The BEST Guide to POLAND
Unanswered  |  Archives 
 
 
User: Guest

Posts by Palivec  

Joined: 22 Apr 2011 / Male ♂ 		Last Post: 18 Sep 2014
Threads: -
Posts: 379

Displayed posts: 379 / page 7 of 13
sort: Latest first   Oldest first
Palivec   
17 Aug 2011
History / Chance of Lwów once again became coming part of Poland [344]

Military conflict is just one solution and, judging by how our boy scouts dealt with professional Ukrainian soldiers back in 1918, I reckon it would be a piece of cake :)
Better method would be to pull off "Albanians & Kosovo" - just settle in Lwów in large numbers and after a few years - declare independence :)

Most Poles prefer Germany, GB or Scandinavia. Strange, isn't it?
Palivec   
9 Aug 2011
UK, Ireland / Why Poles will never belong in England [283]

Borders went back and forth for centuries. There are Poles of Saxon decent and Saxons of Polish decent.

Saxony never shared a border with Poland until 1945, and your map shows the personal union of Saxony and Poland. You may google what "personal union" means.
Palivec   
8 Aug 2011
History / Chance of Lwów once again became coming part of Poland [344]

Who says that I want to intervene? It simply is a basic principle of our Western culture to respect other cultures, it's a central aspect of humanism and the enlightenment. It doesn't matter that the Nazis invaded Poland, they also destroyed many aspects of the German culture. Most forces which destroyed cultural achievements were ideological lunatics... Nazis, Communists, radical Christians, Taliban.
Palivec   
8 Aug 2011
History / Chance of Lwów once again became coming part of Poland [344]

I'm not German, I just lived there. Germany is a multicultural country, you know...
And of course the Bamiyan buddhas are a big loss. Not for me, but for mankind. Such historic monuments tell us who we are and where we came from. And they are great artistic achievements. Destroying them is a attestation of a lack of culture, tolerance and respect. Otherwise the destruction of the Polish culture by the Nazis would be OK too.
Palivec   
6 Aug 2011
History / Chance of Lwów once again became coming part of Poland [344]

would there be a problem if they didn't maintain it?
it is theirs so let them suit themselves in their city

Hmm, destroying cultural monuments from the baroque or Renaissance era somehow sounds.... barbaric to me, sorry. Leveling the £yczakowski cemetery or destroying the Potocki palace could maybe also anger some Poles and hurt relations between both countries, I don't now.
Palivec   
5 Aug 2011
History / 1772 – Russia, Prussia and Habsburg Austria began the First Partition of Poland [9]

It would be very interesting to read your opinion on the question in what way that regional balance of power among those three partitioning powers that Wikipedia mentions had been distorted before 1772?

The personal union of Saxony and Poland weakened Prussias position in the region, which also competed with Austria for the hegemony in Germany. Prussia feared that Saxony would unite both Saxony and Poland with a takeover of Silesia. Prussia invaded Silesia and in several wars became the fifth great European power (England, France, Austria and Russia were the others). With the rise of Prussia a new reconciliation of interests with the former enemies Austria and Russia was needed, since these great powers had overlapping interests.
Palivec   
26 Jul 2011
News / POLAND HAS LOST 1 MILLION PEOPLE (for other EU countries) [30]

Yes,becauze Germans put as prerequisite for employment knowledge of german language which is hard to qchieve

Many Poles speak a pretty good German, moreover German isn't so important in better jobs. No, the real reason is that the wages in Germany aren't high enough. They stagnated for more than 10 years now, and there isn't even a wage floor. Unskilled Poles can either work for 5€/h in Germany or 8-10€/h in France/Holland or Austria.
Palivec   
26 Jul 2011
History / Fascinating account by von Moltke-Prussian chief of Staff: Poland: A historical Sketch. [30]

Interesting read. Straightforward and easy to read (unusual for something written ~1830), as you would expect from a Prussian officer. Also from a interesting time, shortly after the Prussian reforms and before the age of nationalism.

The most interesting part IMHO is the description of the Polish society as a society without a middle class, only with a large nobility and even more peasants. While in Western Europe the middle class was responsible for the social progress, the szlachta was to proud for it and imported western ideas and achievements, while the Polish lower class didn't have the means for it.
Palivec   
25 Jul 2011
Travel / Traveling around Poland - our photo stories with very personal commentary [225]

Thanks but that is contrary to the map in the Etnographic Museum if you mean Wielkopolska.

I can give you exact numbers if you are interested, but it's true that only a minority came from historical Eastern Poland.
The majority moreover came from rural areas, which also affected the city.
Palivec   
25 Jul 2011
History / Why is the Battle of Grunwald celebrated more than the Battle of Lubiszewo? [29]

so indeed Poland saved everything east of its border from the medieval version of the Nazis.

LOL! Really.
The knights of the TO were crusaders who acted on behalf of the pope and HRE against heathens. Poles were no heathens, but Lithuanians were, that's why they fought against them. The TO just turned against Poland when Lithuania and Poland were united and the TO faced a far more powerful enemy in a good strategic position which wanted to retake former Polish land, which the TO occupied after the knights helped Poland, but Poland didn't pay the bills.

The story is a bit more complicated than "evil proto-Nazis want to destroy peaceful Poland".
Palivec   
25 Jul 2011
Travel / Traveling around Poland - our photo stories with very personal commentary [225]

All? Are you sure? BTW, which territories exactly do you mean?

I only know Southern Poland, but there it's certainly true. And Wrocław looks neat and tidy compared to the countryside!

I had mixed feelings about different pieces of art scattered around which certainly introduce some variety into urban landscape but also seem a bit out of space, out of time. Or too modern for me?

The city has almost no memorials, and the ones that exist are usually not related to this place. I suppose these pieces of art are made to hide this emptiness.

