News / US Military: The Army of Poland is crap. [124]

Afghanistan's rugged topography -- impenetrable terrain with endless hide-outs in the hills -- has made that country unconquerable to Brits, Russians and probably NATO, barring the use of nukes which seems highly unlikely. Only if a clear Afghan majority reject the terrorist insurgents and trim them down to size can peace prevail. It's still a toss-up and depends how much NATO is prepared to invest in the effort.

News / US Military: The Army of Poland is crap. [124]

Isn't the term 'gook' the correct American slang for Vietnamese. Not to be confused with geek.

News / US Military: The Army of Poland is crap. [124]

Wrong, the slit-eyes did not defeat the greatest military power on earth, the cowardly Washignton politicians did... those that succumebd to the pressue of hordes of unwashed, pot-puffing hippy pacifists and the liberal media. Ultimately the US hardliners of that era were right, becuase communism could have collapsed a coupla decades earlier. Also that might have nipped China's economic expansionism in the bid. As things went, the only result has been the internal disarming of American society leading to the break-up and social rot we see all around us today.

News / US Military: The Army of Poland is crap. [124]

US Gen. Campbell says the Time article criticism of Polish troops in Afghanistan is a load of crap...
mon.gov.pl/pl/artykul/10482

Food / Why carp for Polish Christmas? [157]

Royal carp (karp królewski) with only one line of scales along the back and weighing about 2-2.5 lbs are the best, as they have fewer and larger intermuscular bones and the best-tasting flesh. The worse is the sazan (wild carp) covered all over by large scales.

An Afro-American (who incidentally fancy carp more than white Americans) once told me that after cleaning and rinsing a carp it should be salted and frozen before cooking. That supposedly removes any off-flavour.

Food / Your single best-liked Wigilia dish? [29]

Ever add a bit of diced apple to the herring? It mellows the dish's harsh edge and rounds out its flavour.

Language / The Future of Polish Language [179]

No, but I know German has absorbed loads of English since WW2. Dunno about Dutch and Norse tongues but assume it's much the same. The French and Italians have been more resistant, and I'm wondering where Poles would find themselves in the overall scheme of things.

Language / The Future of Polish Language [179]

Anybody know how Polish shapes up in terms of English loan-words compared to, let's say, German, Swedish, Dutch, French, Italian, etc. In other words what % of the vocabulary is of English origin.

USA, Canada / Expat Poles swearing allegiance to the US - how did you feel? [157]

Sure America makes mistakes -- to err is human -- and there have been abuses of power. But the USA certainly has no monopoly on that one. But name anotehr global power in hte course of human history that has been so humane, altruistic and benevolent, spreading the spriit of freedom and democacy far and wide. With th power it wielded, it could have easily conquered half the globe the way the Brits, Frogs and Russians did... Anyone who cannot see the difference between Pax Americana, and Pax Brittanica is a fool.

Language / Z pięćdziesięciorgiem dwojgiem dzieci? [26]

Well, how about a spelling reform along Czech lines to eliminate those confusing and costly diagraphs: szcz, trz, przy, strz, etc. and perhaps some of the accent letters – ą and ę when not nasally pronounced.

For instance ‘w Šebřešynie hřonšè břmi w třcinie. And Dembkowski and reńka instead of Dębkowski and ręka; similarly only one ‘h’ sound (no more ch) and only u, no more ó.?

News / John Godson, born in Nigeria, might become Poland Sejm's first black deputy! [313]

Merged thread:
First Afro-Pole MP sworn in

Nigerian-born John Godson has been sworn in as the first black memebr of the Polish Sejm.
thenews.pl/national/?id=144888
Reactions, comments?

USA, Canada / Expat Poles swearing allegiance to the US - how did you feel? [157]

American school children swear allegiance to the USA everyday at school: They rise and with hand over heart they say: 'I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America: one nation, under God with liberty and justice for all.'

P.S. As you can well imagine, all the atheist and agnostic nutters have been trying to have the 'under God' removed from the pledge. Funny though, they are not willing to turn in their greenbacks (dollars) even though they have 'In God we trust' conspicuously printed thereon.

