In modern history, few nations have suffered as much as Poland. Once the dominant power in east central Europe, the nation was carved up as Prussia and Russia expanded, its people persecuted.
Today, the nation suffered what law professor William A. Jacobson billed a “tragedy upon tragedy“; virtually the nation’s entire leadership was wiped out in a single plane crash:
The President of Poland and much of Poland’s military and civilian leadership were killed when the presidential plane crashed in Russia on the way to commemorate the massacre of 22,000 Polish officers by the Soviets in 1940.
It is as if that very forest where the plane went down harbors an animus to Polish leadership:
The crash came as a stunning blow to Poland, killing many of the country’s top leaders and reviving, for some, the horror of the Katyn massacre.
“It is a damned place,” former president Aleksander Kwas’niewski told TVN24. “It sends shivers down my spine. First the flower of the Second Polish Republic is murdered in the forests around Smolensk, now the intellectual elite of the Third Polish Republic die in this tragic plane crash when approaching Smolensk airport.”
Jacobson had really written about the Katyn Forest massacre, an event at the outset of World War II that often doesn’t get much attention–as it puts out Soviet allies in a bad light, a very bad light.
Our hearts — and prayers — go out to the Polish people.
Oh, please. If any dark forces are at work (and please note I said ‘if’), it’s more likely to be someone the Poles pissed off, perhaps someone in Russia if not the EU. It wasn’t too smart of them to put their whole leadership on one plane.
And this is a terrible tragedy – not only for the Poles, but for the cause of freedom in general – that’s my subtext or indirect point.
Agreed,
My first thought was ‘How’d the Russians pull it off?’
Yeah, my first thought was only slightly different: “Was it the Russians?” I guess that’s what I’m saying or at least asking. It wouldn’t surprise me.
Russian fingerprints. Payback for Poland’s agreement to allow the American missle defense system on their soil. I cannot but think Obama’s selling out the Poles and Czechs sent a signal that America would accept whatever the Russians wanted to do. A sad day indeed.
I knew it would not take very long for Pres Obama to be blamed. This is why folks like man are not taken seriously. It is just plain silly. And to blame the Russians for this is just plain stupid, for so many reasons, too many to name here. Please just allow for the world to mourn. Leave the silly speculations for some other time.
Yes, because Russia never has poisoned or arranged for the death of foreign leaders in the past 20 years…
A tragedy indeed for the Polish people, one that would be jarring for any country to endure the loss of so much of its leadership in an accident like this. I did not like the Polish president much, a feeling returned because I’m gay, but none of that matters now and he was a strong leader for Polish freedom overall nonetheless. My prayers go out for the families of the fallen and to the great nation of Poland.
That’s exactly what I thought upon hearing the news. Headline on Drudge said that Putin will head the investigation. Sorta like how he lead the investigation into the Levitnenko (sp?) murder, I suppose.
Nobody blamed Il Douche for it. This is why dumbasses like Buck are not taken seriously. C’mon. You didn’t even read Man’s comment. You just scrolled through, saw his name and ASSumed he was being blamed, didn’t you? In a round-about way, you could make a better case that Man was blaming Bush, but that would take a bit of thought.
Oh please, do go on. I’d love to read your reasons. I’m sure nobody here, particularly Dan, would be opposed to your list.
Its indeed a tragedy for the Polish Republic and for the families of the dead. Now we will in the coming days how the Poland’s democratic institutions fare in this transition.
As for blaming Obama for this, I seem to recall that George Bush was blamed for everything from 9/11 to poisoning well water. You better have some thicker skin grafted on to your body before its taxed under ObamaCare.
Just heard on Fox that President Obama expressed his sorry about the crash.
So I’ve found free people that he will say nice things about. They just have to be dead first.
My prayers and thoughts to Poland. what an incomprehensible loss.
my thoughts exactly. Another thought, reports that the crash happened on the 4th landing attempt. With the conditions as they were and considering the passengers safety on the plane, certainly the pilot would use another site to land, but chose to stay with the original flight plan? Who was the pilot in the left seat? Something is fishy, and I don’t mean the herring or the Russian caviar.
I noticed Buck spent a lot of time with the words “silly” and “stupid” and declines to elaborate his point as it’s ‘too time consuming’. How difficult would the correct application/explanation of something ‘stupid or silly’ actually be? Other than a stereotypical Dem/Lib ‘that’s stupid, you wouldn’t understand, and I don’t have TIME to explain it’ bullsh*t rant…what was the point?