History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [221]


oh my - would you risk your life (and that of your family) for even a couple of million bucks - Kukliński had a pretty comfortable postion - higher officer in the center of Polish army staff - you may lack in belief in higher principles or possibility that people can sacrifice for others - just read up - and try to imagine yourself in the guys situation

History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [221]


can't you really see the analogy with mafia? or a company that covers their operations that are highly detrimental to the environment?

if these people who he worked with were deluded and believed in certain things and then felt betrayed it's actually only their problem - they haven't been punished because of his deeds - so what do you want

imagine yourself working in a company that smugles say radioactive waste to landfills - you didn't know that but you learn it step by step - what do you do - cover for those who you work with - not open your mouth because your friends tell you not to cause they don't want their company to get a bad name? - what is loyalty worth if you are loyal to evil???


then simply read up, pal - cause you just seem to know to little about the guy (or your imagination fails you)

History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [221]


what is not clear - do you think the guy sold Soviet tactical and strategic plans to Americans for money? are his not motives clear for you - communist Poland was no America - if found a traitor would be killed - noone of such an intelectual composure would risk his life for his personal gains - some facts may not be clear OK - perhaps we will never know the detail - but if you don't find his motives clear then I completely don't understand you

History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [221]


it's to offend

and no I don't mean to offend you - you offend yourself with your flawed logic

History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [221]


in what way are you loyal to Poland? because I can think of many ways you can be quite unloyal to Poland (btw loyal to Poland means loyal to the government or the Polish people well-being in your dictionary)

History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [221]

this is called relativism in case you didn't know

History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [221]


if you betray mafia you are a traitor - and well you should be killed prefferably by the police - or sentenced to death for your filthy deed by an official tribunal - it's your own logic

btw I think you only have an opinnion on that matter because you're addicted to having opinnions :)

History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [221]

and the guy had plenty of courage to do what he did - I don't know if I would ever be that courageous

History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [221]


you know some people worked with Hitler - if any of them some day defected would you rejoice or send them in front of a firing squad - if you were caught up in some evil practices does it make sense to stay loyal who you are with in these practices (like being in mafia) - capsisci?

maybe you are just a simple guy who will just cover for your friends whatever they do - sure you can call it loyalty and even honour - I call it tribalism and the lack of percepiton of higher morals

History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [221]


in my personal opinion your logic is pretty deficient - I'm sure you would still like to live under communism

Genealogy / Polish looks? [1410]


I agree with southern - your prominent cheek bones would have me thinking you have a great deal of Russian ancestry - Eesti? Latvian?

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]


there was a sizable Polish minority in Latvia in the interbellum period 1920-1939 around the town of Dyne(n)burg /Daugavspils - the people Polonized in the late 18th century and remained there after partitions - some of the Latvian Polonia remained in Latvia after 1945

Life / Poles speaking English - examples [245]


Rostowski born in London in a family of immigrants who stayed in the UK after 1945 - the language he speaks is the language of someone who has grown up and got educated in the environment of the language - his English is much better than Sikorki's if you ask me

Life / Poles speaking English - examples [245]


Sikorski is educated in Oxford, spent time as a war correspondent in Afghanistan for a British magaizne co you can't really compare him to Fotyga - sure it's better if a foreign minister is fluent and outspoken in English, but it's not that they still don't use interpreters in their talks - and in such a diplomatic environment as the EU Poland should use a couple of interpreters at a time (English, German, French or others depening on the countries involved - think of negotiating things with Mrs Merkel and not having not just an English intrepreter but also an interpreter of German at hand)

I think, Mrs Fotyga's English is decent enough

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Gypsies haven't mixed with the nations they used to live among that much (they still don't mix very much) - so unless your grandmother was actually a Gypsy he couldn't bear a Gypsy surname

then East Prussia is not Belarus - what was East Prussia is now in half in Poland and in half the Kaliningrad enclave of Russia

only a handful of nations inhabited East Prussia - Germans, Poles (Mazurzy/Masuren), Lithuanians and Russian religious emigrates (raskolnitsy - starowiercy/ Old Believers) - the surname of your grandmom may sounds Polish or Russian (or Ruthenian) - if it is spelled as it is written

using the German spelling (were 'z' stands for 'ts') - then it's pretty obviously Masurian (dialectal Polish) surname - it means heron - and in standard Polish is written 'Czapla' and pronounced 'Chahplah'

