Category Archives: History

Where is Charlie Wilson when you need him?

Posted on 7 October 2012 by

Charlie Wilson was a member of the US House of Representatives who in the 1980s lobbied intensively for arming the Afghan rebels against the Soviet Union. He personally secured a lot of the funding for the Afghan Mujahideen from the … Continue reading →

Posted in Afghanistan, Cold War, Military, Politics, Syria, USA | Tagged | 1 Comment

Book review: “The Revenge of Geography” by Robert Kaplan

Posted on 21 September 2012 by

A book with the subtitle “What the map tells us about coming conflicts and the battle against fate” sounded very interesting to me. Finally a book that focuses on other reasons than oil and Islam in trying to explain recent … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, History, Maps, Poland, Politics | Tagged | 5 Comments

Bad Taste in Estonia

Posted on 16 September 2012 by

I will soon travel to Estonia and it seems I will have to brace myself for a massive amount of bad taste, if not anti-Semitism. First, an Estonian gas company put this photo of the Auschwitz concentration camp on their … Continue reading →

Posted in Estonia, History, Holocaust, Media | 10 Comments

Book Review: “Golden Holocaust” by Robert Proctor

Posted on 10 September 2012 by

This will be a short book review because Robert Proctor’s book about the dangers of tobacco, smoking and cigarettes can be dismissed outright after reading the title and the introduction. Although I occasionally smoke cigars, I know it’s neither healthy … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Health, History, Holocaust, Language | Tagged , | 7 Comments

Easily confused, # 4

Posted on 4 September 2012 by

The copy: The original:

Posted in Elections, Films, History, Politics, USA, World War II | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Scott McKenzie, 1939-2012

Posted on 21 August 2012 by

I remember that time. I was a little kid back then and I found it strange. All these festivals with guitars and drums in a field. And how I hated these flower patches on my pants. But now most of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, History, Life, Travel | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Palestinians at the Olympic Games, now and then

Posted on 15 August 2012 by

Palestinians at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich: Palestinians at the 2012 Olympic Games in London: That’s quite an improvement, I would say.

Posted in History, Israel, London, Sports, Terrorism | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Companies that may want to change their name, # 2

Posted on 12 August 2012 by

Yesterday and coincidentally while having lunch with a hitchhiker from France, I came across Vichy Water. I wonder if drinking this will turn me into a Nazi collaborator?

Posted in France, History, World War II | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

History is never far away in Europe

Posted on 12 August 2012 by

Cycling back from beautiful Europos Parkas to Vilnius, I came across this reminder about the gruesome history of the 20th century in Europe. The marker was almost hidden in a forest, on the outskirts of the village of Joneikiškės. Just another village … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, History, Holocaust, Lithuania, Photography, Travel, World War II | 13 Comments

Berlin Wall in Lithuania

Posted on 11 August 2012 by

Visitors who come to Berlin often wonder: “What happened to the Berlin Wall?” I recently found a chunk of it in Lithuania, at Europos Parkas, an outdoor art museum. To address any suspicions about larceny: it was a gift by the … Continue reading →

Posted in Germany, History, Lithuania, Photography, Travel | Tagged , | 2 Comments