News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]

There's a lot of truth in that. Most people in Europe are somewhere on a continuum between the two poles, but generally closer to the secular end. Religious when wanting a white wedding or buying a lotto ticket, secular when peventing or ending a pregnancy or going shopping on Sunday.

USA, Canada / Things that Polish-American should know about Poland. [168]


Well, the capital's Washington, the banknotes all look pretty well the same, it has land borders with Canada and Mexico, Poles need a visa to visit, it has really nice ice cream but pretty indifferent beer, there are two main wine producing regions and it is the home of Maccy D's and Wal-Mart.

Seriously though, if you wnt to know about Poland, check out the wikipedia entry, or just browse through this forum. This site:


bbc/news/world-europe-17753718
isn't too long or complicated and has some interesting stuff.

Work / What is the average age of graduate students in Poland? [17]

Masters.

History / Silesia occupation [49]

Not since early 1945.

News / Gazeta Wyborcza of Poland losing readers [301]


Hmm - shame you couldn't back it up with anything. Other than the usual Bzibzioh insults.I take back my last comment about your heart.


I doubt from the tone of your posts that you're good at getting along.


Now, now, young lady. Run along home, do some housework, prepare a tasty, economical and wholesome meal for your husband (remember you are almost the manageress of the home) - and don't forget to try and look presentable should he wish to axercise his rights. After all, you like conservative values and despise modern enlightened liberalism.

Or maybe you just choose the bits you like and argue incessantly about the rest. Naughty girl.

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]


I quite agree, and with the exception of the old Soviet Union (which for the most part lost interest in the end), can you think of any examples of agnostics or atheists telling people who are not agnostic or atheist what they should or shouldn't do behind the bedroom door or in hospital on the basis of their atheism or agnosticism?

And do you think every religion's "set of rules" being "the basis of law" "can only be good"?


They don't - that's the whole point. Nor do they prevent others believing or practising whatever religion they might choose to follow, providing it doesn't harm society.


Untrue and no it doesn't. Science doesn't "want" anything. But if the existance of one or more gods (and lets face it, there are enough to choose from) was ever proven, then it would be interesting. But despite thousands of years of gods and their followers nothing has been proven, and that is not without a huge search.

News / Gazeta Wyborcza of Poland losing readers [301]


We really don't know what argument you're trying to make - except that you don't like a particular newspapers and don't like some others either.


This from you!!?!


Your "womanhood" is something I can live my without ever thinking about. Sexist? Why you liberal you! You'll be standing up for a secular society next. Watch out for the Christians though - they can really be sexist.

But I'm sure your heart's in the right place.

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]

As does your grammar plus your understanding of a very simple concept. Impossible to prove, identify, refute or measure and it isn't there.

Hey, next time you get one of those nasty infections, instead of antibiotics from a nice modern clinic, why not consult a shaman or witchdoctor. They have faith too.

News / Gazeta Wyborcza of Poland losing readers [301]


What insults are those? You don't like one, and now you don't like the other.


Better if you don't leep on making allusions to what other posters refer to as your hairy axe wound - I'm ill in bed at the moment and nearly just had a relapse.

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]

And if you can't prove it, it probably isn't there.

Everything is either provable or refutable. Since in thousands of years of religions, the only things offered by way of proof of the existence of gods are (in the case of Christianity) stained fabric, vials of dried blood that mysteriously liquefy, collections of rusty 'nails from the true cross' (so many the poor guy they killed must have looked like a hedgehog), a self-lighting fire in Jerusalem, that only works when nobody's watching the Patriarch and a disembodied voice in the vatican on Good Friday (until the technique was exposed) - and of course unexplained cures, which happen outside religion too. Religious organisations were great at fooling pre-industrial peasants, but Europe-wide religious observance figures suggests that people aren't so naive nowadays.

Besides that - what about all the other 'faiths' Buddhism (which I think is still the world's biggest) has more believers that Christianity. But Buddhists have a profound faith that there is no god - who's right?

