The King of Poland
Integration
Adam Michnik (the editor in chief of the Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza and author of "Letters From Freedom," is a visiting professor at Princeton) today in the International Herald Tribune: “Rather than seize on its EU membership to catapult the country forward, Poland's coalition government finds itself looking, and moving, backward. In a speech in the European Parliament, a politician from one of the coalition parties praised the dictatorships of Antonio Salazar of Portugal and Francisco Franco of Spain; he also published an openly anti-Semitic booklet. During a dry summer, a group of coalition legislators called upon the Parliament to pray for rain. A similar group proposed that the Parliament vote to declare Jesus Christ the King of Poland. Polish bishops sternly criticized this peculiar act of devotion.”
This is why I like Poland so much, and by the way the difference between Poland and the Netherlands (just to name a country) is getting smaller and smaller. Maybe this is what is meant with integration.
Dead
Then they will have a dead king!Greetings from Wroclaw
TIRZA FOR LIBRIS!
Dear Arnon, CONGRATULATIONS for the Libris-nomination. Many people have said Tirza is a masterpiece, and that's the only word I can think of to describe it. I may not be original, at least it's heart felt. I am thrilled (okay and slightly drunk, only slightly though). I wish readers could submit votes per sms, as there's no doubt you would then win.@miss molenaar
I was asked by a 18year old girl if I had some bookreports laying on my mac. I told her no, but I told her that I would help her searching a good novel. I told her about the Jewish Messiah, she loved the story (she only read Da Vinci Code), so I told her the story of Tirza. She said "why don't i know these books exist?!" Now she's reading Tirza. I felt good, mr. Arnon can feel even better. Prizes are well deserved.you
I heard about your place at the Libris Shortlist with Tirza this morning!Congratulations!!!
Please then do not invest in stock markets or hedge funds, but consider buying works of the famous deceased Flemish artist Dees De Bruyne, a remarkable painter now in oblivion, a real shame (I will give you the address of his former girl friend in Spain, on simple demand).
Michnik
I remember a nice, cosy party in the appartment of Adam Michnik, spring 1977, were he, a well known dissident, held a long, funny monologue that was exactly the same as what he wrote now in your newspaper, but instead of EU he said Comecon, instead of Salazar he said Brezjnev, instead of Jezus Christ he said Karl Marx, and instead of Parliament he said History. And my reaction, then, was that the difference between Holland and Poland was getting smaller and smaller...Reinjan
Yesteryear’s communists are today’s Catholics, but what does that say about yesteryear’s dissidents?It was a nice statement, but I seem to have forgotten. Dissidents, of course, are those who make the changes.
