Life / Poles turn their backs on organised religion. [148]


Kind of weak operational security on Satan's part, if even Johnny Reb is clued in.

I thought the whole point of Satan is that he is very clever and sneaky.

A YouTube manual on how to deal with him seems suspicious.

My favorite mention of Satan is in the opening of the Book of Job, where he is presented as a completely normal guy, until an unhinged God decides he wants to gamble. This gambling addicted God throws poor Job under the train:

6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them.

7 And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

8 And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job.

Hahaha. Poor Job.

Life / Poles turn their backs on organised religion. [148]

I wonder if there can be a Christian religious revival even in the year 3024?

When we are colonizing other planets, live for hundreds of years, never get sick, and understand how every single little thing works from the subatomic level to the universal - will there still be people who get energized by the idea that a man living three thousand years ago on Earth had died for their sins?

The last two thousand years seem to suggest that no amount of progress in knowledge can destroy superstition.

Life / Poles turn their backs on organised religion. [148]


You are absolutely correct in that it ebbs and flows. However, you are wrong when you say it matters for little. It's hugely consequential.

In America, you had the Great Awakenings. The Second Awakening, lasting for several decades in the early 1800s, birthed a bunch of new religions: Adventism, Dispensationalism, and the Latter Day Saints among others. There was also a Third Awakening, and then some smaller level spikes.

In the Middle East it is the same - where in the early 20th century you had powerful secularist movements driven by Pan-Arabists and modernizers - but then later a great religious awakening again, driven by the early Muslim Brotherhood.

In Russia, you had an explosion of religiosity starting in the late 1990s. Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, all types of Baptists, and others were making hay in Russia. Thousands of Orthodox churches were restored.

The American Great Awakening was a reaction to the rationalism and deism that dominated the American Enlightenment through the Revolutionary period.

The Arab religious awakening was a reaction to the corruption and incompetence of the nationalists and modernizers, which failed to produce the promised results.

The Russian awakening was the filling of a spiritual vacuum in a collapsing state.

Religion has an annoying tendency to come back, just when you thought it was dead.

Life / Poles turn their backs on organised religion. [148]


Strange how the loudest judge always seems to forget the mirror.

Off-Topic / Stock Market Talk and Trading - part 2 [387]

Here's an investment tip for you Ukraine lovers - buy Ukrainian war bonds.

Specifically, buy Ukrainian GDP warrants. Explainer can be found here:

reuters.com/world/europe/how-do-ukraines-gdp-linked-warrants-work-why-do-they-matter-2024-09-11/

But in a nutshell, these benefit Ukraine to the extent that they don't demand much servicing while Ukraine is down on its knees. However, if Ukraine grows back beyond the level at which it was when they were issued, then you get a share of all Ukrainian economic growth above that threshold.

If you are optimistic about Ukraine, this is the best opportunity to put your money where your mouth is.

If Ukraine wins the war, joins the EU, and has oceans of money invested into its reconstruction - you could earn more on this, than any other play in the market.

Life / Is it worth returning to Poland in old age? [167]


... and so, another Pole is forever lost to Poland.

UK, Ireland / English/British rudeness - what do Polish people think about it? [168]


Racist!


Can't speak for the others, but the Russian cases definitely have a bunch of people arrested at Pride Parades. A lot of Chechens too.

UK, Ireland / English/British rudeness - what do Polish people think about it? [168]


Speaking of the ECHR, guess what country is in the top 3? That is, top 3 in terms of how many times their citizens complained to the European Court of Human Rights?

Ukraine!

Number 1 is Turkey (not sure what they are even doing in this organization), and number 2 is of course my beloved Russia.

Poland is number 7. The UK doesn't even appear on the list.

Considering that Poland has a population 4X smaller than Russia's, then on a per capita basis it seems Poles human rights are violated only slightly less often than those of Russians ;)

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UK, Ireland / English/British rudeness - what do Polish people think about it? [168]


The world does not revolve around Poland, you baboon.

Can you explain why you are looking for these signs, again? Is that not "sowing ferment"?

UK, Ireland / English/British rudeness - what do Polish people think about it? [168]


If anything I defended Britain here, saying you will find no overt evidence of anti-Polish discrimination by businesses.


Google and ChatGPT are your friends!

However, because I love and respect you so very much, here it is:

1.Equality Act 2010: This law prohibits discrimination on the basis of several "protected characteristics," including race and nationality. The part of the sign targeting "Poles" would amount to racial and national origin discrimination, which is illegal in providing services, including in public spaces. Discrimination against people based on their nationality or ethnicity is considered unlawful in the UK.

2.The Race Relations Act 1976 (now largely absorbed into the Equality Act): It previously governed racial discrimination and would have similarly made this practice illegal.

3.European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) (incorporated into UK law by the Human Rights Act 1998): The anti-Polish sign would violate principles of the ECHR, particularly Article 14, which prohibits discrimination on grounds such as race, ethnicity, or nationality.

So... at least since 1976 you can't have a sign that says "NO POLES".


Are you purposefully being thick? That's like 25% of this forum.

UK, Ireland / English/British rudeness - what do Polish people think about it? [168]


Why?

First, it's illegal. It violates the European Convention on Human Rights, and probably many UK laws.

Times have changed.

In the time period when you could see "No Irish" signs, it was not illegal.

I think even in Myanmar, today, you can't put up a sign saying "No Poles".