So to say "oh, it's a matter of faith, neither I nor anyone else have any proof whatsoever, but hey, who cares - I believe it so everyone else should", is not only nonsense but actually bizarre.

News / Gazeta Wyborcza of Poland losing readers [301]


As transatlantic import, I wouldn't think you would want to spend the cover price. The Weekly World News and National Enquirer are cheaper in North America, and I suspect you'd prefer them.

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]


No, because soap and electricity are real. With hard, measurable and irrefutable proof. The mythical cosmology asserted and promulgated by religions, horoscope fans, sci-fi novels etc remains unproven and is therefore best disregarded as 'truth' and only indulged providing it isn't harmful to those who aren't interested in it.

Unless you have some proof tucked away that one or other god exists, maybe Ganesh, or Jehovah, or Artemis or Freya?

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]


Chances are, Derek, you also heard abut (sic) another Christian, known a (sic) General Franco. Or Jozef Fritzl, or King Albert of the Belgians, or Torquemada, or Cecil Rhodes or many, many more..

But none of those, or Mother Theresa (not herself uncontroversial) either, are probably known to Wildrover.

For every famous example of a good person who is a shining example of the human response to faith, you can find many more who paint very different pictures. As Mother Theresa said herself, responding to criticism that she'd been performing pastoral ministry with some pretty vile right-wing South American dictators, "perhaps they need our prayers more than most".

Atheism however isn't as indulgent - people have to take responsibility for their actions and not blame it on the fallen state of mankind.


Their holy books tell them to do it. It also tells tham to worship in private, not mix linen and cotton and kill witches, but never mind, why not just ignore the difficult bits...

News / Gazeta Wyborcza of Poland losing readers [301]


Or just upierdliwy. Though ignoring sarcasm (which you don't really get right anyway), your post more or less sums it up.

News / Today's holiday ("Three Kings") - Is everything closed in Poland? [25]


It certainly is.

When the three wise men, Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar followed the star from The East, across deserts and rivers, up hill and down dale all the way to Bethlehem, they entered the stable, knelt before Our Lady and the Prince of Peace, swaddled in a manger, and intoned in a sonorous voice "Now this is for your birthday AND for Christmas."

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]


Who?


Voluntary. Yes. Right. An interesting idea.


Me too - and of course the big question is whether or not the laws of a secular state should be informed by a particular religion - a small point for me, a big point for someone wanting to end a pregnancy but unable to travel outside their own country.


The church has complained about falling attendances in Warsaw - the Ursynow megaparish has the lowest per capita attendance in Poland. Interestingly it's probably among the best educated in Poland.


They were probably Zoroastrian (but maybe Buddhist) and that passage from the gospels was written at a time when they were starting to evangelise all around the middle east - including among Zoroastrians and allied groups.

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]


The fact they don't have any suggests this is nonsense.


Hahahahaha - when did you last go to mass?


From anybody's really, unless they're an advocate of theocratic government!

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]


A different cup of tea indeed, given that the CC in Poland has millions of adherents, two tv stations and a real estate portfolio second only to the government, and atheists (organised ones anyway) have a website and a declaration signed by fewewr than 20000 people.

However Polonius3 hates and fears them, so it must be alright.


Catholics criticising atheists for being 'after some funds' is very much the pot calling the kettle black.

The fundamental difference is that organised atheists believe in a state where all are free to either live by the rules of a religion or not, according to preference and none are forced to abide by the tenets of someone else's religion. The RCC in Poland believes in a state whose laws are based on Catholic beliefs and prejudices and that people who refuse to abide by those prejudices are punished.

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]


I shouldn't think he'd need to.


a fine one to talk about

News / Gazeta Wyborcza of Poland losing readers [301]

Check out the real figures - they're all available!

