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December 15
- December 15, 2023
- tappanch
- 90 Comments
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Orban blackmails the EU.
He wants to get 20 billion euros in aid in order not to veto 50 billion (mostly loan) to Ukraine by the European Union.
https://www.portfolio.hu/gazdasag/20231215/orban-viktor-a-magyar-gazdasag-unios-penz-nelkul-is-mukodik-656499
EU needs to move quickly to majority voting or at least a voting system in which Putin’s Trojan horse is unable to hold the other countries to ransom
50 billion = 33 in loans + 17 in grants
https://444.hu/2023/12/15/egyedul-orbannak-nem-felelt-meg-az-unios-koltsegvetes-kiegeszitese
Orban did block the 50 billion going to Ukraine and the EU did release funds for Hungary. So that strategy did not work. But Orban did allow Ukraine’s process to continue by walking out and denouncing it .
Orban’s comment today on Radio Kossuth was “if something harms Hungary’s interests during the negotiation, I can stop it…Hungary will apply the handbrake, there should be no doubt about that.” Orban also said in that interview there will be about 75 occasions when his government can halt Ukraine’s ascension process.
I think, you might perhaps underestimate the perspective of the democratic EU.
Western democracies have seen Orbán-types come and go for a long time now..
They have ascertained how easily he is bought and how easily they can twist his arm. That’s got nothing to do with narrow Hungarian conditions.
The beurocratic hurdles are the place where the EU has the upper hand – because when they stay together, time isn’t an issue – They can move very fast, if they agree to do so and legislate accordingly.
Orbán straddles his pants to the breaking-point, but has no purse to tailor the elastic much further.
In the end, the business-potential of Ukraine (regadless of the current condition) far outweighs anything Hungary can offer and he knows.that. Betting on the Russian horse, hoping Putin’s fatigue-strategy wins, only saves his ass on the short term.
His real worry, is whether to walk the plank in the EU, or escape to a like-minded sanctuary.
And the positive news is:
Now everybody in the EU knows what kind of ***expletive deleted*** O1G represents.
So the EU will not help Hungary with anything unless it and its companies will profit.
And nobody cares about the Hungarian people – it’s their own fault!
Military aid to Ukraine (Jan 24, 2022 to Oct 31, 2023)
US: 47%
EU countries 39%
UK+Norway+Canada: 14%
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/10/05/world/ukraine-money-military-aid-intl-dg/index.html
Biggest donors of aid to Ukraine, in billions of euros
Military:
US: 43.9
Germany 17.1
UK: 6.6
EU: 5.6
Norway: 3.6
Denmark: 3.5
Poland: 3.0
Netherlands: 2.5
Sweden: 2.1
Canada: 2.1
Economic:
EU: 77.1
US: 25.0
UK: 6.6
EU: 5.6
Norway: 3.6
More data:
https://www.ifw-kiel.de/topics/war-against-ukraine/ukraine-support-tracker/
“Just How Much Aid Has the U.S. Sent to Ukraine?”
Bilateral aid to Ukraine between January 24, 2022, and October 31, 2023
Weapons & equipment: $28.0
Financial: $26.4
Security Assistance: $18.3
Humanitarian: $2.7 billion
https://www.cfr.org/article/how-much-aid-has-us-sent-ukraine-here-are-six-charts
State of the potential purchase of Budapest airport (Ferihegy)
% of ownership
Sellers vs Buyers
Sellers:
G: German AviAlliance= 55.44%
S: Singaporean Malton= 23.33%
C: Canadian pension fund Caisse de dépot et placement du Québec= 21.23%
Buyers:
H: Hungarian state
Q: Qatar
F: French Vinci
Sellers: G + S + C
Buyers:
H= 51% = 28.28+11.9+10.83
Q or F= 29% = 16.08+6.77+6.16
F or Q= 20% = 11.09+4.67+4.24
Hungary has asked and received the EU approval only for buyers H and F.
https://24.hu/fn/gazdasag/2023/12/15/repulotervasarlas-budapest-airport-katar-harmadik-vevo/
Hungarian authorities searched the home of the owner of the most popular independent internet portal 24.hu
They accused him of selling another of his companies “too cheaply”.
https://hvg.hu/itthon/20231215_hazkutatas_nav_varga_zoltan_central_cegcsoport
https://magyarnemzet.hu/belfold/2023/12/tobb-helyszinen-is-hazkutatast-tartott-a-nav-a-24hu-tulajdonosanak-felmilliardos-adocsalasi-botranyaban
The Viktor and his companions showed the world their inability to cooperate with democratic forces.
