What's your reaction to...

[soulman1949]

.. the phrase "Third World"?

Must admit mine is one of extreme annoyance. It comes over to me as a pejorative phrase, a throwback to Empire days when "Europe ruled the world" and "The West Knew Best".

There is no doubt in my mind that we're seeing global power shifting from the West to the East. over the past 500 hundred years or so, the West has reigned supreme on so many counts and that's bred a certain arrogance. So Europeans sought to "civilise" the world and impose their way of life on their new found territories overseas, be they language, culture, religion.

What the West failed to recognise at the time (and, I suspect, has still not come to terms with) was that although other parts of the globe had different customs, that, in itself didn't automatically make them inferior to ours.

I recognise how the phrases "New World" and "Third World" came about but in my mind the latter certainly seems laden with a value judgement, one of inferiority.

For a long time I've been interested in Asian culture and my first foray to the east in 2011 was even more fascinating and interesting than I had expected. What struck me, in particular, was the value placed on family and community. I found poor communities where people had nothing but grouped together to help each other - a real lesson to us "affluents" in the West who only care for "number one"! :-(

We've a lot to learn from the so-called "Third World" and I would love to see that phrase disappear from common usage. (But then I'm a PC luvvie, can't you tell?)

What do others think?

Alan

[grahamw48]

Yes, we are truly awful people, us 'Westerners'.

Let's go on a great big guilt trip.

Why did we help to prevent our poorer neighbours from dying from all those horrible 'incurable' diseases, for starters ?

I don't label myself as anything in particular.

[imagine]

the present time and looking back on just uk history alone , there's nothing to be proud of , infact what is or what was great about great britain

[Tawi2]

I am actually proud to be british,well a mix of scottish and northern english,it could have been a lot worse,i am not going to hark back to the old colonial days but we brought civilisation to a lot of the world,we made places like honkpg kong what they are,or we set the foundations for them to be economic powerhouses,god save our gracious queen and rule britannia (I wish i had a union jack to wave) :biggrin:

[grahamw48]

:Britain::Britain::Britain:

[stevewool]

Dont blame me for what has happened in the past, but you can blame me for what i may have done in my life, lets move on with our lives i say , but some just cannot, and once money is mentioned well " lawyers for themselves " springs to mind,
And like a few i am proud to be English, and god bless the queen and any future monarch i say

[grahamw48]

Well said young Steve. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

Splice the main brace ! Britons never shall be slaves ! :action-smiley-081:

[jonnijon]

The "Great" does not mean great in that respect. It goes back years to the time we ruled large parts of France. Brittany was called "Little Britain", hence Great Britain.:Britain:

[soulman1949]

Lots of defence and defensive comments of the glorious Empire but nobody has commented on the phrase "Third World", which was the original question! ;-)

[stevewool]

Well where do we class the third world now, thats if there is a third world out there.
Now if its a poor art of the world well look East /West/North and South there are poor parts compared to other parts.
Personally and this is just me thinking out loud i would say parts of the African continent are so called poor but then again there neighbors are super rich, but some how they seem to turn a blind eye, expecting others to help from another part of the world,
Like you maybe at first i was taken with the family values and lets all stick together sort of thing, maybe something like it was for me growing up here, doors left open going to borrow a cup of sugar even asking a brew because you had no shilling for the electric .
But i have found out over the time that its not really like that .
Yes they give and yes there is help for the family too, but there is also those who keep wanting and those that want to keep the poor poorer then themselves.
Thank god for the west so if you or i are wanting to help others well we maybe lucky being born in the west to earn more to help more if that is what many are wanting , again its just my thoughts no disrespects to anyone who thinks different .

[Tawi2]

Third-world?Its just a term to denote a country thats not as advanced as others,ever been to somewhere like chad?People living in abject poverty,sand running water,sans electric,no chance of individual advancement,theres countless places like that on the planet,i can think of places in pinas where the citizens scrabble for a living,and theres the demarcation line of developing countries that seperate first from third world,its just a label to differentiate the haves from the have nots.

