - this is not cultural/political issue, but mailing issue. Since the mailing system of two regions are not the same, it will make postcards mis-sent.
Write “Nei ho” (Cantonese, mother language of most HK-er) instead of “Ni hao” (Mandarin/Chinese)
“Hong Kong is a part of China.” - this is correct, but may not be friendly to HK-er (probably a similar situation when sending a card to Barcelona and write “Barcelona is a part of Spain”, hope this example explain.
Everyone knows Jackie Chan is popular but we prefer Bruce Lee
is a symbo of luck in all countries or if it has also a different meaning. Until now I avoid to use these stickers on postcards to non-european countries.
