News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


Oh not that old spiel again....Germany wins regularly popularity surveys!

2013:


bbc.com/news/world-europe-22624104

2016:


fortune.com/2016/01/20/germany-best-country-usnews

2017:


edition.cnn.com/2017/11/17/world/nation-brand-ranking-trnd/index.html

Don't you ever tire of repeating the same old lies?


What is your version of "leading"? Singing a song in English??? :)

PS: This BBC Poll got an update in 2017

Now Germany dropped a few points behind new best country Canada...with Japan winning the third place. I can live with that...I like all three! :)



globescan.com/sharp-drop-in-world-views-of-us-uk-global-poll

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]

.....sounds curious...where to do they leave?

I would have liked a link because...frankly...that article is all about "IMHO"...a very free interpretation. I guess all these Germans moving freely inside the EU are also counted?

And if it's those countries from the list I posted, it can't be because of so many "furreigners", heh:) These countries have more of them than Germany does.

Actually the rumour Germans are leaving Germany in droves because so many foreigners are moving in is...well...I can't take that seriously. That would be a topic in Germany by now too.

History / Why is Poland weaker than Russia? [390]


So...things were looking up after they left?

History / Why is Poland weaker than Russia? [390]

That was clear state anti-semitism, wasn't it?

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


:)

But it's true...hard cash tops everything..."flip-flopistanis" alongside mean Nazi-Germans...

And that's why Germany is such a huge soft power (to close the circle on that argument).


As far as I know young people leave Germany to explore the world and use their global chances....and old people often spend their pensions in the South for the better weather and cheaper prices.

I never heard of Germans leaving Germany because of the changing demographics because for that you would just have to leave the big cities and relocate to a town or village on the land.

But the contrary is happening, people leaving the land to go into the cities..with so many "flip-flopistanis".....crazy, huh?

That is a statistic from 2017 about the Top 10 countries Germans emigrate to: thelocal.de/20170810/here-are-the-top-countries-where-germans-immigrate-to

As you see, these countries have often even more flip-flopistanis than Germany...

History / Why is Poland weaker than Russia? [390]

Where does this "exodus" of polish Jews during th 60s fit in?

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]

The future looks bright...it seems a majority of Poles (in Poland mind you) likes Germany...or at least doesn't hate it, fears it, or is deeply jealeous of it. Reading some polish poster here on PF one could get a far darker impression. :)

A survey from 2018:



:)

And that is one consequence:

A "voting with their feet", there is no other description possible...they are moving to Germany for jobs and a generally more liberal lifestyle...aka better life!

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


There is help underway:

History / Why is Poland weaker than Russia? [390]


I always wonder how such a mighty people which controls just everything and sits on the gold no less get's itself always killed and expelled so easily...

History / Why is Poland weaker than Russia? [390]

I would rather take that drink....

History / Why is Poland weaker than Russia? [390]


That is an oxymoron....how can Poland have been ever "Jew-controlled" when they were forced to flee the country?

I'm still awed at how many of them chose Germany as their new home...not even a generation after the holocaust!

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


Thing is...there is no "germanization". It isn't necessary...Germany doesn't need other people dancing to "Atemlos" by Helene Fischer to earn hard cash...und to be an influential soft power.

Maybe another example will clear that up better:

Fact: Even after the Brits left the lingua france of the EU will be English (no matter what the Frenchies want:).
But only people who have to will speak German (heh:)

Now the big question:

Which country will keep and even gain it's influence on the continent?

Hint: It isn't english speaking Britain with it's famous singers and movies...

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


Not I'm conflating...soft power means all that...you are only skipping the uppermost surface and believe that's all there is.

Britain is the only english speaking country in Europe...there shouldn't be a working EU still existing after Britain left...and took all it's singer and movies and book and generell culture with it.

But the contrary is true...the EU is still standing and the only thing growing will be german influence and soft power on the continent...and all that without any german singer and movie and book you could name!

PS: There are firms in Germany which feed whole towns with all it's people in it. How many people feed the english songs and movies?

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


No, it is perfect!

Tell me again how much you earn from every american movie shown in the theaters around the globe? Just put a number in...

On the other hand Germany got rich on its products being sold and continues to do so...

So, be happy about the american singer and the american movie and bask in your global cultural soft power whereas Germany will hopefully continue it's other traditions and count the Euros...they are so much more worth!


Absolutely! People are willing to pay alot more just for a product with "Made in Germany" on it. The country of origin / the name of the producer as a main selling argument... You can't get any more soft power than that!!!

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


And you can tell me which cars are the first choice by wealthy Americans, or kitchen appliances?

Why does everybody know and values a "Made in Germany" and not a "Made in Britain", Heh:)

Why does this little country smack in the center of Europe sells as much and sometimes more than giant China?

Soft power comes from hard cash....and Germany has more of that than most!

You want the cake and eat it....you hate Germany so much that you try to downtalk it at every turn....how weak it is...without any influence...but just another post away you fantasize about an overbearing Germany....with its dirty fingers everywhere...manipulating....dominating...

You have do decide what it truly is one day...it would make your posts so much more realistic!

PS: Most of the post was not directed at you Rich but at Spike :)

Soft power is also founded in your name...what people associate with you...

And contrary to the Spikes and Mafketis of this forum, Germany has an excellent international reputation:


edition.cnn.com/2017/11/17/world/nation-brand-ranking-trnd/index.html

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


And still...you want Poland to leave because of German dominance.....the Brexiters want Britain to leave because of german dominance.

The famous "They lost the war but won the peace" - spiel, remember?

