News / Poland supporting potential new EU members - Georgia and Turkey [32]

Turkey especially is today a political force to be reckoned with!

Erdogan wants to reject Ataturk's vision of a modern nation and return to the time of sultans and caliphates.
This Turkey is clearly not ready for the EU, NOT the erstwhile democratic bridge presided over by enlightened, Western-
thinking politicians, for instance Tansu Cillar.

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]

"But generally speaking, the German populace retained their Catholic/Protestant identity."

On the surface so it seems. However, ask an Austrian historian about his or her countrymen's religious affiliations, and they'll probably reply neither "katholisch" (Catholic) nor

"protestantisch" (Protestant), but rather "Nationalkatholizistisch" aka "National Socialist Catholic":-)

Nominally, nearly all Germans were/are Christian, of course, the Jewish population being even back then a decided minority within the German-speaking world.
Plessner's point though is that one of any number of reasons why Hitler was able to sell the Germans (including Austrians) on his exterminationist ideology with such

apparent ease, was that there was little firm Christian underpinning in their society. Therefore, they were quickly sold, most of them, on the notion that the bigger, tougher, stronger, healthier, more mentally agile, were simply better than those less fortunate a la Darwin!

The concept of divine spirit, brotherly love, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount "And the meek shall inherit the earth" and so forth, remained essentially foreign to the historical German character, and hence utterly laughable to the arch-cynical Nazis.

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]

The Nazis, one might with equal veracity argue the Germans as well, were Pagan in their world view, a people belonging to a nation which never quite Christianized, but instead merely paid lip service to convenient Christian imagery or symbolism! Essentially, religion was the means which justified their ends, namely, the conquest of "inferior" races and peoples aka anybody who wasn't deemed a fit AryanLOL

Helmuth Plessner states the former point of view quite cogently in his famous (as yet untranslated) volume "Nationhood Deferred: On the Political Gullibility of the Bourgeoise Intellect".

Work / New Job at Warsaw International School as an English teacher - Advice? What should I expect? [26]

This confirms then what I've long suspected. Maybe this too helps to explain the proverbially low quality of English instruction in Poland.

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]

Hitler certainly did hate Christianity with its ideals of love and forgiveness! He is known to have publically (as well as in MeinKampf) excoriated Christianity as having too much of a "Jewish conscience".

Work / New Job at Warsaw International School as an English teacher - Advice? What should I expect? [26]

If your first language isn't English (in your case I'd assume Polish, yes?), this oughtn't pose much of a problem either, considering the ultra-globalized world we live in.

Some twenty-five or more years back, I might concede that even the hint of not being native to the language being taught could in fact understandably be seen as a barrier, today, I'd have to say no.

Work / New Job at Warsaw International School as an English teacher - Advice? What should I expect? [26]

Adult learners don't really need "teaching technique" in the classroom as compared with children or under-age teens, I'll grant you that much.
However, any number of international institutes of the kind described in the thread will doubtless prefer someone with either a degree in CELTA, TESOL or any similar degree from a certificate-bearing, accredited college which will confer same on those teaching ESL abroad (the operative word here)!

If your husband has no background further in the language of country where he will be teaching, this might pose a problem.
Sure, I realize bribery runs rampant nearly everywhere on the known planet nowadays, many Polish schools DO indeed require at best a minimal standard for their teachers, albeit the pay probably won't be that terrific in contrast with the States, particularly Germany for instance, doing the same job.

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]

Further addendum, just the truth.

The Poles to the Nazis were sub-human ("Untermenschen").
However, the Jews were termed by Hitler himself vermin ("Geziefer").

The former might still be permitted to live under the Third Reich, albeit solely as slaves and servants to the Master RaceLOL
The latter were in fact NOT permitted to live, certainly not within the dragnet of at that time occupied Europe, roughly extending from France to the Reichskommisariat

in the Eastern districts or "Ostlandgebiet". The goal here was total extirpation, even for so-called Mischlinge or "quarter Jews" in the long run.

Perhaps to some an insultingly insignificant distinction. It does though point to a slight degree of wiggle room in the former group which might have allowed Christian Poles to live.

