Off-Topic / Ukraine - a country in Central Europe? [28]


I think it would be interesting to initiate a legal suit against Wikipedia and some other sources similar to geographic literature publishers, but personally I'm not too obsessed with it to do something like this. I think that at least they suppose mention an alternative points of view in their definitions. Also I wasn't able to find any info how a legal process against Wikipedia can be initiated at all, and in which country this company is even legally based.

Off-Topic / Ukraine - a country in Central Europe? [28]

@Alexbrz
It would be if we divide Europe into the East and West plainly. But if you do insist that there is also the Central Europe, then we need to assume there is a point which conditionally have to be taken for the geographical Center of Europe and conclude the Central Europe is anything that lays in significant distance to the West and East from this point. First of all we need to agree where this point is. Some sources claim it is located in Western Ukraine.


en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geographical_midpoint_of_Europe

Also we need to agree where is the Western edge of Europe is. If in the East it is defined by the Ural mountains which plainly show it, in the West the Iberian peninsula bulges out far away into Atlantic sea, makes this definition more complicated. But even if we take Lisbon for the marker, as you said, the total distance from Lisbon to Yekaterinburg is approximately 5400 km and if we will divide this distance into three equal parts 1800X1800X1800 km (which stand for Western, Central and Eastern Europe) then Kiev and the largest part of Ukraine will be in Central Europe.


How is it all relevant? In my understanding "East" and "West" are purely geographical characteristics.

Off-Topic / Ukraine - a country in Central Europe? [28]

Clearly? The distance between Lisbon (Atlantic coast) to Kiev is around 3.000 km. The distance between Kiev and Yekaterinbourg (the foothills of Ural mountains) is around 2.000 km. I think we can say that only European part of Russia is clearly the Eastern Europe. But because the largest part of Russia is located in Asia, this term is useless when applicable to some particular country. Therefore the very term "Eastern Europe" suppose to gone as a Cold War relic.

Language / IS "MURZYN" word RACIST? [686]


What about mumbo-jumbo?

Language / IS "MURZYN" word RACIST? [686]

According to some Russian info sources (I'm not sure it is absolutely reliable, but still I think the info is likely correct) Ukrainian ministry of education and science issued "anti-discriminatory measures" in 2018 and decided to eradicate from Ukrainian textbooks an offensive words such as negry (a neutral word in Ukrainian and Russian for a black Africans), cyganie (a neutral word for the gipsy) and zhydy (a neutral word in Ukrainian and Polish for Jews). In Russian this word was neutral too, before the beginning of the 20-th century, but later was displaced by the Bolsheviks from Russian language for some strange reasons, possibly as imaginably offensive by somebody.

Also (what is the most strange) such words as "the parents", "the family" "the relatives" and similar are also became undesirable. To explain why ministry of education murmurs something about poor orphans in Donetsk who may feel discriminated.

I wonder how much normal and regular Ukrainians are going to laugh about that. Also I wonder why Americans export in Central and Eastern Europe their mental problems...

I think that the very idea of some "prohibited words" which cannot be said in public and regarded as "offensive" is unacceptable and is a dangerous advance against freedom of speech. Also I'm very cautious about responsibility for saying any words or any kind of insults. At least for the reason of controversy and vagueness and false accusations and "witnesses" which can spark an ethnic conflict or "discredit" an innocent person at ease.

Language / IS "MURZYN" word RACIST? [686]

@Dougpol1
Why people suppose to care in 21 century which word is "offensive" for someone or not? Freedom of speech! Central or Eastern Europe doesn't care about US created weirdness!

News / Three Poles beaten in front of family. The supects are American soldiers [36]

And why Poles and other Europeans have to be troubled about cultural or mental weirdness which exist in US or elsewhere? They suppose to have freedom of speech and call whatever they want whatever they like. If US soldiers don't like that they can return back home.

Language / IS "MURZYN" word RACIST? [686]

[moved from]


Murzyn (Polish pronunciation: [muʐɨn]) is the most common Polish word for a black person. It is generally seen as a neutral word,[1] while other contemporary critics, mostly of non-Polish ethnicity, claim that it has pejorative connotations.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murzyn

In Russia, the term негр (negr) was commonly used in the Soviet period without any negative connotation, and its use continues in this neutral sense. In modern Russian media, the negr is used somewhat less frequently. Chyorny as an adjective is also used in a neutral sense, and conveys the same meaning as negr, as in чёрные американцы (chyornye amerikantsy, "black Americans"). Other alternatives to negr are темнокожий (temnokozhy, "dark-skinned"), чернокожий (chernokozhy, "black-skinned"). These two are used as both nouns and adjectives. See also Afro-Russian.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/*****#Elsewhere

Just for your future knowledge.

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]

Well, in my understanding to threat to Poland Russia needs to occupy whole Ukraine or Belarus first of all. Do you think it is realistic even by itself? Or you expect they are planning their invasion through Baltic sea and small Kaliningrad enclave? Still, I think Poland has try whatever possible to secure their defense and strengthen its army like any other normal country do. I'm just a bit cautious about all this military blocks and possible war hysteria that may lead to unpredictable consequences.

Off-Topic / Slavic languages - oldest European languages. [12]

Merged:

Your perception of Slavic languages

I'm interested to know what other people (especially those who's first language is not Slavic) think about sound of other Slavic languages. For example, does it sound to you beautiful, annoying, irritative, very strange, neutral etc? Also what people who's first language is a Slavic one think about other Slavic languages? How do you find them in comparison to other World languages?

