Job Discussion Forums

[GF]

That's interesting because Poles are some of the most anti-semitic people in the world and they have no love for Russians either.

[lyndalorient]

Polish people prior to WW2 had let Jews live in peace in Poland. There is to this day a strong Jewish presence in some parts of the city. The Germans were responsible for Auchwitz alot of Americans and non Europeans mistake the Poles as being responsible.

There are many Anti Russian sentiments in many of the new EU member states.

[spiral78]

There's also a lot of GOOD feeling towards Russia and especially Russian people in many of the new EU member states.

I'm not trying to say there is any 100% consensus, but I know personally quite a lot of Czech who would prefer to be more closely allied with Russia than with the US - not that they want to be suborned or legally joined to either.

Politics are politics, but many Czech I know feel more good will and empathy with Russian people than with westerners.

[lyndalorient]

Yes Czechs are quite different to some of the other baltic states ie Poland Latvia Lithuania. Nearly everyone I ve met from these countries berates Russia for occupation (and to a lesser extent the west for handing them over - may come as a surprise)

Czechs tend to avoid conflict from my experience. They generally are pretty happy to stay in their country rather than immigrate. I never heard a Czech person berate any nationality except Germans but then they have alot of history with the sudetenland. But at the same time they have alot of German influence.

[spiral78]

Yeah, I know Czechs best, having been based here for the past ten years. You may be right - it's possible they're not typical of all of the 'new' EU member states.

[GF]

You need to read your history a bit more carefully. Poles were and are anti-semitic. They continued persecuting the Jews AFTER the war and 2 or 3 days ago a Polish priest made an anti-semitic statement that got international attention.

The Czechs got back at the Germans after the war when they expelled the Germans from the Sudetenland and confiscated all their property.

[lyndalorient]

[GF]

I have nothing against Poles. The few that I have met are good people. However, I grew up in a heavily Jewish area and my ex-wife and her family are Jewish. I heard a lot of stories from them and others (a lot of Holocaust survivors were in our area). My Russian wife and her family had some unpleasant experiences with Poles when they travelled there, though I can understand why considering recent history.

[lyndalorient]

I feel sorry they had those experiences and I am sure they were unpleasant.
A huge proportion of Jews in the west roots go back to Poland thats why it gets the most attention (that and Auschwitz)
I remember an American whilst in Aucshwitz giving out about Polish people killing Jews in Auschwitz. Thankfully she was quickly informed it was a German run camp
To be fair jews suffered bigotry nearly everywhere in Europe before and after the war. There were just far more in Poland thus easier to place the blame.

[mdk]

So, has anybody read "The Painted Bird" by Jerzy Kosinski? I am curious to know if you think it was true to life.

Or maybe someone has read "Fire in the Steppe" by Sinekiwicz? That certainly was about Poles and Cossacks. True to life or not?

[silasbilas]

Nothing to do with the Poles, but I read a few months back about a young girl (from one of the Southern Republics) who was stabbed to death by a neo nazi while she was out with her father and brother in Moscow. So they target anyone they can get, be it small child, woman or man.

[mdk]

Skinheads are dangerous in Russia, as everywhere.

[silasbilas]

What amazes me more are those people (other 'whites') who stand by and see these things happen without intervening. That goes for UK as well as what many may consider the 'less evolved' countries like Russia

[GF]

That is because if they try to intervene, they will be attacked too. There have been many cases of this. I doubt you will try to intervene if you happen to witness such an attack. They are so savage that your first reaction will probably be shock and then you will want to get the heck away from them, quickly!

[lyndalorient]