Small market square stalls were full of sunflowers. Why?

Because they are beautiful? ;)
Palivec   
24 Jul 2011
Food / What's your favorite Polish coffee? [73]

Well, some people buy only expensive whole beans and despise everything else, and some people drink American coffee and think Starbucks makes the best coffee in the world. If you are neither of those Jakobs Kroenung isn't a bad choice. I usually buy Dallmayr or Illy, but I'm not sure if you can get them in Poland.
Palivec   
23 Jul 2011
Travel / Traveling around Poland - our photo stories with very personal commentary [225]

The public sphere is "polluted" by graffity, but even more by adverts, all over Poland. To me it looks horrible to see all these ugly, cheap adverts everywhere. But it looks like the authorities can't issue and enforce proper regulations, or they don't want, I don't know.

And you can expand your observation about the foreigners of Wrocław to all "recovered territories". Poor Eastern Poland looks far neater than much richer Silesia for example, which is tragic, since the western territories are culturally far more precious.
Palivec   
23 Jul 2011
Life / Polish and Czechs [190]

I don't think that applies to Poles though.

But I can't remember seeing many Czechs in Poland, to be honest.
And the contacts in Commie times were totally different. Sure, there was some border traffic, mainly by tourists, but now the EU forces real cooperation, which was totally unknown back then. Local councils now have to work together and even hold joint meetings, schools switch pupils and teachers, kindergarden children meet, associations share work and so on. This is new.
Palivec   
23 Jul 2011
Life / Polish and Czechs [190]

Czechs don't have any sizeable minority anymore, the poll is about people they don't know anyway. I mean... Jews? Really? The only Jews in Czechia are Americans in Prague.

And actual contacts between Czechs and Poles are pretty sparse, despite all this pan-Slavic bullshit. It gets better, but these contacts don't develop because of Slavic ties but because both countries are part of the EU and all cross-border initiatives get heavily subsidised.
Palivec   
21 Jul 2011
Travel / Traveling around Poland - our photo stories with very personal commentary [225]

Taking into consideration, that most of these funds were generated by the Germans, there is not too much to thank, as previously they totally destroyed our country and deported en masse during the war, Polish citizens to work as slavery workers in Germany ,I consider it as form of compensation , it is better late than never.:):):) .

What is the property of 9 million Silesian, Pomeranian and East Prussian Germans for you?
Palivec   
21 Jul 2011
History / Polish historical myths - to break or not to break them? [257]

Hmm, strange story about the Winged Hussars. I tend to doubt Pawians story. BUT: when you look at the Wiki entry
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_hussars

you notice that no claim there is supported by sources... which is pretty strange. And no contemporary painting you see on Wiki shows Winged Hussars in a battle. Really strange.
Palivec   
21 Jul 2011
Travel / Traveling around Poland - our photo stories with very personal commentary [225]

The first house looks like late 18th/early 19th century = Prussian classicism. The second one wasn't such a big loss if you ask me.

BTW.: the biggest loss of the 70s was the Prussian wing of the castle, which survived the war in relatively good condition.

And the more you read about the time after '45 the more you realize that the city had quite a bit to endure then too. Many people for instance think the churches were always that empty, but, if the church wasn't compeletey destroyed anyway, the Commies deliberately stripped them from all decorations to make them appear medieval, i.e. "Polish".

Did you know, for instance, that the chor of the cathedral looked like this:

All baroque decorations, from the choir screen for example, are gone today.
Palivec   
20 Jul 2011
Travel / Traveling around Poland - our photo stories with very personal commentary [225]

I had thought that at least the Old Town had been reconstructed in the pre-war shape. Imagine my disgust when, standing in the Main Square, I could see those banal socialist blocks of flats next to it. Oh, my God.

No, contrary to popular belief there was propably more destruction than reconstruction. There is no doubt that the Commies invested huge sums to reconstruct *parts* of the old town, but this was mainly Ostrów Tumski and the market square. But even there you can't see the pre-war shape. Ostrów Tumski and the churches were Polonized, the market square was de-Prussified. The eastern part of the old town was leveled to win bricks for Warsaw. Other parts were removed to built the ring road which cuts through the old town.
Palivec   
19 Jul 2011
Feedback / Why are there so many on here, who do not like Poland [150]

For the same reason for which other racist, hateful, stereotype spreading cartoons
existed throughout history. They are also made by the same type of people.

Hardly. Polandball was created by some apolitical kiddies that were annoyed by the same reason many people annoyed by Poles: Poles try to teach the world about Poland in a almost messianic way, they paint the country in the most glorious colors while blaming everyone else for their failings. And they can't handle critique and are easily offended. That's why Polandball became so successful, unlike all other *balls.

You're quite fond of Polandball cartoons, Palivec, aren't you?

Yes, and I can even enjoy the ones about my own countries, since most of them are true. :D
Palivec   
19 Jul 2011
Feedback / Why are there so many on here, who do not like Poland [150]

Why are there so many on here, who do not like Poland, and of the many, many of those have never even been to Poland.

Counterquestion: why does Polandball exist? Maybe this gives you the answer.
BTW: most "Poles" here never visited the country.
Palivec   
18 Jul 2011
History / Norman Davies - the Brit who loves Poland and becomes one of Us [250]

Still Davies looks like a great Polish patriot when compared to the alleged "expert" on things Polish - the Polonophobic Timothy Garton Ash of The Guardian....
:)

Patriots shouldn't write scientific books. And Ash is a Germanophile, but hardly Polonophobic. Otherwise you could also say Davies is Germanophob, but, like Ash with Poland, he just has no clue about the western neighbour. Most obvious in his book about Wroclaw btw., which is ridiculously bad.