History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

Milo, kindly don't lump all Jews into one basket! As with Poles,
Germans, generalizations are convenient pegs upon which to hang
one's own experience(s), but they're not always accurate.

Rather like judging a country solely or even mostly by her politics, isn't it?
I mean, most English are basically honest by nature.

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

Not in fact a "Jewish idea", but instead, an idea or concept
originated coincidentally by a Jew in the figure of Karl Marx, an atheist, incidentally,
who had as little use for the practice of Judaism per se as he had
for all organized religion.

Head-in-the-clouds academics rarely if ever think through
their pie-in-the-sky notions which are as far from reality as one can
get! Marx was no exception, nor was Gramsci, Fanon, any of the
Utopian idealists of the last century or two.

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

Communism was and is a mere construct, posited by a German Jewish intellectual, a philosopher
to be more exact, who studied in London, was an economist by trade, and had the time to sit around thinking up abstract concept rather than "working for a living".

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

With the latter comment, Kaszub1410, I couldn't concur more!
Yet boasting about individual achievement alone is scarcely a Polish trait:-)
German arrogance outpaces Polish boasting any day of the week.

History / How Poland views Europe [44]

Humans ARE animals, Milo!
We're simply a "higher" species of duoped, that's all.
Looking at the behavior of many of our fellow beings however, I'm not always so sure.

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

By "Polish values" you mean Catholic values, I take it.
As Communism was in essence anti-religion, this handily explains the deep revulsion to Communism by committed, or at least pious, Christians.

Law / Noisy children outside [40]

@Milo,
I was merely responding to what others already posted.

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

In terms of raw numbers, I'll have to concede.
You experienced this as living history, at least your grandparents did, and so, you'd know better than I.

Although Wajda did remain in Poland, he certainly
was critical of Gomulka, at least according to the history books I've consulted.

Admittedly, historical "truth" doesn't always coincide with the "facts" LOL

Law / Noisy children outside [40]

Never have been, Joker ol' man, never will be.
I keep my own counsel and pledge of allegiance to my conscience alone!!

Law / Noisy children outside [40]

As far as sexuality is concerned, that's really the parents' job, not the school's.

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

As I recall however, Wajda, the writer Slawomir Mrozek along with a group of others, gentiles all of them, had their differences with the Polish government too.

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

Surely then not a complete coincidence that the exodus of Jews from Poland during the latter part of the Gomulka Era (Mieczyslaw Moczar also active at the time as an anti-foreign rabble rouser!) coincided with the so-called "brain drain" from Poland to the US.

'Course, not all those expelled were necessarily of Jewish background exclusively.

History / How Poland views Europe [44]

First, you have to read, even re-read, my post in order to understand the sense of what I wrote:-)

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

Aha, pawku!
At last an admission of indifference.
I agree with you on that score.

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

The issue is that while Poles were clearly the victims of Nazi Germany's aggression, a number of individual Poles were admittedly complicit in anti-Semitic sentiment before, during, and following the War.

Both Jedwabne and Kielce both took place on Polish soil.
In my opinion, at least a few remarks would have been in order.

History / How Poland views Europe [44]

Oh, quit grandstanding merely for effect, Bobko!
Yes, that's precisely what I'm saying. Since when does the human animal make sense anyway?

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

The fact that many on the outside, gentiles alike, I'm afraid, view Poles as basically anti-Semitic, misses the point entirely!

Anti-Semitism took root in nearly every European country, with the possible exception(s) of Greece and Albania. If we examine the reasons for this phenomenon, we find it all had to do with numbers rather than sheer ethnicity.

As there were far more Jews in Poland, for example, than in either Greece, Albania, Denmark, as random instances, it stands to reason that in the former, Jews were seen as a threat, whereas in the latter, Jews were looked upon as a kind of oddity or exotic beings, nothing more.

As Germany especially pre-WW I probably counted nearly a half-million Jewish inhabitants compared with either France, Italy, Britain or Spain, many felt thay Jews might easily take over the country.

This excuse was in fact what was given by NS big shots at Nueremberg, when questioned by counsel regarding why the severity of restrictions and

Draconian measures against the Jews.

"It was about Germany's survival as a nation.....!" was often the most common justification given for their support of Hitler.

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

How odd therefore that over the past twenty years or so, when the Poles are present at the Holocaust Commemoration ceremonies under the auspices of the UN, they say nothing, leaving the commentary to the British, the Germans, and the Israelis.

Perhaps others here might find it equally strange.

History / How Poland views Europe [44]

Inferiority/Superiority complex, you mean?

Genealogy / SKI...SKY...ZKI...Polish surname endings [38]

A colleague of mine has the family name "Koszarski". Might it mean "basket maker" or the like? Think I might have alreadt posted this question on PF.

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

Indeed, Milo.
Few among us would risk our lives for either our freedom or that of our fellow beings. The will to survive remains the strongest of all human instincts, including that of sacrificing ourselves for the sake of others.

Of course, I've always maintained that heroes are made by the moment rather than born. The younger we are, the more likely (forget consciously willing) to take impetuous risks. Were my wife or family were trapped inside a burning building, I'd surely like to think that I'd try to go in to save them.

Remember from "Miracle on 34th Street; faith goes where common sense tells us not to, or how about in the '53 film "Titanic":

Boiler room engineer to chaplain as the ship is sinking: For God's sake Father, don't go in there!

Chaplain: For God's sake, I must.

History / Can anyone from Poland tell me about Auschwitz and The Ghetto? [582]

Fear often, indeed mostly, governs human behavior! Sadly, the exception outpaces the rule.

Off-Topic / Curious Books of PF [50]

Thank you for sharing those photos!

Language / Game - guess Polish idioms/sayings in direct English translation [1756]

Rather like pantomime, isn't it?

Language / Game - guess Polish idioms/sayings in direct English translation [1756]

Mowic to srebro, milczyc to zloto = Silence is golden
For whatever reason, the first part is omitted in English.

Language / Is Polish easy to learn? [10]

Naturally.

Real Estate / Property Sale Tax [3]

Where overseas exactly, stokrotka? Rules may vary, especially on tax related issues.

Travel / Hiking and Camping Trails in Poland [51]

I trust you are correct.

Travel / Hiking and Camping Trails in Poland [51]

Good to know. However, I need to be convinced! Tourists are usually targets.

Travel / Hiking and Camping Trails in Poland [51]

I might. However, I've heard that foreigners can get royally screwed if the campsite is not in good order, no matter how well they might know the language!

Pity I'm not fluent in the universal language of BRIBERY:-)