He was sent to the corridor as the most important vote of the week took place, a kind of a “mini-Huxit”. Of course, he will try to make trouble the whole road to membership of Ukraine, threatening with vetoes and asking for more money.
In the second most important vote, he vetoed the proposal for more help for Ukraine, more money for immigration politics, and funding to help countries in emergencies. The money for Ukraine will be settled in January by the other 26 states, and the Viktor will be out of the game. The attempt to loosen the 20 billion Euros of support that is left for a yes vote on Ukrainian money has failed.
He got 10 billion Euros, of which he must ask permission for every case he wants to spend the money.
The offer to the teachers seems to be 10% more money, way lower than the promises for if EU money arrives. To increase the wages for teachers, to reach 70% of the EU average they have permission, and part of the 10 billion is meant for that. This is just an example of how the regime seems to play games with the 10 billion.
Internal the new law for sovereignty was adopted. I do not know if this law is compatible with EU rules, but I have a guess, that this law will activate more opposition to the regime from EU countries.
If it weren’t so sad one would buy some popcorn and enjoy the developments.
And it has become obvious for everybody that Hungary is just another of those sh*thole countries (like in Africa or South America or …) where it’s useless to try to reason with the leaders – only brute force will work and that of course means money.
Of course these countries use their powers like giving “golden passports” to criminals if they pay well but in the long run they will all be identified and treated as they should be.
How the EU plenum will deal with getting Orbán & Co away from the sphere of direct influence is legally uncharted territory. There’s no lack of smart people there and only one thing seems certain at this point: They will arrive at a more salonfähig (meaning costly) solution than poisoning, imprisonment, plane-crash, or fall from a window.
Hungary received about 3.9 billion euros from the European Union in 2023, in spite of the so-called “freezing of the funds”
The net money flow (estimated numbers) was:
1491 – 663 billion forints, i.e
3.9 – 1.7 = 2.2 billion euros.
https://www.portfolio.hu/unios-forrasok/20231216/ugy-sem-lett-netto-befizeto-magyarorszag-hogy-blokkoltak-az-eu-s-kifizeteseket-658021
Katakin Czeh has some harsh words on the EU giving in to an extortionist:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/dec/17/viktor-orban-hungary-eu-ukraine-vladimir-putin
Czeh has a very valid point.
But in the EU realm, buying off opponents for the sake of making “unanimous” decisions is an old practice.
Unfortunate for the Hungarian opposition and unfortunate for democracy as such, because Orbán stirs up issues from a much bigger pot – mixing populist geopolitical themes with EU politics.
How the EU will move and act to contain that, remains to be seen.
Summit of the two Qipchak dictators – Orban and Erdogan are meeting in Budapest.
The Champs-Élysées of Budapest was closed to regular trafficfor long time, because Erdogan had to arrive in Orban’s Dance Theater (i.e. his office) exactly that way.
Erdogan might also like Orban, because it was a Christian traitor named Orban who helped the Turks to take Constantinople (Istambul) in 1453.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orban
The various names of the Budapest avenue des Champs-Élysées:
1883: Radial Strasse or Sugár út
1886: Andrássy út
1950: Sztálin út
1956: Magyar Ifjúság útja (from October)
1957: Népköztársaság útja
1990: Andrássy út
Rond-point des Champs-Élysées:
1890: Körönd
1938: Hitler tér
1945: Körönd
1971: Kodály körönd
No Oktogon in Paris.
1890: Nyolcszög tér
1920: Oktogon
1936: Mussolini tér
1945: Oktogon
1950: November 7 tér
1990: Oktogon
Orban is Erdogan’s chauffeur:
Getting lost together, may help..
What make is that car? Is it Chinese? I don’t recognise the logo on the hood.
The electric car is Turkish made. TOGG T10X. They plan to sell it in Europe in 2024.
In return, Orban gave Erdogan a horse.
https://telex.hu/belfold/2023/12/18/orban-viktor-torok-elektromos-autoban-furikazza-erdogant-budapesten
With a price of probably 50 000€ this car might become another status symbol fpr Fidesz honchos.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Togg_T10X
The German Auto Motor und Sport tested it, sounds good. But the long term quality/costs?
I took a wrong turn off of true democracy
I lied 13 years I couldn’t find the way back
Hit a lonely stretch, must be losing my touch,
I was out of my depth
…
I took a wrong turn, I took a wrong turn
I hit a LONELY STRETCH…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chTpAiuVlTI
Crazy coincidence!
