Category Archives: World War II

D-Day Movie Recommendations

Posted on 2017-06-06 by

Always on 6 June, I have a feeling of gratitude to the more than 160,000 Allied troops that landed in Normandy on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) and marked the beginning of the second phase of the liberation of Europe (after … Continue reading →

Posted in Films, History, Military, World War II | Tagged , | 7 Comments

Germany 1945-1949

Posted on 2017-04-29 by

These two films illustrate – with quite drastic footage, you are warned – what the Allied powers thought of Germany immediately after the end of World War II. They did see, correctly in my view, a continuity of German militarism … Continue reading →

Posted in Cold War, Films, Germany, History, Holocaust, Military, USA, World War II | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Thoughts of the Day 11

Posted on 2017-04-13 by

Mohammad Mostafaei, the lawyer with whom I was arrested in Iran, has written a book. He says I am in it too, but I can’t read Norwegian, so I have to wait for a translation. Does anyone still remember José Echegaray … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Elections, France, Health, History, Human Rights, Iran, Language, Law, Mexico, Military, Politics, Sports, Statistics, Travel, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sean Spicer explains Gas Chambers

Posted on 2017-04-12 by

Pro tip: if you want to make historical comparisons, read a bit about history before you do so. Saying about Hitler that “he was not using the gas on his own people the same way that Assad is doing” displays … Continue reading →

Posted in France, History, Holocaust, Military, Politics, Syria, US election 2016, USA, World War II | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Instagram 1.0

Posted on 2017-03-29 by

How our grandmothers got their cool Facebook profile photos. (Warsaw, Poland in 1946.)

Posted in Facebook, History, Photography, Poland, Technology, World War II | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Book Review: “Alone in Berlin” by Hans Fallada

Posted on 2017-03-28 by

When a novel becomes an international bestseller 62 years after its original publication, there has to be something to it. Jeder stirbt für sich allein by Hans Fallada was published in Germany in 1947 and finally got translated into English … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Germany, History, Holocaust, Politics, World War II | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Thoughts of the Day 9

Posted on 2017-03-26 by

In Bolivia, I spoke with a lawyer about feminicidios, the killing of women by their partners, which carries a higher sentence than a “regular” homicide. Out of curiosity, I looked up the figure for Germany – and was shocked: 331 … Continue reading →

Posted in Bolivia, Economics, Germany, Health, History, Human Rights, Immigration Law, Law, Mexico, Military, Music, Poland, Politics, Romania, Russia, Statistics, Travel, US election 2016, USA, World War II | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment