Foreign crap OK, Pułaski not!

♂

Oct 11, 10, 15:29 #1

Xenophobia is the dislike of foreigners, but Poland is probably the only country to which the term xenophilia (love of foreigners) would apply. Naturally not all foreigners -- Romanian Gipsies, Arabs, Russians and a few others would be exempted.
A good example comes to mind. An acquaintance told me that back when baseball caps were al the rage in Poland but were scarce, he sent his cousin's son a batch of them. The kid sold them all at a hefty mark-up regardless of whether they sported such logos as Harris Funeral Home, Joe's Tool & Dye, Finley's Bar & Grill, J & M Dry Cleaning, Newark Refrigeration, etc., etc. The only one that generated no interest read: Pulaski Post PLAV (Polish Legion of American Veterans). These were kids aged 11-13. Why would they already be anti-Polish at that age?

alexw68	Edited by: alexw68 Oct 11, 10, 16:07 #2
Polonius3: Why would they already be anti-Polish at that age? They weren't. They just didn't know who the hell this Pulaski guy was and why they had to forgo sausages for a week in his memory. (Post, geddit?)

Polonius3Threads: 1,005 Posts: 4,835 Joined: Apr 11, 08 ♂	Oct 11, 10, 16:21 #3
I'm sure they know what a funeral home or dry cleaning outfit is!

ShawnHThreads: 9 Posts: 3,056 Joined: Jul 2, 09 ♂	Oct 11, 10, 16:28 #4
Polonius3: Joe's Tool & Dye They would have snapped that one up because of the typo. This kind of error would make a US Post Office stamp priceless.

alexw68

Oct 11, 10, 16:30 #5

Polonius3:

An acquaintance told me that back when baseball caps were al the rage in Poland but were scarce

Back in the day (this sounds like early 90s to me) rest assured, the average kid wouldn't have had a clue.

Polonius3:

Poland is probably the only country to which the term xenophilia (love of foreigners) would apply.

Disclaimer: I have been constantly made to feel welcome in this country for over 16 years now. BUT - if you really believe this and are not just fabricating the identity of a benighted prude to generate discussion - basically, Mate, you are as mad as a box of frogs.

Polonius3Threads: 1,005 Posts: 4,835 Joined: Apr 11, 08 ♂	Oct 11, 10, 16:43 #6
Well, maybe the workshop made tools and dyed clothes. (Only joking: it should have been 'die'.) I should have added that the PLAV baseball cap had a crowned white Polish eagle on it, so the ethnic connection could not have been in doubt.

SeanBMThreads: 41 Posts: 8,727 Joined: Mar 10, 08 ♂	Edited by: SeanBM Oct 11, 10, 20:37 #7
Maybe they were just rubbish caps?, nothing about loving foreigners or hating themselves. I'd go with Occam's razor on this one.

♂

Oct 11, 10, 23:20 #8

Poles back then eagerly lapped up any rubbish thtrown their way as long as it had a foreign ring flavour to it. They wore T-shirts with writing they didn't understand, as long is they looked foreign. You surely must be familiar with Mickiewicz's line: Co Francuz wymyśli Polak polubi. Only now, the term Jankes would be more appropriate.
That xenophilic trait is among the reasons Poles have not really developed their own, indigenous style in many areas. It it largely a copy-cat society.

♂

Edited by: Chicago Pollock Oct 12, 10, 08:10 #9

Polonius3:

That xenophilic trait is among the reasons Poles have not really developed their own, indigenous style in many areas. It it largely a copy-cat society.

Probably because Poles have been politically dominated by Foreign Nationals for the past two or three hundred years. Politically a divided people, no? It sure appears that way reading this forum
Actually Americans have a higher opinion of Polaks than the Poles do. Pulaski and Kosciusko have all kinds of towns and counties and roads named after them. All from their contribution two hundred years ago. Polish people probably don't know who they were.

1jolaThreads: 33 Posts: 2,737 Joined: Sep 23, 08 ♂	Edited by: 1jola Oct 12, 10, 08:24 #10
Polonius, hypothetically, if you were to get that tattoo you always wanted on your neck, which would you choose? One written: TIGER, or this one? They mean the same thing. :)

alexw68	Oct 12, 10, 08:50 #11
1jola I denounce you as anti-Polish. Any true son of these broad fields would have nothing other than 'tygrys', surely...

1jolaThreads: 33 Posts: 2,737 Joined: Sep 23, 08 ♂	Oct 12, 10, 09:09 #12
I know it. I wear a T-shirt I got at the Shaolin Temple which says DRAGON in Chinese characters, but you will never catch me with one saying SMOK. On second thought, I would wear one if it said SMOK WAWELSKI. So, I'm still cool and proud. :) Got out of that one.

mafketisThreads: 17 Posts: 1,880 Joined: Mar 31, 08 ♂	Oct 12, 10, 09:37 #13
1jola: Got out of that one. Yeah, but you still made it onto Polonius3's enemy list. Expect a knock on the door around one in the morning in a few days.

1jolaThreads: 33 Posts: 2,737 Joined: Sep 23, 08 ♂	Oct 12, 10, 09:55 #14
I better get back on his good side pronto and raise awareness: 11 October is celebrated in the US as General Casimir Pulaski Memorial Day, commemorating the death anniversary of the Polish officer who contributed greatly to the success of Colonial forces under the leadership of General Washington. http://www.thenews.pl/international/artykul141277_polish-cavalry-hero- remembered-in-us.html

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