you just showed that you don’t know what you are talking about :

being french has nothing to do with the name or when you acquired the citizenship, France is a traditional imigration country, that is how France had been built, like the USA for exemple. Since most of french people dont have a french name, we dont consider the name and the roots as discriminative, it is just : if you feel french than you are french, that’s it.

if you say to jennifer lopez she is not american because she has a spanish name she ll be offended, the same as if you say to an alsacian like Bauer he is not french he too will be offended.

So it sounds like your hobby is to offence people because maybe you dont have anything else to do in your life (ie huge messages posted) ?

“1) What the USA and Israel have in common: In both cases the majority of the present population immigrated from elsewhere – one to many generations ago. BTW, I don‚Äôt blame any present-day American for wars against Sioux, Navajo, ‚Ķ or slavery – just like I (born in 1967) don‚Äôt accept personal blame for Holocaust and World War II.”

Yes, that’s truly common in those country. In the USA most of the people are emigrants, because the native americans are very few compared to the immigrants. I don’t blame the present day USA citizens either for the homicides that were not made by them. However, I blame them for wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and their inhuman acts against palestinians. The “american” tradition of making wars is still alive. And of course, You can’t be blamed for the holocaust.

“3) As far as ‚Äòrefuting‚Äô Lajos‚Äô initial statement: I simply pointed out that 3 out of 4 players on the French team are French, no questions asked – so ‚Äúthere are French in France‚Äù.”
I’m sure You understand that my initial statement jokingly pointed to an error. That is why I was very interested to the refutation of an obviously not true statement. GG understood this from the start.

“What about GM Robert Ruck?” If he has Hungarian tradition, he can become Hungarian, just like anybody else. He is not immigrant, probably one of his descendants was, but, I agree with Your point that he is Hungarian. I was just saying that in the region where Bauer lives there are many Germans, so he might be one. That is why there is a possible mistake in the artical. And the other people emigrated now. They are not French, they are imigrants. That’s a vey important difference IMO.

@WGIFM:

“So is the case of Danish people from Africa. Why do not they have the right to classify themselves as Danish people? How long one have to live in and learn a culture to have the right to claim his ethnic belonging?”

In my opinion somebody who has no previous connection with an ethnicity can’t be part of an ethnicity. Somebody, who is black, lives in Denmark and previously lived in Africa has no Danish culture, so he/she is not Danish. If a black person lives in Denmark and worked for Denmark all his/her life, his/her parents lived there too, he might be Danish. Looking to the fact that there are no people from the second type yet, IMO there is no black Danish people, possibly with a very very few exceptions. There are many imigrants who are more African than Danish.

About Pet?fi: His family lived in Hungary for hundreds of years, so he had in fact connection with Hungarian culture. The fact that he felt like a Hungarian makes him Hungarian, You are right here. I’m also interested what kind of connection the African people have with Danish culture.

Bauer might be French, but he is possibly not, only he knows. He is a French citizen, but we don’t know if he is French, so “French citizen” would have been more appropriate.

Anatoli Vaisser and Vladislav Tkachiev are definitely not French.

@Vincent:
“Why not say Obama is not a real American because he has a Kenyan name.”
I’m sure that Larry Sinclair knows what kind of American he is. This was a self-goal.

“I‚Äôll be happy to give you my address and phone number if you think it‚Äôs necessary to have an opinion.”
You can always have Your opinion, but if You decide to share Your opinion with somebody else, You shouldn’t call him/her names. You can be right or wrong, but Your style is not acceptable. Why? Because You would be offended if somebody would’ve said that You are “stupid”, “pathetic” or “troll”, just because his/her opinion differs from Yours. We are all human beings and the world can become a better place if we all act like human beings. Believe me, I didn’t brake the law just by not agreeing with You.

Gens una sumus.

@ethnicity debate:
I do not think that ethnicity is one’s property. It is more idea, a cultural construction by which it is possible to mobilize a group of people and enhance in-group preference and cohesion. This idea is taught and interiorised in many ways and means in societies. As the “structures” (sorry for this stupid reducation) societies differs from each other by time and space, the way how people interpret questions regarding to ethnic belonging and identity vary severly. ?Årp?°d, you should accept that people might have double-identities, and hybridity is very much a constituent of cultural transmission. A German name, or a German cultural background does not necesary imply an exclusive German identity. So is the case of Danish people from Africa. Why do not they have the right to classify themselves as Danish people? How long one have to live in and learn a culture to have the right to claim his ethnic belonging? Just consider the HUngarian national poet Petrovich/ Pet?fi S?°ndor of Slovakian Lutheran mother and Serb father. I do not think, that anyone has the right to question his ” Hungarianness”.

Now some explanations/clarifications to my previous post:
1) What the USA and Israel have in common: In both cases the majority of the present population immigrated from elsewhere – one to many generations ago. BTW, I don’t blame any present-day American for wars against Sioux, Navajo, … or slavery – just like I (born in 1967) don’t accept personal blame for Holocaust and World War II.
2) To become integrated in any given country, friends and partners matter at least as much as parents IMO – and more than distant family (aunts, uncles, cousins, …) who live elsewhere and don’t speak the country’s language.
3) As far as ‘refuting’ Lajos’ initial statement: I simply pointed out that 3 out of 4 players on the French team are French, no questions asked – so “there are French in France”.

To throw in another name (somewhat similar story to Christian Bauer): What about GM Robert Ruck? If I read the name for the first time I might think he is German, Austrian, Swiss, maybe American. But I never considered it odd, strange or ‘wrong’ that he is Hungarian – possibly his (great-)grandparents are of Austrian ancestry and stayed in Hungary after the countries became separated. Looking through the Hungarian top 100, there are not many similar cases, the only other one I spotted is IM Peter Prohaszka – here the ‘z’ in his name may be a relatively recent addition!?

Elzas-Lotharingen was part of both Germany and France, so, in Elzas-Lotharingen there are both French and German people, who are all citizens of France. Transylvania was part of Hungary for hundreds of years and from 1920 it’s part of Romania. In a way the history of Elzas-Lotharingen and Transylvania are similar.
“Maybe you didn‚Äôt know this” –> I know this perfectly, because I live in a region which is similar in a way. That’s why we should ask Bauer of his nationality and only after the answer can we write that he is French or German. Wouldn’t it be more accurate? If he is German he is not happy to be named French.

From today I feel like a god, so everybody has to accept my superior being. Of course, it’s not important that my parents are not gods and I don’t even know what is a god, but I feel like a god, so I am a god. Just kidding, of course. I’m sure You understand the serious half of my joke.

@Vincent: “Don‚Äôt feed the troll‚Ķ”
Now I am a stupid, pathetic troll. That’s exactly what happens when people have nothing more to say, because they are out of ideas. They start to attack the person who are talking with. Just remember: I’m proud that in Your eyes I’m a stupid pathetic throll.

Why do we get so personal? We are supposed to congratulate the Armenian team for their excelent performance. My obviously ironic question is so painful for some people here. I was just pointing to something that is not accurate in the article in my opinion. Am I a heretic because I don’t consider Vaisser and Tkachiev? Is that such a big problem? Some opinions seems to be a sin in the eyes of many. Just like in the book “1984″.

I have a constructive idea: We have different ideas, that’s truly natural. Let’s act as intellectuals and stop this pointless debate,