The 5 Most Statistically Full of Shit National Stereotypes Read more: http://www.cracked.com/articl

[Kennah]

http://www.cracked.com/article_18409_the-5-most-statistically-full-shit-national-stereotypes.html

#5. The French are Cheese-Eating Surrender Monkeys

Since 387 BC, France has fought 168 major wars against such badasses as the Roman Empire, the British Army and the Turkish forces. Their track record isn't too shabby, either: They've won 109, lost 49 and drawn (or as close as you can "draw" a war) 10 times. Professional boxers have been crowned world champions on shittier records than that.

And while it is true that France surrendered to Germany relatively early in WWII, that was only because they hadn't picked themselves up after WWI yet. And WWI (despite being an entire "I" lower) wasn't exactly an anemic playground chickenfight--the French suffered about 5.7 million casualties (the war killed or wounded an incredible 37 million people worldwide).

So yes, the next time around they let the Germans take over officially, but they never actually stopped fighting: the French resistance was one of the most enduring symbols of Nazi opposition in Europe. The resistance was the originator of the archetypal trench coat wearing merchants of bloody death you see in countless action movies and video games today. They blew up bridges, staged daring night raids, slit German throats while generally looking fantastic (if a little ennui-stricken) while doing it.

And not a damn thing's changed since then: France is the most underestimated military force in the world, with the third highest military spending on the planet and an estimated 300 nuclear warheads at their disposal. So basically... we might want to knock off the "coward" talk now, lest we find the impeccably-styled death squads smoking their thin cigarettes on our doorstep.

[uppityperson]

1. Kick and mark to read later

[bhikkhu]

2. What the French did last year in Mali is praiseworthy

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Latest-News-Wires/2013/0919/The-war-against-Islamic-extremists-in-Mali-is-won-says-French-President-Francois-Hollande

...not so much in a chest-thumping war type of way, but in that it took some real courage, was smart and effective, and it worked.

http://www.presstv.com/detail/2013/08/13/318440/keita-wins-mali-presidential-election/

[LostOne4Ever]

3. They had to post a picture of a tentacle monster for Japan

didn't they?

[Amonester]

4. Yes, but they lost this one to the British Empire:

So guess who started to spread those shitty stereotypes first?

[krispos42]

5. The old joke...

"For sale: French infantry rifle. Never fired, only dropped once".


I'm taking a "History of Europe in the 19th Century" class for college, and the French just got finished kicking the butts of the 5 different international coalitions.


Let's not mention that whole "invading Russia" part though.

[Art_from_Ark]

6. When the French under Napoleon I tried to conquer Russia, they were unsuccessful

When the French under Napoleon III limited their sights to the Crimean Peninsula, and fought with a coalition of British and Ottoman forces, they were successful.