The BEST Guide to POLAND
Unanswered  |  Archives [3] 
  
Account: Guest

Posts by convex  

Joined: 25 Nov 2009 / Male ♂ 		Last Post: 28 Nov 2011
Threads: Total: 20 / Live: 2 / Archived: 18
Posts: Total: 3928 / Live: 746 / Archived: 3182 		From: Wroclaw
Speaks Polish?: un poco...wait
Interests: aviation

Displayed posts: 748 / page 4 of 25
sort: Latest first   Oldest first   |
convex   
12 Feb 2011
Life / Why Polish people should be proud of being Polish? [370]

they've failed with Symbian and they just don't seem able to produce high end handsets anymore.

They're just not marketing them properly. The n900 and mameo is probably the best handset going now a days. They just seemed to have lost the ability to market their product properly...sounds like quite a few companies here...
convex   
12 Feb 2011
Life / Why Polish people should be proud of being Polish? [370]

What one thing has post-PRL Poladn produced in the industrial, cultrual , medical, scientific or culinary field comparable in global appeal to Nokia, the taco, Guinness Book of Records, iPad, breakdancing, KFC, kebabs, sushi, etc.?

A little bit of short man complex? Other than a pope, what has Poland produced post RPI that would make your list?
convex   
8 Feb 2011
Genealogy / Jewish Roots of Poland [638]

If you're Polish and hate Jews, I say there is a >50% chance that you have a Jewish ancestor somewhere in your family tree.

shhh, you're going to ruin it for everyone.

Agree with alex, great post.
convex   
6 Feb 2011
Travel / How to go to Frankfurt from Poland? [16]

You have to change if you're not going to fly. With a train, you will change stations probably in Berlin, and then somewhere else. With a bus, it will take you directly to the main train station in Frankfurt, and then you'd need to take a train to the airport (about 5 euro) or a taxi (35ish) .

If you decide on a train, the station you're looking for is "Frankfurt Flughafen". That will put you directly in the airport.
convex   
2 Feb 2011
Genealogy / Just found out I'm Polish! [45]

You're probably going to have to do the leg work yourself until you reach a name. Maybe check local church records?
convex   
31 Jan 2011
Travel / Visiting Poland - A bit worried about social attitudes and racist inclinations.. [80]

I am making the point that no one country or nation has a monopoly on racism, it exists in every society and culture, it might manifest itself more in some cultures than others but it exists everywhere.

And the OP was asking how he might be affected by racism in Poland, like say, having a bottle slung at you from an overpass. No one is saying that racism is confined to Poland, or that it's not a problem anywhere else. OP was asking a reasonable question.
convex   
29 Jan 2011
Travel / Visiting Poland - A bit worried about social attitudes and racist inclinations.. [80]

have you ever considered your surpressed (barely) rage might have something to do with not admitting to yourself just which of the 2 parties( black man/white girl) you are jealous of?

On the otherhand, say what you want but he's consistent, and doesn't use ad hominem in his posts.

Anyway, OP, you'll be fine. Yea, you'll get some stares, just stay smart and realize that you're not going to change attitudes overnight. Getting your ass kicked while trying to prove a point to someone that doesn't care still means you end up with your ass getting kicked.

You're gotten plenty of advice in this thread on what to watch out for. There's a vocal minority that don't like darker folks. Avoid them and hang out with the vast majority of people that don't have a chip on their shoulder.
convex   
29 Jan 2011
Love / How do Polish men feel about gender equality? [780]

Are they from the countryside perchance?

Fighting prejudice with prejudice? How classy...

It's a question of getting things done. If it's a cultural problem, why give yourself the headache of seeking out Polish workers because they're a bit cheaper? If it's not worth the hassle, she can always look somewhere else instead of trying to play sociologist.
convex   
28 Jan 2011
Food / The most typical ingredient used in Polish cuisine [28]

see, have to tease the pickles out...but they're always there :)

The granddaddy of all Polish meals:

1 slice of bread
1 knife load of butter
1 piece of ham

combined in whatever way the hungry person would like to attack it.
convex   
15 Jan 2011
Food / What is your favorite Polish Vodka? [653]

Really? The wine specialty store where I live has tons of it, and it's the only vodka they sell. I looked down upon it and never bought a bottle since it was made in Texas.

