Polonia / Let's talk about Sweden and other Scandinavian countries [236]

Yellow vests in Sweden:

Independent politician Morten Källström asked why Sweden looks like it does today, with politicians who neither speak of the problems nor do something about them. "It is because we have no democracy. Our country is about as democratic as the former communist states of eastern Europe. We need politicians who dare speak up and state their opinion"

Strong opinion from Swedes who are know for being very [very] moderate. When Swedes are starting to [peacefully] rebel you know that the problem is real.

voiceofeurope.com/2019/01/swedish-female-yellow-vest-speaker-put-feminism-on-hold-for-10-20-years-and-reinstate-the-patriarchy/

History / MAP OF POLAND IN 1880'S [95]

Poznan did exist since X-th century, and XIII-th century with city rights. It was established by Polish Royal Piast dynasty

Genealogy / What does my Polish name mean? [402]

Well, Stolarski is quite a popular Polish surname so it's difficult to trace it to one region of Poland. You can loosely translate Stolarski as Carpenter.

It was also a name of Masovian XIX century nobility. Some male members of this family are still alive and entitled to coat of arms.

Coat of arms of Stolarski family:

News / Poland's News sources [59]


True. Left side calls every political and social movement which they don't fully control a "populists" these days.

News / Poland's News sources [59]

There are a few Polish news outlets aimed at english speaking readers who wants to learn about current affairs in Poland.

thenews
polanddaily

There's also a decent section of news about Poland on emerging Europe and Visegrad Post:

emerging-europe.com
visegradpost.com/en/home/

Genealogy / What does my Polish name mean? [402]


Same as Smolarz which is: Pitch burner

Genealogy / What does my Polish name mean? [402]


Kargul loosely stands for cunning. It's a deeply Polonized surname of a German origin

Genealogy / What does my Polish name mean? [402]


Kargul is a surname which occupies a very special place in Polish culture. He was one of two main characters in a Polish classic cult comedy "Sami Swoi"

imdb.com/title/tt0062228

Law / The right to own guns: would you support such legislation in Poland? [2237]


In Poland it it legal for every adult with Polish citizenship to go to a local shooting range and fire a gun [with a regular ammo] under a supervision of a professional instructor. That also applies to an assault rifles such as Kalashnikov/Beryl not only pistols.

Back in Poland I was a regular member and I believe that every adult, or at least every man, should know to handle a gun [how to unlock it, reload it, clean it, repair it when it gets jammed] and how to shoot straight.

I believe the gun law should be liberalized since criminals own weapons anyway, and they don't care much whether it's legal or not, but regular law abiding citizens are defenseless.

Language / Will Germans be able to understand Polish enough? [77]


So simply put she was pretty. You can use just one word to describe it instead of using full sentence :-)


There're around 2 million Poles in Germany who work there on semi-permanent/temporary basis. All of them speaks Polish. And also lets not forget about Polish minority in Germany.

Lukas Podolski, a German footballer of Polish background who feels more Polish than German.



youtu.be/oomunrDsrXk

Language / Will Germans be able to understand Polish enough? [77]

They'll understand you in parts of Lithuania, in Slovakia and Western Bialorus but not in Germany.

I'm afraid that if you want to be understood in Germany you'll have to learn German and Turkish

Life / Differences between Irish, British, Polish, American and other nations culture, tradition, music - loose talk [241]

Polish early 90's rock with english lyrics. A nice treat

youtu.be/bix1tb6rVeU

History / Occupation of Eastern Poland in 1939 [98]


I would rather say that we are a freedom loving nation, but I get what you mean :-)

"rebels and trouble makers"

I imagine that's how Brits called those nasty Americans during American Revolutionary War at the end of XVIII century

History / Occupation of Eastern Poland in 1939 [98]


If they wanted to have a buffer they would rather support Poland against the German invasion. I would argue that they wanted to remove the 'obstacle' for their future invasion on Europe.

I would agree with Victor Suvorov on this one:

"Suvorov challenges the view that Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime attacked an unsuspecting USSR on June 22, 1941 with a much superior and better prepared force. Instead, Suvorov argues that the Soviet Union was poised to invade Nazi-controlled territories in July 1941.

Suvorov claims that Stalin successfully manipulated Hitler into removing the "buffer zone" (Poland) between Europe and the USSR. Suvorov further argues that Stalin's goal was the export of communism to other countries"

/wiki/Icebreaker_(Suvorov)

The fact that many historians criticize his thesis but not the facts and numbers cited in the book adds to his credibility.

Just because Hitler was a bloodthirsty maniac doesn't make Stalin a peace loving animal. They both wanted to expand their rule over Europe. The difference is that the USSR has "won" and their narrative became the standard version of history tough in schools.

Life / Moving to Poland, Ireland, Belgium or Finland? [15]


And I watched Krecik [Krtek] cartoons as a kid so we're even :-P

Two years ago I've visited Moravia on my way to Venice. I made a detour from highway and found myself driving through some small villages with houses covered in green and nice gardens in front of them. It looked similar to Lesser Poland region.

History / What is Poles opinion on Intermarium (Międzymorze)? [188]

Intermarium [Miedzymorze] and the new project called Three Seas Initiative is the only way for Poland and Central Europe to release itself form grips of German politico-economic project of Mitteleuropa.