Study / Polish schools and Polish educational system level in your eyes [135]


Most Polish universities are redbrick. A redbrick university (like Leeds or Manchester or Bristol) is one founded between about 1850 and 1939. A white tile university is from the 50s and 60s (like Lancaster or Hull or Sussex). All of those would very much be considered universities in Poland, as would the new universities which are former polytechnics and teacher training colleges. There isn't any clear equivalent in the UK to the wysza szkola.

News / Gazeta Wyborcza of Poland losing readers [301]


The same way you 'know' so many, many false and untrue things.


Now tell me, do you know the difference between newspaper sales figures and read-through? When your crisp copy of Rydzykisch Beobachter arrives, do you throw it away after reading (a good idea) or do you pass it on to the other inmates?

News / Gazeta Wyborcza of Poland losing readers [301]


Since he is avoiding that issue, I'll tell you. They claim to sell around 100,000 copies, about a tenth of Gazeta Wyborcza's with a read-through of only around half as much again. Poles are therefore around nine or ten times likely to buy GW and many more times more likely to read it.

Though given that 'Nasz Dziennik's' core audience have to move their lips while reading, the sound of all those false teeth stuck with crumbs of communion wafer and crushed laxative tablets can't be a pleasant sight.

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]


You're mixing Wolniewiczes. The philosopher is Boguslaw, your post mentions


. He is a Catholic priest. Boguslaw Wolniewicz is an atheist.

UK, Ireland / THE BIGGEST POLISH COMMUNITY IN U.K? [40]

Odd really. What's more true is that they were so desperate that they were exploited by British employers to undercut wage rates. Some good news is that more and more Poles in the UK are joining Unions.

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]

Hard to find anything suggesting they are Christians in Wohniewicz's article or Polonius3's original post...

News / Poland's atheist loonies have had their 5 minutes [239]

When a thread has a nasty title like this one, you probably know right away who started it. Someone who describes a distinguished Polish professor and politician as a


and an equality campaigner as


. Homosexuality being a topic to which Polonius3 obviously gives a huge amount of personal thought, judging by the number of threads he has made on it.

This Bohdan Wolniewicz who is a clergyman is entitled to his point of view - and he certainly isn't backwards in spouting his views on the internet - but his premise (the usual one - that they are out to get us) doesn't stand up. For those who don't read Polish, the reverend is saying that since only 18000 people completed an internet declaration that they're atheists or agnostics, the website in questions campaign isn't a success. The stuff about


is pure comedy. How many "wealthy Western atheist circles" read Polish or care what goes on there?

For the record, church attendance in Poland (though very hard to get accurate published statistics) seems to be falling.

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]


In this case sadly real. He is a highly respected, academically rigorous historian


Rather like some of the dodgy rebuffs that appear in the right-wing media to his work.


With bigoted pond-life like you as his only opposition he has nothing to worry about academically - the same old arguments - you may as well ask why so many Poles betrayed Poland "the country which had been their people's safe haven for centuries" by joining the Communist Party - ten percent of the nation, very few of them anything other than normal gentile, catholic Polish.

In any case - he doesn't write about the very brief Russian occupation of eastern Poland - are you suggesting he only writes about areas of history you want to hear about and avoid those you don't?

News / Polish Primate condemns EU's anti-Christianity [29]


No it isn't and no it doesn't. The EU isn't a religious body, its member states vary from the strongly protestant or catholic to the not particularly religious. People are free to practise whatever religion they choose. Archbishop Kowalczyk would no doubt enjoy some sort of preference being given to his particular religion, but it's not going to happen. Just as in the US, religions and the legislature are separate.


What's wrong with that?


Religions have been 'infiltrating' governments for centuries - the RC church even has its own diplomatic service. But for something truly sinister, fortunately more in the Americas than Europe, check out The Pact.

News / POLISH CHILD ABUSING A CAT.. [74]

This is the film. What a ******* awful kid.
wiadomosci.onet.pl/wideo/bulwersujacy-film-malego-sadysty,83561 93,1,klip.html