Language / Z pięćdziesięciorgiem dwojgiem dzieci? [26]

What would you native speakers say to a streamlining grammatical reform of Polish? If you're for it, what simplifications would you suggest? Numerals seem obvious. I have seen professional TV presenters (educated native Poles) stumble when they got to large numbers. What say ye?

USA, Canada / Expat Poles swearing allegiance to the US - how did you feel? [157]

Doesn't it depend on who one is swearing allegiance to? One could feel like a traitor swearing allegiance to the captive nation known as the PRL, whether serving in its Soviet-controlled armed forces, accepting awards and distinctions from its Soviet flunkeys or even obediently marching in compulsory Mayday parades. But it is an honour to swear allegiance to the land of the free and home of the brave. Just as the sun once never set on the global realm mercilessly explotied by the Brits, so too America is now holding up the banner of freedom all round the globe. It is now unquestionably the USA that is implementing in practice the age-old Polish motto: 'For your freedom and ours'!

Life / Polish-American Polka Music in Poland [60]


Visit some of the Afro-neighbourhoods off Detroit's Woodward Ave, Grand River, Livernois, Van Dyke, Gratiot, etc., and suddenly the villagers from eastern Poland will look like Einsteins. And yet that doesn't stop many copycat Poels from listening to and actually fancying rap.

Life / During winter in Poland, does petrol in the car freezes [60]

A trick I learnt from a Polish mechanic is to add half a litre of denaturat (methyl alcohol) to the petrol tank when topping up at least once during the winter. That reportedly removes any moisture from the fuel.

Travel / Has anyone seen Mazowsze (established in 1948) [9]

Just as Hitler is credited with the VW and Autobahns, so too Poland's commie regime bankrolled Mazowsze and ŚLąsk and created Cepelia which not only gave employment to the poor countryside but helped preserve many ancient crafts that would have been lost otherwise. The Polish school of poster graphics and avant-garde theatre (after the collapse of stalinism, of course) were also possible thanks to generous commie-era subsidies.

Life / Polish-American Polka Music in Poland [60]

The only polka-time tune (aside from the Lato z Radiem Clarinet Polka) that became a hit in Poland a number of years ago was Bobby Vinton's 'Moja droga ja cię kocham'.

I wasn't trying to indoctrinate anyone, but that Dupadomine bloke kept missing the point (probably deliberately) that repetition is the key. Even something with limited mass appeal will catch on at least with a niche audience if played over and over. And that's the only reason Polonian polka music is not listened to in Poland because nobody is repetitively playing it.

Life / Polish-American Polka Music in Poland [60]

Nor is Poland a run-down, rat-infested Afro-American slum where the drug dealer is the coveted role model and most kids don't know who their father was. And yet, Afro-American-rooted rap crap not only has a following but even native copy-catters in Poland. All of which shows what reptition can do.

Life / Polish-American Polka Music in Poland [60]

Repetition is the answer. Even wailing Arab music if played over and over would capture at least a niche audience. Rap is the ultimate proof. Even something so odious and culturally alien as rap can win fans simply through heavy MTV promotion and Polish DJ copycatting. If played with similar repetitiveness, the Polonian polka would also win followers in today's Poland.

USA, Canada / Polish President Says Cleveland is Like Home [30]

Is Slavic Village still a thriving urbanly renwed Pol-Am community? It was an old decrepit Polonian quarters which underwent urban renewal in the late 1970s with Podhale-style facades and Polish street festivals. Is this still the case?

Life / What is the reason for POLISH jokes ? [486]

How many Poles does it take to change the world? - Two: A shipyard electrician from Gdańsk and an archbishop from Kraków!

Language / Z pięćdziesięciorgiem dwojgiem dzieci? [26]

Sorki, Jabłko, but that doesn't sound right.

Language / Z pięćdziesięciorgiem dwojgiem dzieci? [26]

Sorry, typo (ę dropped out), but I was most concerned with the endings.

Genealogy / Ochmann: Curious about my Family History.... [29]

OCHMAN: possibly Polish adpataion of Hofmann (courtier); similar analogy is ochmistrz (steward) from German Hofmeister.

USA, Canada / 'Kiss a Polak' week - Polish speaking tours in the US / NYC [6]

But you've got the whole year to pucker up and rehearse!