History / What is Poles opinion on Intermarium (Międzymorze)? [188]

1) And what kind of cooperation between Poles and Ukrainians or Poland and Ukraine do you suggest?

2) And what are the difference between Russians and Ukrainians do you think?

History / What is Poles opinion on Intermarium (Międzymorze)? [188]

With Ukrainians? Really??

Off-Topic / Russophiles can no longer defend their beloved Russians. [84]


Beside the politics. Regarding Hitler appearance. Some sources claim he was at least 170 cm tall (some even claim 175) what was not shorter than average for his time. Take note that in the last 100 years European men gained 11 cm. So for the end of 19-th century when he grew up his stature wasn't something out of common and the average. Some sources claimed he had bleu eyes. Regarding hair color. We don't know what was his hair color in childhood, but often hair tends to get darker with age. For example I was born redhead, but my heair turned chocolate color (almost black) when I grew older.

Off-Topic / Russophiles can no longer defend their beloved Russians. [84]

Ukrainians, Belarussians?

Off-Topic / Russophiles can no longer defend their beloved Russians. [84]


Can you specify? Asia is a huge continent in which people of different races live. Such as Arabs, Turkish, Persians, Chines, Hindus, etc.
Many of them do not even look alike...
Can you post here photos of some famous Russians who look Asian?

Off-Topic / Russophiles can no longer defend their beloved Russians. [84]


And who?

Life / How are electric cars doing in Poland? [413]

Yes, please, what do you wish to know?


In difference from US Canada hardly have any government grants and programs for batteries and EVs development. Li-ion are too expensive and bulky. We need an alternative to make an affordable plug-in hybrid reality.

Genealogy / Slavs are descendants of Sarmatians? [600]


Germanic, Slavic, Sarmatian... What is the difference? From Roman viewpoint we are all the Barbarians.

Genealogy / Slavs are descendants of Sarmatians? [600]


Interesting. I never previously saw any map made by the Romans which would include modern Poland territory. I thought this area was never thoroughly explored by Romans. As well as any territory to the East of Reine. They described this area as terrible place covered by impassable thick forests and swamps. So, I wonder how could they make any map like this...

History / Whom do the people in Poland hate more: Germans or Russians? [869]

@delphiandomine
And which exactly collaboration do I advocate? What do you mean under "collaboration"?

History / Whom do the people in Poland hate more: Germans or Russians? [869]


Russians sacrificed lives millions of its own soldiers at the end of war and to significant extent their lives were sacrificed for a sake of German civilians. To save lives millions of German people. At the end of war Russians had complete superiority in air and didn't even had a real need to engage in extensive terrestrial combat. They could just burn all the Eastern German cities with fire bombs (like Americans did to Hamburg and Dresden), kill all the population with chemical bombs, destroy all the dams on the rivers and drown all the people in Berlin and in one word to kill anything that moves from the air. And you have to be greatfull they didn't do it to you grand parents.

What is a point to talk about collective responsibility of people for doing a COMMON CRIMES? Some of them did, some not. The was no any order of higher Soviet commandment which would encourage or justify any oppressions toward German civilians. Not even medium level commandment is known for this. Even contra some Soviet soldiers been shot for this. With the same success you can make statements like this: "A numerous immigrants who live in Germany raped many German women during the last decades". What would be any point of it?!

Life / How are electric cars doing in Poland? [413]

Currently the largest problem is price and longevity of the batteries. A small innovative companies and inventors not always have funds.
I've patented an innovative type of supercapacitor 1.5 years ago, but still wasn't able to developed it into a commercial product. I think it could be used in EV's too. There is simply no accessible government or private programs for this.

History / Poles and Russians -- love-hate relationship? [209]

Well, I afraid we started to delve into the "jungle".

Still, I think that Eastern Slavs saved Poles from nearly total annihilation at least three times: From a total scale mongol invasion, from Swedish invasion in 18 century and in 1945.

History / Poles and Russians -- love-hate relationship? [209]

Why not provide some facts on this forum? We will discuss it.

History / Poles and Russians -- love-hate relationship? [209]

That is sad of course, but at least Russians, Ukrainian, Belarusians and other nations of the former USSR didn't convert these countries
into a real colonies like Nazi did. They didn't exploit their resources didn't conduct an ethnical cleansings. There was no Russians in governments of these countries. No signs "for Russians only". They stationed there some troops in barracks and expected socialist orientation.

History / Poles and Russians -- love-hate relationship? [209]


It was Nazi who invaded tens of countries. Russians just drove them back mostly. Which civil wars with exception the one in Russia?

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]

I do not disagree that modern Russia retains strong Asian ethic and cultural influence. As well as Ukraine and Belarus. But since Kievan Rus was European state originally wouldn't you want to bring them back to European civilization completely?

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]

Thanks. It was interesting to read. Never heard of this before. But it happened more than 80 years ago... How long people can live obsessed with the past?

Here we need to note, however, that Russian empire and USSR were influenced by Asians to a large extent. Neither Lenin or Stalin, for example, were European ethnically. It doesn't mean that Asians are somehow inferior, of course, it is just such happened historically, that they are culturally different quite a bit.

History / Do Polish people in general dislike Russia or Germany more? [369]

Some link?