So, you won't find what you are searching for. Also, again, why are you searching for this? Is this forum not enough, where you can find probably 1,000 pages of Brits complaining about Poles in their country?

Who needs signs when there is a whole ocean of hatred on the internet?

Language / Cultural disparities shown through Polish and English languages [195]


Ironside has a Hemingwayan ability to deliver even the most complex messages in easily accessible form.


Who needs Russians, when Poles have so much love for each other already?

Off-Topic / Best posters [886]

A self portrait:

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Off-Topic / Best posters [886]

@GefreiterKania

1) CMS Neuf fighting aboriginals from horseback is very good.

2) Ironside drinking "Roman Dmowski Vodka"... very nice

3) Konstantin in a pink suit on Red Square is very good too

Off-Topic / Best posters [886]


Hehehe

Off-Topic / Best posters [886]


BB in his helmet, while debating Ironside. Getting ready to run.

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Off-Topic / Best posters [886]


You are a very smart ant.

Off-Topic / 75 Years of Israel and the War - part 3 [432]


I was 100% sure you were a lawyer too.

What are you then?

Off-Topic / Best posters [886]


Being right 25% of the time is actually not bad at all.

If we talk about economics or meteorology - then 25% is already decent.

If we talk about venture capital investing, then being right 25% of the time would make you one of the richest people in the world - in short order.

If we are discussing drug discovery, then a 25% hit chance would be a miracle for any pharmaceutical company.

What's most important, is that the upside from my 25% of truths, must be higher than the downside from believing in my 75% of falsehoods.

Off-Topic / Things We Love [297]


Come on, Lenka...

Are you 100% every day?

Do you always feel you know and understand what is happening around you?

Do you feel that those that love you, and are around you, are the ones that truly KNOW YOU?

Do you not feel sometimes that there is something more, that God in his awful wisdom has prepared for you?

Maybe... there are no answers to these questions.

But if you want to get lost - speed is the answer. If I meet you one day, I will take you to a track day.

Off-Topic / Things We Love [297]


The "death factor" is what makes you feel so alive.

It's the same when I do cave or wreck dives.

Being in that environment, means controlling your emotions completely. It means that every action is deliberate, and everything is informed by concerns of safety for your companions.

Short of going to Ukraine, and experiencing the trenches, this is the closest one can come close to the feeling of being alive that the soldiers get.

Many of those crazy motherf*ckers don't want the war to end, because it will mean the end of their "pleasure".

Off-Topic / Things We Love [297]


When you go fast, everything else recedes into the background.

Being a hairline away from death makes you feel more alive, than sitting down for dinner with the girl of your dreams.

Off-Topic / Things We Love [297]


I love speed, dunno why.

If skiing, I go straight down the hill like a rolling stone.

If riding a bike, and going downhill - no breaks.

Horses - only gallop.

Cars - try to beat the Google Maps estimate by at least 30%.

Going fast is something that must sit in a boy's genes since he's born.

Off-Topic / Things We Love [297]


One thing I love, ever since I was a child, is speed.

They say that Russians and Poles love to ride fast. Maybe this is true.

Many Poles in rally and formula.

Off-Topic / Things We Love [297]


How poetic.

What do you think about it during these reflections?

News / Polish vodka as a mean of protest [49]

@Ron2

Yeah no argument from me on that front. My point was simple - alcohol contains a tremendous amount of energy.

If you drink 300 grams in one day, you can basically not eat at that point. You already received your daily caloric need.

News / Polish vodka as a mean of protest [49]


Yeah, with one very small problem...

Ethanol is incredibly energy dense.

One gram of ethanol has a caloric value of 7 calories. Sugar contains only 4 calories per gram.

You can literally run an internal combustion engine on ethanol, that's how "energetic" it is. It contains only slightly less calories than gasoline.

Also, despite not being a sugar, ethanol is prioritized by the liver over glucose during metabolism. This could raise your blood sugar level as well.

Sorry - I drink a lot myself - but wanted to chime in with this little bit of science.

Off-Topic / 75 Years of Israel and the War - part 3 [432]


They still have an entire Russian oblast waiting for them. It's larger than Israel in size, and it has as neighbors only China and Korea - ZERO ARABS.

We didn't change the name, or the flag, or anything. It's all there, waiting for them!

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_Autonomous_Oblast

The flag does look a little strange, by modern standards, but they can change that if they want.

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Love / How to make a Polish guy happy? (we're moving to Mexico) [51]


I know, I'm just a stupid troll.


It certainly "aids" in being committed, when you realize that it's not just a stamp in your passport - but a potential claim to half your property and savings.

People will try harder to save something, when there are strings attached. Also, everybody wavers now and again - and for some people it's helpful that they gave a vow.

Kind of like a doctor or a solider in a moment of crisis, may be guided by their oath. When there's too much going on, and too many factors to consider - the remembrance of a vow may act as some rudimentary compass.

Life / Beavers and the Polish Question [7]


It certainly seems so, but this time he chose the wrong target!

That being said, it was a little annoying to read this from the Pablo Escobar of beavers:

"We Germans have a better way of protecting the country's levees..."

He just simply could not avoid putting things in such terms, could he? Why can't the focus of the conversation remain simply on beavers, without introducing subtle digs at Poland's backwardness?

If you have good advice on what to do with beavers - say it - but don't tell me how everything in Germany is done much better. Am I wrong?