This song by the Australian group The Triffids – named after one of my favourite Science Fiction novels: Day of the Triffids …
Happy holidays, everybody, wherever you are right now!
Incredibly, the EU leaders did not have a plan B for December 14 in the case of an Orban veto !
Ukraine has to wait another one and a half months for the funds (and weapons).
The next EU meeting is called only for February 1, 2024.
The Ukrainians are running low in ammunition and in men in the front line.
I fully expect a big Russian offensive in late December, early January.
Putin wants to increase the size of the occupied territories significantly,
occupy Zaporozhie town and perhaps Dnipro(petrovsk) and Kharkiv as well.
His further aim is to grab Odessa and make rump Ukraine landlocked.
Orban government will throw money at widening route 76 at Zalaegerszeg.
A new record: they will give 24,000 euros for every meter.
(400 billion forints for 44 km)
https://24.hu/belfold/2023/12/18/magyarorszag-autopalya-rekord-ar-lazar-janos/
The regime does not care about the health of its citizens.
Nobody over 18 can get the Covid vaccine against the omicron variant.
Children under 18 can get it only at one place in Budapest, at the Heim Children’s hospital.
https://24.hu/belfold/2023/12/18/koronavirus-jarvany-oltas-idopont-foglalas-haziorvosok/
Putin’s & Orban’s friend Vucic bussed in 40,000 people from Bosnia in order to win the vote in Belgrade.
They were given fictitious addresses in the town. These Bosnian Serbs voted in a football stadium.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/12/18/serbia-election-results-vucic-opposition-protest/11e70b22-9d8d-11ee-9e0f-972979a6c22b_story.html
Observed illegal immigration
(US: “encounters”, formerly called “apprehensions”).
US
[Oct 2022, Sep 2023] = 2,476,000
EU
[Jan1 2023, Dec 17 2023] = 257,000
Italy: 154,000
Spain: 52,000
Greece: 45,000
Cyprus: 6,000
Source:
https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/southwest-land-border-encounters
https://data.unhcr.org/en/situations/mediterranean
Ursula’s largess, or rather
details of the 10 billion euro rain of money from the EU.
Below are the labels of claiming chunks of this money pot.
“Intelligent Hungary” = 317 billion HUF
“Hi-tech and green transformation” = 164 billion
“Hungary connected” = 92 billion
“Digital knowledge” = 190 bilion
“Development of enterprises” = 888 billion
“Research, development, innovation” = 767 billion
“Sustainable work power” = 264 billion
“Guarantee for youth” = 197 billion
“Higher education, vocational education” = 177 billion forints.
Most money will flow to Orban-created oligarchs, privatized-for-free universities , etc.
https://www.portfolio.hu/unios-forrasok/20231218/megnyilnak-a-brusszeli-penzcsapok-ezekre-a-palyazatokra-lehet-hamarosan-lecsapni-658269
https://viacredit.hu/blog/20231020/palyazati-domping-varhato-forraskeretek-a-dimop-plusz-es-ginop-plusz-programokban
Please don’t confuse the EU with a Dictatorship!
Several (very) big things are in the mold right now – and Hungary is not important in that respect, but Orbán does his best to make it look as if.
The Ukraine negotiations herald a shift in the balance of Eastern EU. Poland sides with that, but Orbán doesnt like cameras turning away from him, so he acts out as much as he can, but in the end, he knows that the focus will be on Ukraine and Poland.
The EU can afford buying off a petty dictator, whose hands are tied.
#1
The ruling of the Colorado Supreme Court disqualifying Trump from running for the presidency in 2024.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/12/19/politics/read-colorado-supreme-court-ruling-trump-2024-ballot-14th-amendment/index.html
The main argument starts on page 70:
“The Presidency Is an Office Under the United States”
U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 3.
“No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold ANY OFFICE, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath”
#2
By the way, Orban took an oath in May 2010 to uphold the Hungarian Constitution, then had it abolished with his party a year later.
Therefore his regime has been unconstitutional since January 1, 2012.
On 23 January 2016, presidential candidate Donald Trump stated the following during a campaign rally in Iowa:
This Telex article describes the illegal immigration from Hungary to Slovakia before and after the Slovakian election with Vico as winner.
After the elections, immigration stopped.
Some think the Hungarian regime may have had a hand in the increased immigration from spring 2023 to October 2023.
Telex: Egyszerűen eltűntek a migránsok, mintha nem is lettek volna
This comment describes the problems one gets when we don’t stop evil. It paints a dark future for the EU when politicians avoid removing the rotten apple in the basket.