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]

Concerning loving or hating an entire country, I should quote here the late German President Gustav Heinemann when asked by the press whether he loves his country, he responded, "I love my wife"

:-)

Work / New Job at Warsaw International School as an English teacher - Advice? What should I expect? [26]

American English exclusively, although we all realize full well that "that other one" continues to represent the world standard, look at the UN, EU, NATO etc.

America might lead the world in industry, however, Britain still retains her crown of bearer of the English mother tongue to millions:-)

Work / New Job at Warsaw International School as an English teacher - Advice? What should I expect? [26]

Students want to believe their teachers/instructors/professors are role models. They too realize that there's plenty of PR in language teaching and that their pedagogues

don't always say EXACTLY what they mean. I can't quite agree with you there one hundred percent.

The main thing is/was that my charges saw that my native language was English, the language in which I was engaged to teach.

Work / New Job at Warsaw International School as an English teacher - Advice? What should I expect? [26]

Speaking only from my experience in that other large country to Poland's West, I would typically respond in clear, unidiomatic English, neither too slowly (which might have been taken as condescending!) nor too quickly. If my interlocutor for whatever reason failed to understand me, I'd excuse myself to the class, go into the corridor and explain matters sotto voce in German to my colleague. This rarely if ever happened, however.

Everything went just fine. What I told was merely a "white lie", not an out-an-out fib intended to hurt or harm anybody.
:-)

News / How strongly are Poles sure that president Duda defend Poland's interests ? [265]

I agree, only the puppeteer has changed; pre-'89, Poland was a puppet of the former Soviets, today, Duda is correct seen as a puppet of Kaczynski's very home-grown PiS. It's all the same punch-and-judy show! The audience hasn't changed, merely the players aka puppets:-)

Work / New Job at Warsaw International School as an English teacher - Advice? What should I expect? [26]

@maf, who's lying?? Just using a little child psychology on 'em, that's all.

@roz,.....yeah, but if it ain't broke, don't fix it, I always say:-)

Work / New Job at Warsaw International School as an English teacher - Advice? What should I expect? [26]

No, not a liar, rather, as a purposely cautious educator. That's been my experience.
Tempting as it was when I was teaching in Germany to chime in interpreter-like, every bloody time a student of mine was groping for the right word,

I restrained myself as much as humanly possible. Instead, I asked their classmates to see if THEY, rather than I, could help the struggling student.

It actually worked:-)

Work / New Job at Warsaw International School as an English teacher - Advice? What should I expect? [26]

"But the students can't know I speak it."

Definitely relate, pernumba! In certain such institutions, there's an "ENGLISH ONLY!" rule and after two demerits, the instructor can be let go.
I wish you only the very best of luck and I see that you're serious because you bothered to learn the target language:-)

Have a blast!

News / Political life of Poland [135]

My point was crystal clear, Rich, simply not grasped by you in it's entirety!

Immigrants have always been a necessary evil, so to speak, the life blood of a failing corpus which found itself in need of cheap labor and quickly. Let's not mince words here; while the former are human beings, just like any other, they have indeed been turned into political footballs by our capitalist society, to be brought in or chucked out as need would have it.

Once, the newcomer was put at the back of the line until they learned our language intelligibly (nobody ever said "perfectly"), had no prior criminal record, and worked their way up to the standing they desired and contributed respectably to society.

Some countries such as our neighbor to the North administer intelligence tests to new arrivals who wish to settle in their country. Perhaps we here in this country should do the same or are we so stymied by the political correctness of civil rights that we've become socially paralyzed and therefore asphyxiated by our own public relations bull?

News / Political life of Poland [135]

Rich, nobody "wants" refugees. They are simply the cost of doing (monkey-)business in a croniest-capitalist society, that's all. Migrants are merely pawns in the chess game known roughly as "All this is Mine, while none of THIS is Yours". Get with the program.

Our own president is known for never wanting to pay anyone for anything he can (legally, though certainly not morally!!) get for free!