UK, Ireland / Can I buy Papierówki apples in the UK? [11]


there is also another way to have them - it's to buy a papierówka seedling and to plant it somewhere you can (like in your garden) - you have to remember however that this kind of the apple tree can grow pretty big (if you just let it) - it can hardly be compared to those typical commercial orchard apple trees

UK, Ireland / Can I buy Papierówki apples in the UK? [11]

these are the very seasonal apples - they tend to rippen very early - like early middle July - and they do not preserve well (only a couple of weeks) - but man they are tasty (and the fragrance) - there is no way you can have these apples in British shops or on British markets - if you really want to have them you need to organise a private import from Poland and as said earlier only in the season - they are completely seasonal in Poland too - an apple pie with papierówki is simply delicious

Life / The nature of Polish jokes? [125]

Sean, i'll try to write you a joke about Ukrainian workers in Ireland - I only learned it yesterday and I an not a very good translator (my English is in fact fairly limited) but I'll try

Ok,

So a group of Ukrainian workers went to Ireland (must be illegally I don't know ;) )

a guy hired them to paint the exteriors of his countryside household - he bought the paint and stuff and left them to do the job

now the Ukrainian guys can't actually start a job while not having tasted some vodka before so they sell one bucket of the paint and bring in some booze

now after the first shots they got 'enthusiastic' about having more of the stuff - they went on to sell all the paint they had because they couldn't stop drinking and never really began to paint anything (say made a couple of strokes here and there) - they just have left some small bucket of the paint and when they notice that the owner is approaching in his car one of them makes a quick judgement, runs and paints the muzzle of a horse that the owner kept in his stable there with the paint that was left

the owner gets out of his car and asks the Ukrainian guys why they haven't actually started painting - they answer: it's because your horse has drunk all the paint - and they show him the horse - hearing this the Irish guy goes into the house, leaves with a shotgun, goes straight to shoot the horse - the Ukrainian guys are quite petrified with that and ask - Why did you kill the horse straight away? - The Irish guy says - The horse was no use, a couple of months ago I had a team of Polish builders - the horse had gobbled 10 packets of cement on the day they started the job

Life / The nature of Polish jokes? [125]

yes there is one joke that exploits the ambiguity - about two knights meeting with one having bad scars all over his face and body - are these from a sword - no, they are from a 'sheath'

Life / What is Poland's fastest growing ethnic group? [57]


Poland would have even accepted it because Poles wouldn't be timid in showing their new compatriots their place

the thing is it would cost Britain everything - first of all its reputation - btw I don't find muslims to be causing much trouble in England in general save for some fringes

Travel / Pentecostal Church in Wrocław [3]

there are two pentecostal churches in Wrocław that I know of - but I have no idea whether they have any special youth services (I would guess they do not)- this is the contact details of the bigger community in southern Wrocław: antiochia.pl/kontakt.html

Life / Rate Poland (Life Quality / Culture and People / Food): 1-10! [232]


to taste the thousands years of living culture and civilization I guess America lacks

Life / Rate Poland (Life Quality / Culture and People / Food): 1-10! [232]


mainly because the Americans have a couple of such Norways on their doorstep - like Alaska or British Columbia

Life / Rate Poland (Life Quality / Culture and People / Food): 1-10! [232]


because of bloody mosquitos (komary) ;) - only Zakopane and Tatry don't have them :)

Life / Rate Poland (Life Quality / Culture and People / Food): 1-10! [232]


so in a word Poland is mostly for those who seek the peace and quiet

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

eeeh - you make it so lowly while it can be so noble : CLAYMORE

Food / Polish name for cut of beef [29]

what is it that you wanted to say? give some broader context not just the two words in Polish (just in case, ya know)

Life / The nature of Polish jokes? [125]


that's funny - but probably difficult to grasp for someone who did not experience some of the communist POland

Life / The nature of Polish jokes? [125]

yeah, think Starski&Hutch ;)

Life / The nature of Polish jokes? [125]


this one's a good one :)

a Polish joke that makes the use of the Polish word for dick (but is not about dicks at all):

what is the name of the most famous Japanese architect? Nahuya Mitahata

ok

what is the managing director's office called in Japanese: Yama hama

and what is managing director's himself called: Sam ham

To me the most hillarious of the 'Japanese' jokes is this one:

what is the name of a felt tip pen thief in Japanese? Koshi mazaki :) (it's rather Kosi Mazaki in Polish)

- I'm pretty sure that comicality of these joke is beyond grasp for most of foreigners who speak Polish though