Many small nations demanding to be accepted more than they should be in the international arena often find the "negative other" legitimizes their displeasure with their limited recognition in the present. The best example of this syndrome is France (now against the the UK and the US)- always trying to punch in a higher class than it really deserves.
Poland can do much better - it is a place I miss everyday. Norman Davies may be right, it is the "heart of Europe" - with all the contradictions of what "Europe" means today.
BTW Chris, the same joke you cite was used in the inverse way in Poland during the 1980s - depending on political taste.
--- Chris Doss <lookoverhere1 at yahoo.com> wrote:
> BTW the general consensus in Russia seems to be that
> Poles are gigantic assholes.
>
> >
> > Polish joke:
> >
> > Q. In the unlikely event (ahem) that Poland is
> > invaded
> > by Germany and Russia at the same time, who do we
> > fight first?
> >
> > A. The Germans. -- Business before pleasure.
> >
> >
> >
> >
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