Love / Just started dating Polish guy - what is typical of a man from Poland? Cultural differences. [78]

...and meet somewheres in the middle, is that it?

News / Political life of Poland [135]

How can you "win" a debate on a subject which has no clear answer? Answer me that, if you can.

Love / Just started dating Polish guy - what is typical of a man from Poland? Cultural differences. [78]

Guess then you'll have to avoid most of Italy, particularly the Southern region, as even these days, unmarried sons especially, continue living at home

and their mother will typically still cook their meals, wash/iron their clothes and let them sleep in their boyhood room:-)

I see nothing wrong with that from their perspective. We Americans however, couldn't even begin to imagine such a life. above all, if the man in question can

afford an apartment of his own and is making a decent living.

News / Political life of Poland [135]

Wrong, Rich! She's a strict Catholic and hates the PiS because she finds them retrograde, wanting to turn back the clock in Poland
and revert to a single-ethnicity society. Heck, she didn't even marry a Pole, but instead a Colombian:-)

News / Political life of Poland [135]

@Dirk and Ironside,

I guess it depends on which Polish voters out there you talk to! Me? I tend to trust the opinions of an educated, thirty-something Polish woman from Poznan, who lived most of her life in Poland before marrying and coming to the States. She hates the PiS with a palpable passion, what's more, she seems to have a brain, almost as rare a commodity nowadays as water in the Sahara:-)

News / Political life of Poland [135]

@DirkDiggler & Ironside,

The NYT is only attacked for her "left-wing" bias because you both simply happen not to agree with that bias, nothing more, nothing less! Were that same journal showing right-wing bias (although bias nonetheless), you'd be applauding rather than attacking me, don't bother to deny it!!

Objective journalistic "truth"?? Show it to me, I dare ya:-))

Perhaps in an odd way, it serves the Poles right having the PiS in power! Electorates typically have an oh so short collective memory and have conveniently forgotten that it was the same Kaczynski party which nearly destroyed Poland some twenty-odd years back. How quickly they forget.

News / Political life of Poland [135]

@Ironside,The New York Times roundly condemns Kaczynski for the purge, claiming the PiS simply wants to revert Poland back to an ideological stone age, completely out of touch with modern Europe! If you don't believe yours truly, read it for yourself.....if you're able toLOL

I'm sure it's available in Polish translation. Good luck!:-)

News / Israel opposing potential new Polish law to criminalise term 'Polish death camps' [1539]

Quite, WielkiPolak! No argument with ya there.

News / Israel opposing potential new Polish law to criminalise term 'Polish death camps' [1539]

@WielkiPolak, you're correct! I ought to have written/said "certain Poles..." That is historically more accurate.

News / Israel opposing potential new Polish law to criminalise term 'Polish death camps' [1539]

You're referring to the gulags, essentially Communist tools of keeping their fellow citizens in line. Shameful indeed. Extermination though was not meted
out on ALL prisoners, starvation was something common to all such prison systems of that time, not merely the Soviet ones:-) One could exculpate onself from continued

incarceration, if one curried favor with the higher ups.

News / Israel opposing potential new Polish law to criminalise term 'Polish death camps' [1539]

Come on, people! You know I'm not referring to the Polish Government in Exile, housed in London, but about any number (small number admittedly) of rank-and-file Poles who unfortunately did not show the grass roots support of most Danes, but often displayed great hostility towards local Jewish neighbors.

Bottom line, for all the good, decent Poles who were truly Christian and helped Jews often at great personal risk for them and their family, there were also plenty of others who aided the enemy based on little else other than sheer Jew hatred. What was their excuse, huh?

News / Political life of Poland [135]

@Ironside, if I have no idea what I'm talking about, tell that sentence to the rest of your fellow Poles, who took to the streets in the thousands to protest the PiS!!!

They don't know what they're talking about either??! Even a judge, herself on the Supreme Court (Wyjszy Sad), was interviewed in the NYT as somewhat sympathetic to the protesters. And she has no idea what she's talking about as well?? You got a couple of screws loose, buster:-)

@Dirk,

"SS..." What has the Second World War got to do with it, for pity's sake?