Is Europe Broken? by Jan-Werner Mueller – Project Syndicate (project-syndicate.org)
Yes, as Mr Mueller says:
Ironically, that outcome further reinforces arguments against European enlargement. After all, as the Hungarian government has demonstrated for all the world to see, once you are inside the European club, it seems nobody can force you to abide by the club’s rules.
So his friends in Serbia etc won’t be happy – no sane person in the EU wants them because they are similar to O.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ackb-fdVUs4
this well-informed UK podcast covers Orban and Vukovic, starting at 35:51…
Do you get the joke?
Reported:
The last government info meeting of the year was held today, and as in previous years, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán joined the event, holding an international press conference to asses 2023, and outline the government’s plans for next year.
https://hungarytoday.hu/political-changes-expected-after-the-ep-elections-says-prime-minister/
Also quite funny:
As he noted, the government wants to implement a 32.2 percent wage increase in the three-year wage improvement program from January 1, 2024, meaning that it will be visible in February salaries.
Of course this will only be possible if the EU pays for this …
Orbán’s KoolAid-party probably convinces the faithful followers of “The Golden Era”.
He also said that the Russian invasion in Ukraine “is not a war”.
The Orban government is truly an agent of the Russian secret services.
They paid about $1 million to Poroshenko so he would come to Hungary, meet Orban and divide Ukraine.
https://444.hu/2023/12/21/az-ukran-korrupciomegelozesi-ugynokseg-azt-allitja-az-orban-kormany-tobb-szaz-millio-forintot-utalt-a-volt-ukran-elnoknek
Again, funny in a way.
Hungary’s leader was whining at his press conference about the West discriminating against Trump, AfD, PIS etc – while many Hungarian media were not even allowed to send representatives to “his” conference!
https://www.spiegel.de/ausland/orban-bemaengelt-sonderbare-dinge-in-der-westlichen-demokratischen-welt-a-2dd944ea-5b7c-4d34-a126-4ff0d62cd6cf
Maybe someone dinds this in English?
The ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court is complex and 133 pages long. https://www.courts.state.co.us/Courts/Supreme_Court/Case_Announcements/Files/2023/6D478012_19_23.pdf While it would seem simple that the US Supreme Court will overturn the decision based on an appeal from Trump its more complex than that.
Under US law state supreme courts cannot have decisions relating state laws exclusive to their laws overturned by the Federal Supreme Court. Only in cases of contradictions of state and federal law can the US Supreme Court overturn and interpretation of Colorado state law.
The Colorado Supreme Court is sovereign relating to interpretation of Colorado State law except in that situation of contradiction discussed above. Orban understands none of that.
So unlike in the European system where regional units of government are part of fully national governments, in the US state governments have real power and sovereignty.
As as retired state governmental lobbyist I am very interested how the Republican majority of the US Supreme Court will come to the rescue of Trump.
Then, supposing that the US Supreme Court faces a choice of openly siding with the former President vs. respecting the sovereignty of a State Supreme Court, as a real test of loyalty, wouldn’t be too far off?
The solution of the Colorado Supreme Court is elegant and simple.
#1 Lower court established that Trump is an insurrectionist
#2 The Presidency Is an Office Under the United States,
Therefore,
by U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 3.,
Trump cannot be on the ballot for presidency in Colorado.
—–
In my opinion, the most likely scenario by the US Supreme Court is the following.
They do not make a judgement before January 4. (They declined to expedite Jack Smith’s case today as well, giving a victory to Trump)
So Trump will not be on the Colorado ballot. But Trump would lose Colorado in any case.
But the other states will not have the automatic right to drop Trump !
Well yet another complexity is that Trump has never been convicted of an act of insurrection by any court federal or state.
The relevant part of the constitution actually does not require to be prohibited from holding office to be convicted of insurrection. Only that Trump engaged in the act of insurrection but not how that determination was made . This was discussed in this research document for members of Congress https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/lsb/lsb10569 .
It is also possible even some Republicans on the Supreme Court may want to be done with Trump and go over to the Democrats on the court and let the decision stand.
If the case stands Trump could be quickly disqualified by numerous democrat majority Supreme Courts actually making it impossible for Trump to be elected. That would push Trump supporters to levels of insanity I suspect.
Happy holidays to everyone.
Thanks Jan, I will make one of my semiannual pilgrimages to my family Hungarian Catholic Church here in Chicago tonight. Last night some Hungarian speakers from Chicago came to our home for dinner. My wife Judy who is mixed Native American and Old English who speaks near zero Hungarian but really was nice to help with our little gathering.