For 3SI to truly work it needs to be more than just a political project. All Central European countries should be interconnected with strong economical connections.

So a construction of Via Carpathia highway [which has already started] from Poland to Greece and LNG pipeline from Poland to Croatia are both more important than any political meetings.

My only concern is that I think we shouldn't include Austria in this project cause they may become a trojan horse in the future.

Life / Stereotypes about Polish people being stupid? [281]

It's just a first prototype. Do you remember the humble beginnings of Space X? :-)

Life / Stereotypes about Polish people being stupid? [281]

Poland can into space :-)

youtu.be/yCrlzO02tMs

History / Occupation of Eastern Poland in 1939 [98]


Vlad, let's be clear about one fact right from the beginning: in 1939 Soviet and German actions were coordinated by The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact:

"In addition to stipulations of non-aggression, the treaty included a secret protocol that divided territories of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, and Romania into German and Soviet "spheres of influence","

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molotov%E2%80%93Ribbentrop_Pact

Life / Stereotypes about Polish people being stupid? [281]


I think the most important thing that Polish universities would benefit from would be transforming their structure to resemble that of the best American and British Universities which are always at the top of the rankings:

timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/2018/world-ranking#!/page/0/length/25/sort_by/rank/sort_order/asc/cols/stats

But this takes time and money of course.

Positive thing about Polish Uni's is that they are less "political" than many other European education systems and so called "gender studies" are not as popular in Poland.

Why would someone waste 5 years of their life studying this just to become a barista in the future is beyond my comprehension.

Life / Stereotypes about Polish people being stupid? [281]


That's what I meant, but I also think that qualities like work ethics are acquired in the process of an early education and "socialisation" and are not sucked with mother's milk.

Yet again, in order to effectively learn those new skills higher IQ would be very beneficial.

Life / Stereotypes about Polish people being stupid? [281]


50% is genetics and 50% is influenced by the environment.

What's interesting is that, according to some studies, the "the best predictor of intelligence was the IQ of the mother"

independent.co.uk/news/science/children-intelligence-iq-mother-inherit-inheritance-genetics-genes-a7345596.html

So men should date intelligent women to have more intelligent kids.
But only those really smart ones who understand that family and partnership is more important than feminist sex wars :-)

And those genetically less gifted can compensate with other qualities like: perseverance, high work ethic, pleasant personality.

Life / Stereotypes about Polish people being stupid? [281]


Yes, those tests of yours were highly inaccurate, delpiandomine.
Judging by the quality of your posts and replies on this forum I wouldn't estimate your IQ would be anywhere near that threshold.
I bet you've got other qualities which compensate for that lack in brilliance.
Perhaps you are good looking?

Life / Stereotypes about Polish people being stupid? [281]

Well, if IQ results are not relevant to some of you, let's take a look at a more practical skills which require high intelligence and also a professional knowledge

Poland ranks high in competitive programming:

medium.com/@webgovpl/poland-has-the-world-s-best-programmers-and-here-s-proof-5ee0628b916e

Life / Stereotypes about Polish people being stupid? [281]

brainstats.com/average-iq-by-country.html

Genealogy / The typical Polish look, or all Eastern Europeans [676]


There's nothing wrong with that at all. Yet being an European is, apart from genetic background, also a certain type of mentality and cultural background.

European culture was traditionally based on Greek philosophy, Roman law and Christianity.

Since then many societies in Europe have drifted apart from those roots and in fact become less European

News / Poland's post-election political scene [4080]


No, you are confusing me not taking part in a hysterical cries and grudges against the ruling party with "constantly pushing their politics"

Those boxes that you're trying to squeeze me in are as narrow as you political horizons my friend :-)

News / Poland's post-election political scene [4080]


I'm not promoting PiS but simply accepting them as a lesser evil. We've got two major blocks in our parliament and out of those two, PiS is a lesser evil and an useful proxy. Trust me, my preferences are more radical - especially when it comes to economy and foreign politics - than PiS but they can't be materialized in a current parliament.


So much for the better if the dogs jump to bite their own throats. People like Piotrowicz will be twice as aggressive since they have to prove that they're not one of them anymore. And once you use such a people you can dispose them since they have a mentality of a prostitute and won't be reliable in the future.

Stop being such a simpleton and get familiar with classics like Sun Tzu.


I didn't "left" Poland but simply got a temporary contract in London. When it's completed I'm coming back. It will give me financial freedom and money to invest in Poland.

News / Poland's post-election political scene [4080]


Nope. I despise communists and communism in general. For me PiS is simply a proxy to remove the remnants of the old system. By any means possible. And to do that they need to have a stable majority.

I don't fancy their economic policy since I'm a believer in capitalism myself. No other economic system is as productive. The problem is that in Europe capitalism on a way out and replaced by eurosocialism.

Yet, PiS is useful for removing old commies from Supreme Court and for opposing leftist bureaucrats from the EU and their agenda of cultural marxism.

So, looking at a modern political scene in Poland, PiS is a lesser evil.

Jak sie nie ma co sie lubi, to sie lubi co sie ma :-)

News / Poland's post-election political scene [4080]


Good article. The authors have actually a good grasp of Polish politics which is quite uncommon for foreign commentators