[Longweekend]

It has nothing to do with the Empire, and if as you say you are only first generation British your ancestors or you can't be held responsible for something you had nothing to do with....
Third World definition. "The nonaligned nations — which are often developing nations — of Africa, Asia, and Latin America. They are in a “third” group of nations because they were allied neither with the United States nor with the former Soviet Union." This was all to do with the 'cold war'.

[Tawi2]

Even if your 10'th generation or 20'th generation british how can you be held responsible for the actions of the past?Inherited guilt is a ridiculous concept,if thats the case shame on italy for the romans invading the UK and subjugating us.No nation is responsible for their history as its just that HIS story,someone elses tale.

[grahamw48]

... :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[Terpe]

If I'm honest, since living here, I've often used the term myself in times of frustration. But not that often.

But to be fair, it took on a rather different meaning from the original and instead became to portray something unfairly negative.
These days the term 'developing country' or 'developing market' has replaced it.

As a label 'developing country' doesn't really stand alone and needs something more to define a level of development.
Something that portrays a level of say political structure and stability, economy, education, social initiatives etc

Whether or not you consider the Philippines to be a developing country or not it's still only a label indicating some measure of performance.

Even income levels although much lower than some countries are at the same time much higher than some other countries.

Foreign remittances make a huge number of families here into higher level consumers, that's for sure.

[Tawi2]

Without foreign remittance the lives of many in pinas would be in seriously dire straits,i know a number who rely upon it as their sole source of income.

[Terpe]

One of the most least developed countries in Asia that I've visited was Laos.
Amazing country and amazing people. Once you get out of the city the basic needs such as electricty etc are not available

Let's not forget there are many places in the world where the daily priority in life is finding and securing fresh water and food.

You may not believe this will be the case in the Philippines, but when we stay at the place of our Aunty many many folks come along with their motorbikes/home made tricycles to collect the water from the springs in her back yard.
Their simple houses/shacks have no connected water, no waste systems etc

[Tawi2]

I know places in pinas with no water,or a tap outside thats communal,and they have no electricity.

[grahamw48]

You've described perfectly my mother-in-law's home Peter, where I've spent several 'holidays'.

[fred]

You know you are probably living in the "Third world" when you see big signs saying.."This road project is being funded by AUSAID"
I love the Aussies,the Japs and the E.U..They have made our driving experience here in the third world so much more pleasurable!!
Those generous countries in the west must be sooo rich.

[Terpe]

You've described perfectly my mother-in-law's home Peter, where I've spent several 'holidays'.

Our Aunty, her family and community are all wonderful people and we love them dearly. Hardly anyone has 2 peso to rub together but always manage to live happily.
Not a single one of them has ever approached us for help. It's always there for them anyway.

[grahamw48]

My experience with our family also Peter. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[stevewool]

So me just having the single bulb out of three that still works and would rather run the cold tap to wrinse my hands in, am i third world or just a tight git

[grahamw48]

I'm going to ask that you can be made an honorary Yorkshireman Steve. :biggrin:

As you can imagine... the transition from my place here to the one in the Phils is virtually seamless. :icon_lol:

[fred]

The Third World (Yorkshire) (https://www.google.com.ph/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=6&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiZ-OnA5OnRAhVMGJQKHQ6pCcMQFggsMAU&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.metrolyrics.com%2Fpart-2-the-third-world-yorkshire-lyrics-monty-python.html&usg=AFQjCNGVzbUHbl_XXi4Oy9xens_DuX7CFA&bvm=bv.145822982,d.dGo)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eciDVOAIXHc

[Terpe]

Hahaha
Brilliant find fred :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[grahamw48]

Welcome to my world. :icon_lol:

[grahamw48]

A great band too... :smile:

.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXeY74ttezU

[Michael Parnham]

Love both your vids Fred and Graham:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[grahamw48]

Cheers Michael..

I remember buying the single... I think early 80s ?

Always loved Reggae... and was engaged to a half-Jamaican girl at the time. :smile:

[stevewool]

I'm going to ask that you can be made an honorary Yorkshireman Steve. :biggrin:

As you can imagine... the transition from my place here to the one in the Phils is virtually seamless. :icon_lol:

"EE by gum , thank you Graham