I have also found this whole thread quite stunning - its almost an education in itself in how to start a debate but have no idea who to participate in the debate and therefore look rather uneducated.

And yes, I would feel that as you're Australian, that you can now claim imperialist pig-dog status - welcome to the club - and Bug, I know that you aren't British, but you obviously value our system, contribute massively through your study and also here with your input and support, would you like to be one too ;-) honourary!

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I think we've possibly scared BenM away for ever!! haha! What a silly person for throwing away what could have been a good opportunity for him/her! But i guess we're all just too stupid for him/her (IT?) ! ;-)

I'm just completely stunned still!:-s

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Thanks Stressed! Yes, accepted :-)

PS to add an anecdote: My country of origin is a commonwealth country, a former Brit colony (English is our official language and well, my mum's only literacies are in English, for my gramp used to work for the Public Works dept when the Brits were there and she was raised in convents after independence, and then well, she went on to become an English lit prof and i went to one of those private, English girls' schools and the story continued...)

so, for reasons more than one, I felt instantaneously super comfortable in this country. Anyway, last yr, I happened to come across this academic (who hailed from my country) and unfortunately hated anything to do with the West.

They met me after I had decided to do this phd here in the UK to tell me THIS: "How can you? I mean, to subject yourself to imperialism all over again?"

I gaped like a hungry goldfish for a bit and later was to learn that this person intended to say that by being supervised in this country, by a british prof would mean subjecting myself to imperialism.


WTF? Said decision, has been the *best* decision I have ever made, and my sup is the most brilliant of mentors one could ever find. It took me nearly two months to get over that conversation where I tried to them justice by offering them benefits of the doubt a thousand times, but alas!

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