History / Lech Kaczynski - was he a good leader? [88]

you won't find a synthesis like Grzegorz's in any single internet source

History / Lech Kaczynski - was he a good leader? [88]


and you want to be treated with respect, man

not mentioning that you can't really name a single instance of what you insinuate

News / Anti-Szymborska hate content on Polish websites [38]


I don't think this is true - the PO sympathisers are often equally bad-mouthed - just read comments under Ziemkiewicz's articles

News / Anti-Szymborska hate content on Polish websites [38]

I don't say this is not wrong - but you know Szymborska had been quite apologetic of stalinist system and never actually rebuked that time - then she signed letters and wrote poems against screening for former communist secret services collaborators - I see it as a backlash against her

the next thing is that 'the mainstream' is using her to push some agendas even if it is 'in silk gloves' - next thing is pushing down people's throats that she was such a great poetess (you know she got the Nobel) while many people actually don't find any extraordinary greatness in her poetry

Work / Moving to Poland with my wife and kid for a 1-year contract. Salary/taxes questions. [4]

with that salary (10 000 euro/month) you will be paying 38 per cent personal tax - you should ask if the 120 000 euro/yearly is net or gross (which makes a lot of difference)


sorry it was 32 per cent - my bad

History / Lech Kaczynski - was he a good leader? [88]


he may have been locked up all he wanted - it doesn't matter - what matters is what he does now


because he worked for Poland not for Israel or Jewry - and in order to work for Poland he had to find compromise with those who wanted some compromise - and you know you can only go so far in compromise if you say PiS should have begged PO to join them in government

History / Lech Kaczynski - was he a good leader? [88]


sure, he wasn't perfect - but contrary to our current authorities including current president he at least cared for Poland

History / Lwów, Wilno ... kresy - Poland have lost enormoust part of our heritage... [389]


read the article and not just the title Harry - I believe you can read, can't you?

there has been so many lies about the catastrophe before you must be still believing in many of them Harry - like that the crew approached landing 4 times

Back to the topic!

History / Lwów, Wilno ... kresy - Poland have lost enormoust part of our heritage... [389]

in case Harry you really need to update on the Polish political news return to the page 13 - maybe you think you don't - I don't know -

History / Lwów, Wilno ... kresy - Poland have lost enormoust part of our heritage... [389]

m.wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/1,117915,10969778,To_nie_byl_glos_Blasika__Eksperci_ujawnia_zapisy_czarnych.html

it was the second pilot Robert Grzywna to read the altimeter - it has been ruled out that Błasik was recorded in cockpit - if you don't know what Instytut Ekspertyz Sądowych means then you sure have to assume that it was the military who defend their own, don't you

History / Lwów, Wilno ... kresy - Poland have lost enormoust part of our heritage... [389]


There is no evidence that the gene . Błasik was in the cockpit at the time of the crash , but there is no evidence that he was not there - says the military prosecutor's office , which revealed the latest expert black boxes Tu- 154

- This report did not result in any changes to the existing assumptions of the investigation - said Col. Ireneusz Szelag , head of the Military Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw.

Military investigators investigating the crash of the presidential plane on April 10, 2010 . Presented the results of the Cracow Institute of Forensic them . Professor . Jan Sehn . The experts from Krakow studied record the last 38 minutes of the tragic flight of the Polish delegation , culminating in the disaster at Severny airport in Smolensk. The result of their work brings the third version of who and what he said just before the crash.

looks like your not up to date with Polish political news Harry - I think it is a persistent state with you

History / Lwów, Wilno ... kresy - Poland have lost enormoust part of our heritage... [389]


there may be big surprises for you as to what actually happened in Smolensk - one 'established truth' has already been ruled out - that it was general Blasik who read out altimeter - there are also interesting hints by the Jak 40 crew about conversations between the cockpit and the Smoleńsk 'tower' - which may well be recorded on the Jak 40 black box and are currently being examined in Kraków

Love / Living with a Polish man, but he has a drinking problem? [60]


you're right - I haven't thought about it - yes, she knows him better and should use her judgement

Love / Living with a Polish man, but he has a drinking problem? [60]


she's moving soon - he won't be selling HER property so soon - it always takes time to degrade - it doesn't happen overnight - if you change locks the guy will feel like losing control and this is not a good thing (things may get pretty hectic) - it's best he feels in control to the very last moments before she leaves and has no suspicion whatsover that she's gonna leave

I don't say definitely don't change locks - use your judgement - just be warned that it may actually make things harder for yourself

Love / Living with a Polish man, but he has a drinking problem? [60]


it'll end with personal assault or stone throwing or a breaking in if she lives on the ground floor - obvious solutions are sometimes not the best ones

the best advice is to keep you move/transfer secret Anita - if you let him in from time to time but not allow him to stay for the night you may avoid outbursts of violence - you need to use your judgement wisely

Love / Living with a Polish man, but he has a drinking problem? [60]


I told you he already takes you for granted - if he didn't he wouldn't start this binge drinking at all - if there is something that can help an addicted person to abandon their addiction it is love - but it's not the love that someone offers them - no no - only if they love somebody enough will it give them power to overcome the addiction

Love / Living with a Polish man, but he has a drinking problem? [60]


he most probably will be back - and it's very possible that he's gonna turn aggressive - (because he already takes you for granted)