Grab a bottle and thank me later. It's drinkable at room temperature :)
convex   
15 Jan 2011
Food / What is your favorite Polish Vodka? [653]

But yes Chopin is my absolute favorite hands down, and goes down very smoothly.

Chopin is smooth, but doesn't have much of a flavor to it. Belvedere is worse, doesn't go down all that smooth and tastes a bit metallic to me. I actually like Pan Tadeusz quite a bit. It's cheap(er), but I'd rather drink that then the pricier stuff.

On a side note, "Tito's", made in Austin, is awesome! I had some when I was in the US, great vodka, and pretty damn cheap. Comes highly recommended if you like the clear stuff.
convex   
4 Jan 2011
News / Polish President Lech Kaczynski and gov officials die in a plane crash in Russia [686]

It will be interesting to read the report. The Yak crew on the ground was in contact with 101 during the arrival and the approach. ATC suggested a diversion and informed the crew of the Il's attempts to land. The controller (and the Yak crew) at the field informed the crew of the conditions.

Also, Pilot error doesn't necessarily mean its the pilot's fault if its induced pilot error.

Sure it does. The pilot error in this case was knowingly descending past minimums (with the AP engaged), as well as ignoring TAWS. The pilot is responsible for the safety of the plane and passengers at all times, this is no exception. For instance, if TCAS starts screaming at you that another aircraft is closing in, you don't need permission to change altitude or heading, you just do it. Same goes for an approach in minimums. The controller will not tell the pilot to break off an approach, it is expected that they will call minimums and go missed.

Also does that CFIT syndrome you talk about have to do with sudden whether/fog changing conditions?

Mostly it's lack of situational awareness due to pilot error. Changing weather conditions shouldn't be an issue on an approach like that. You reach minimums, and you go missed. The fog was already known (as relayed from the Yak crew, and the controller). According to the transcripts, they never made visual contact with the runway, but went below minimums anyway. Trying to dip below and "take a peek" is a fairly common way to die on an approach. It's also a good way to get down through that last illegal 20m and land the aircraft.

If you don't believe the transcripts are authentic, then there's nothing to analyze and it just turns into mass conspiracy with endless vague theories that can't be analyzed due to lack of evidence.
convex   
4 Jan 2011
News / Polish President Lech Kaczynski and gov officials die in a plane crash in Russia [686]

Where are you getting this scuttlebutt information from?

Aviation forums.

What questions are they asking about how the controller conducted himself during the approach?

Phraseology during the approach.

If anything, the Russians should be blamed for not closing the airport.

They were never cleared to land. They were cleared for the approach which should have ended about 100m before it did. The Polish crew, based on the transcripts, knew they were descending below minimums and never reported the runway in sight.
convex   
4 Jan 2011
Law / The right to own guns: would you support such legislation in Poland? [2237]

to at the very least decrease the level of gun violence in the USA, education needs to be improved.

Exactly. It's a bit disingenuous to simply lump all of the US (and gun owners) together. The areas with the highest levels of gun ownership, also happen to have the least gun violence (metro vs non metro areas). It would be idiotic to claim that more guns equals less gun violence, but, that could be taken away from reading those stats. When you delve deeper into the issues, it becomes uncomfortable for most people to continue discussing root causes. Much easier to play on simple arguements.
convex   
3 Jan 2011
Law / The right to own guns: would you support such legislation in Poland? [2237]

Indeed they did in the late 1700's the average American needed a gun. I think the founding fathers may be turning in their graves at the outcome of that little number.