And how does Germany all that dominating? Without an army to speak of? Caged inside a union?

Get real man. What you Spike connects with Mafketis is a total resentment against Germany. Resentment against it's power...it's SOFT POWER!

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]

Abit empty, aren't they?

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]

Not every english fart is culture just because the whole world can smell it....

There is an old saying: "Soft power comes from hard cash!"

I would think about that one for a minute before I put a ranking on countries on the numbers of their english singing music bands!

PS: And your total ignorance about anything outside of the Anglo-Sphere is contrary to your impression nothing to be proud of.

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


Depends on your view point...I gather you don't speak German, so you don't watch german TV nor see german movies, nor listen to german music.

For you that "cultural collossus" only makes itself known when it gets translated into English! :)

It's the same with China...I don't speak Mandarin (nor do I plan to) so I don't know sh't about their pop stars and their chart breaker...but that doesn't mean they don't exists and have more fans and followers than anything you could come up with.

Just an example..did you ever hear of Helene Fischer? I doubt you have, but she is a big superstar in all of german speaking Europe (and more Europeans speak german as their native language than english)...in the latest Forbes ranking she earned more than most of the super stars of then english speaking world...but you most probably never heard a song of her.

theguardian.com/music/shortcuts/2018/nov/21/helene-fischer-schlager-superstar-the-richest-singer-youve-never-heard-of

The same with polish art and culture. Do you really think the Poles have nothing of value to show to the world just because you don't know any of it because it's in polish?

What does that all mean? Nothing at all! :)


Well, that's already alot...and quite important. I wouldn't downtalk it.

And for the rest the old saying held still true: Nations have no friends, only common interests! That's how it always was, is and will be...

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]

....so..with that I take my bow for a few hours...work waits..

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]

Nope, it's definitely the "german Hanse"...after all Danzig was german speaking then and so was the lingua franca of the Hanse, middle low german...and it's HQ was in Lübeck.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanseatic_League


And I can't help it that we Germans have such an illustrious history...the main reason you find us to be so "annoying"...deep jealousy becoming resentment, even hate!

*cuddles Spikey*

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


Totally agree...and at the end the vultures were ready to rip the corpses to pieces.


Well..just wait till a polish Commonwealth v2 will come to pass. And Poles will find themselves in the exact same position as Germans right now...resented just for being the strong and successful ones (by the weaker and less successful ones). :)

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


Na ja...the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation was founded in the year 800 and got officially dissolved in the year of 1860....I would call that longer lasting...

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Roman_Empire

For me much more fascinating is the german Hanse though...an extremely successful economical union of trade guilds from Northwest and Central Europe from the 14th till to the 17th century...a kind of an early EU without all that politicks...and quite long lasting too...

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanseatic_League

History / Why is Poland weaker than Russia? [390]


Yeah...well...I personally draw the line at the end of the Sovietunion in 1989. After that the after war world order changed and the cards where reshuffled...

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


And it got resentment abounds...it's vassals fighted it...they all wanted and got their independence. It was only a happy place without any resentment through the rosy glasses of today, with the Empire long gone.


Plus lotsa resentments!

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish%E2%80%93Lithuanian_Commonwealth


The ukrainian yellow vests? :)

The partitions never could have happened if it had stood strong and unified...

History / Why is Poland weaker than Russia? [390]

Erm, they more or less did.

But as with the Third Reich, that socialist system isn't sustainable...it was a matter of time. It isn't that it didn't want to hold on for forever, it couldn't anymore!


Depends on what you see as winning!

The US has proven much smarter than the russian victors. The took away every valuable thing they could get their hands on, whereas the US invested money to help the losers to rebuild themselves.

In the first case the victor got itself to a now totally impoverished new region with an extremely hostile population which will chafe in their bounds forever and in the second case the victor soon ruled about a vassall whose happy population would fall over themselves to be a good ally and do what was asked of them.

In the first case the victor soon suffers too, in the second case the victor is flourishing.

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]

That plan was good and sound and extremely successfull....leading to the most peaceful and stable period in Europes history.


For the resentment...that has less to do with Germany or the EU but with human psychology...the fear, suspicion, mistrust and plain jealousy of the bigger, better, more successful.

The only thing Germany could do to lessen that resentment would be to break itself up in many poor parts...then that resentment would change direction to the next bigger thing.

Ask the US or any other bigger power...it comes with the existence. And Great Britain before the Brexit, back in it's day as an world spanning Empire, got the same kind of world wide resentment. It's part of the game...

A future economically and politically successful and with that influential Poland would soon get the same treatment...People will then watch Warsaw...and seeing it as the source for all their problems...would protest polish dominance...would start to fight the polish yoke..it would be Germany then which would gain alot of sympathies...and so on...and so on...and so on...

History / Why is Poland weaker than Russia? [390]


Poland is being compensated as we speak. The EU funds are financed in big parts with german money with Poland the biggest beneficiary...we are talking about Billions here..every year...

To rebuild Poland, to bring it up to western standard...the cohesion policy, european solidarity, the EU Marshall plan if you so want...the same you want to kick in the bin, believing Poland would be better off without it....ironic actually!

polska.pl/economy/investments-projects/eu-funds-poland


ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/policy/what/glossary/c/cohesion-fund

News / Polish Independence Day March in Warsaw. Is it going to be the biggest march yet? [1530]


And that worked so well in the past...


Which strong economical connections?

And you really think Poland all on it's own could hold a candle to Germany economically?

History / Why is Poland weaker than Russia? [390]


Yeah...well...war is impossible now! :)