Life / Can most people in Poland speak Russian? [43]


not surprisingly one knows better the language that they use more often - my mum was taught Russian at school a good couple of years - then very late in her adulthood she went to work in Germany as a care giver - she simply had to learn German to be able to work there - and she did - she had to use German extensively - now compare that to the Russian language which she most probably never used in practice and guess what language is she able to communicate in

UK, Ireland / Unemployed Poles in Ireland : a crash course in milking the system [323]

I thought all the Somalis who could have afforded the travel are already in the UK (and the last time I was in England was in 2006)

History / Why are Jews pestering Poland for "proper" WW2 monetary restitution/reparations? [750]


we can get back a great deal of what the RCC 'retrieved' from the state in not so lawful manner (with the help of the representants of the state btw) - and we don't need to make the same mistake again, now with Jews, period

Study / Anyone can recommend me some good Polish language school? [5]

in the past Polish for foreigners was included in the price of the studies for foreign students - I think it hasm't changed - if you wish to have some additional lessons, classes, course you will have to pay for it yourself and the university will not return any money to you (they still provide you with the course even if you don't want to attend or find it too hard) - in the past people who were teaching in those Polish-for-foreigner courses were the best teachers of Polish available anywhere - this might have changed since and those more industrious could have went private with some fresh people replacing them in the uni - so if you are after a good Polish language courses ask around which are run by those who used to teach in the unis

Life / Can most people in Poland speak Russian? [43]


all people older than about 30 now were taught Russian in schools (in my time it was obligatory both in elementary school and in secondary schools (licea and vocational school) - it was obligatory untill 1990 and was still pretty common a couple of years after that time) - my brother who was born in 1979 already had no Russian in liceum.

Russian bears a lot of similarity to Polish. For me it was pretty easy to learn it (the amount I learned: my Russian - especially spoken - is not nearly as good as my English) (Russian language course used to start at the age of 11 typically)

Do those Poles who learned Russian in school have good command of it? Hmm. Not really. I believe most will struggle to understand basic day-to-day Russian. Sure some words will be familiar because of education (some will be familiar because they are similar in Polish and in Russian) - I think it is similar to the case of French taught to the British kids - most can't understand nor speak any reasonable French a couple of years out of school. However there are plenty (those with better learning abilities/skills and memory and those attracted to the Russian language and culture in some way or another) of Poles who will understand and even speak a lot of Russian.

Polish people since 1990 were hardly exposed to Russian language and culture (like very few Russian films on Polish TV). This influenced equally the proficiency of those who learned it and familiarity in the younger generations. Younger generations can not understand even basic Russian because they were never taught the basic phonetic phenomena of the language in comparison to the Polish language. They will be able to get only the words that sound the same or very similar to their Polish counterparts and that's just a fraction of Russian vocabulary.

Life / How to find out if someone has been in prison in Poland? [3]

Krajowy Rejestr Karny (National Penal Register) is the institution you need to turn to. You can download the form for inquiry about a person here: bip.ms.gov.pl/Data/Files/_public/bip/krk/formularz_krk_osoba.pdf

- you need to fill it in Polish and return it to a Biuro Informacyjne or Punkt Infromacyjny of KRK that affiliated with certain courts in Poland. You have to pay a fee of 50 PLN and I am not sure if they will send the query results abroad.

actually a new law implementation will take effect starting from May and you will be able to place internet inquiries to KRK - so why not wait for a while if you are based abroad - if you are based in Poland you just need to find your nearest Punkt Informacyjny Krajowego Rejestru Karnego.

however a convicted person can apply for erasing of their penal record after some time of the end of their punishment - in minor sentences (below three years of prison) the erasure can take place as soon as 5 years after the end of punishment (if the convicted applies for it) - the condition is not coming in conflict with the law in those 5 years

News / Wisława Szymborska died. [30]

I am a great fan of dramatic or dynamic effect in poetry - plain language will hardly ever create such an effect, neither lack of rythm or rhyme will help in that - if you read poetry like the poem you mention, mafketis, you'll get tired after a page or two - now compare that to say 'Pan Tadeusz' by Mickiewicz

Work / Warsaw or Krakow - what is the better place to work in? [19]

Gdynia is one of the nicest cities I have ever been to - it has a special vibe too but very different from Kraków - and it is located in beautiful surroundings

News / Wisława Szymborska died. [30]

mhmmm mhmm - and this is profound? - you will find Kora Jackowska lyrics for Maanam much more of poetry than this ('Czekam na wiatr co rozgoni, ciemne skłębione zasłony, Stanę wtedy na raz ze słońcem twarzą w twarz')

News / Wisława Szymborska died. [30]


I don't get it, how do you get poetry? :) - do you suggest I am not getting the point of it?

the 'cat bit' has nothing profound in it for me - it's a just a plain simplistic unconstructive thought written in plain words

News / Wisława Szymborska died. [30]

I have no idea - as I said I don't really know her poetry - but look at this 'cat bit' for example - is it poetry? - what's so extraordinary about it? and the tone of it? - not very uplifting, huh?

News / Wisława Szymborska died. [30]


I don't really know Szymborska's poetry - bits like JohnnyM posted are hardly poetry for me - no rhyme no rythm simplistic language not much of any depth - I know she also wrote in rhyme and this bits are much better (like the one ReservoirDog posted)

Language / Intermediate / Advanced Learners of Polish. How do you improve your language? [14]

linguatrek.com - it's a Polish language related blog by an American who learned quite a great deal of Polish while in Poland - in a couple of entries he explains his method(s) - which includes books simultanously in Polish and English accompanied by an audiobook