If you read any of the other works by Jefferson, Franklin, Henry, and indeed, just about any of the other wise old white guys with funny hair, they had one thing in mind when they thought about an armed citizenry, to keep the Government fearful of the people. If anything, they'd be turning in their graves at what has been given up. It's important to keep in mind that at the time, there were still things like state's rights, and the majority of governing that affected people's lives was done at a local level as opposed to the current central model. Relationships with the local government were much more personal.

Perhaps you could explain to us how US citizens owning guns could take up those arms against a tyrannical government. In a typical scenario please outline how this would actually work at ground level.

An armed populace makes agents of the government think twice about what they are doing, even if the people giving the orders are completely disconnected. Ownership of firearms is just one check that the citizenry has on the Government, it's one of the more black and white ones, so it's harder to erode. The original model laid out a framework by which citizens were empowered with certain rights, now you can't even manufacture things at home for private use without federal regulations governing how, what, and when to do it.
convex   
3 Jan 2011
News / Polish President Lech Kaczynski and gov officials die in a plane crash in Russia [686]

If the Polish criticisms of the Russian investigation were minor details, why would they be so secretive about their criticisms? By definition, minor criticisms and supporting materials as you say, should be no big deal. Right?

That's usually how it works. It's just protocol to remain quiet and offer the other investigating party a chance to make changes before making it public. There's some scuttlebutt floating around mentioning that the primary issues are with the status of the flight, and with how the controller conducted himself during the approach. Root cause is apparently agreed on...but, we won't know until they make it public...
convex   
3 Jan 2011
News / Polish President Lech Kaczynski and gov officials die in a plane crash in Russia [686]

Its interesting that the Russian report was rejected and that 148 pages of questions were submitted back to the Russian side.

There were questions open for a while about whether the flight was a military of civ flight. I think it's more in the details, haven't heard anything about the root cause of the crash being questioned. I would guess that there is some debate on the contributing factors. Remember that those 148 aren't just questions, but supporting materials. I think if there was a question about the authenticity of the transcripts, we'd already have seen ambassadors recalled and a mobilization of the military.
convex   
3 Jan 2011
News / Polish President Lech Kaczynski and gov officials die in a plane crash in Russia [686]

you would have thought it would have taken a bit longer for the whole aircraft to become a fireball...?

There was one that went up in Birmingham a good while back, killed half the people on the plane without getting off the ground, no crash or anything.

I've looked at Russian aviation forums, and one of the problems has to do with classification of flight as military or civilian.

Yup, that's still in question, and that affects the type of approach. But, if the transcripts are true, the crew knew exactly what kind of approach they were on and flew it into the ground. The root cause would still be controlled flight into terrain due to pilot error. They knew they were below MDH or MDA, depending on the type of approach. The second that they knowingly descended past DH/DA, they were 100% at fault. That's just how it goes.
convex   
1 Jan 2011
News / Polish President Lech Kaczynski and gov officials die in a plane crash in Russia [686]

Enough of this! Would you agree with me?

It'd be nice to find out what happened. MAK released a report, and it's been challenged.

"Poland has recently submitted their comments to the MAK report. The comments (150 pages) allegedly relate to Russian traffic controllers actions (including condition of navigational equipment in Smolensk) as well as the flight status (civil vs. military).

According to the Polish prime minister, the MAK report in the current shape is unacceptable but Poland agrees with many of it's findings. Russians promissed to answer all Polish questions. There is no time limit specified for their reply however."

It still seems to come down to pilot error, but there are quite a few contributing factors that need to be clarified. It's sad that such a tragedy is being used to further politics.
convex   
26 Dec 2010
News / A devestating verdict on the Polish church [279]

Depending on which definition you use, they are indeed. Spending some time in Europe doesn't change your ancestors. They're all Semites.
convex   
25 Dec 2010
News / What should Poland do with the problem of Belarus? [1800]

Amen to that.

Wait - isn't there exit visas for Belarusians? I was under the impression they still had them... maybe I'm getting mixed up with the need for an exit visa for foreigners if their visa has expired. Hmm.

Foreigners need exit visas (don't know if it's still the case, but they were provided at the border back in the day). I don't think that citizens need prearranged exit visas. Will ask.