Not surprisingly there was some lamenting over Orban’s new laws being imposed. One of our guests is a dual national and is contemplating giving up Hungarian citizenship by submitting this form https://washington.mfa.gov.hu/asset/view/68637/lemondas_hu_allampolgarsagrol2013.pdf.
I am not a dual national, but I did read the form and wondered if by submitting it and visiting Hungary as a U.S. citizen you were opening yourself up for trouble under the National Sovereignty Protection Act.
Kocsis, the Fidesz faction leader in the parliament who proposed the law, said in September that, among others, he wanted to target “left-wing journalists (…) serving the interests of American democratic dollar billionaires or multinationals in Brussels.” It could also target any U.S. national visiting Hungary who is less than loyal to Orban. I am not sure I agree with the US State Department’s statement https://www.state.gov/concern-with-hungarys-sovereign-defense-authority-law/ that sees it impacting Hungarian citizens and does not mention US nationals.
Last night after Christmas Eve mass one of my friends who went to Saturday Hungarian language school with me as a child said to me in hushed tones az új törvény nagyon rossz, le kell beszélnünk a Fidesznicket. Yes supporters of Hungarian democracy are even afraid of Orban in church!
Merry Christmas folks ….
Merry Christmas to you all here!
Boldog Karácsonyt mindenkinek itt!
Life in Hungary
https://www.facebook.com/100006060060839/posts/3583788945166406/
Don’t remember whether we’ve seen this before. An article – though almost five years old still relevant and interesting to read:
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/hnsgrassegger/george-soros-conspiracy-finkelstein-birnbaum-orban-netanyahu
I remember that article as originally published in a Swiss magazine, unfortunately it was behind a paywall.
Nevertheless I managed then to get a readable copy, which I send to our dear Eva.
She made a post about it “The Genesis of Orbans anti-Soros Campaign” [2019.Jan.15]
Noticed that the HS archive is currenrly not working, so herewith Eva’s original post as archived at the “Wayback Machine” – https://web.archive.org/web/20190118015023/https://hungarianspectrum.org/2019/01/15/the-genesis-of-orbans-anti-soros-campaign/
All the best to everyone on this blog, let’s hope for a better 2024.
All the best greetings to the HN-readers from me!
Let’s continue in the coming time, as independent voices, committed to pointing out the differences between democracy and democrature.
Podcast “The Rest Is Politics” [UK, former Labour&Conservative]
2023.Dec.20, a.o. about the myghti lidur [starting about 30min in], nothing new for most here I think, but interesting nevertheless
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/how-labour-should-fight-the-election-taking-on/id1611374685?i=1000639116906
The podcasters are quite astute. But they don’t take into account the extent of Far-Right, bought influence, in minor nationalist parties in Europe.
They will come forward in defense of Orbán, as the lines draw up, in return for the funding.
Back in 2018, several EU national conservatives spoke up in favor of Orbán, saying he defended European values and how was a legitimate, democratically elected leader..
The cyber world is the ultimate dark challenge to democracy.
Physical presence has nothing to do with digitally projected representation, but most people don’t recognize the difference.
Funny news:
Insight Hungary (444)reports that one reason for the PISsers loss to D Tusk was that they had asked Hábony and his ***expletive deleted*** for strategical help!
Orván’s spin doctor helped Law and Justice before they lost the elections
Question to Wolf [but others are of course free to reply]
In Russia there seem to be [some] women starting to complain about Putin’s Special Operation [=War]. Quite some start asking publically when their men and sons can return home, for leave of end of their “works” for PSO[=W]. The men and boys are too long away from their families and loved ones; and for what reason really…
I started wondering how this was during 1939-45 in Germany, were there developments under women in their opinion during WW2 , i.e.complaining that their men and boys were too long away from family and home [some never returning at all…]
The protesting women in Russia must be cause for some concern by Putin, or he probably wouldn’t bother to use them in his propaganda.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/dec/25/russia-military-wives-mothers-protest-against-putin-war-ukraine-troops-female
Yes the Washington Post’s primary reporter on the Russian opposition Robyn Dixon has made a big deal about the wives and mothers’ opposition to the Russian war in Ukraine.
But she and all her fellow Post reporters (including freelance reporters) fled Moscow after Putin’s FSB arrested Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich
and they are now in Lativa. Dixon is aware that Putin has imposed full scale Stalinist repression on opposition to the war and her contacts with opposition figures were enough for her to be locked up.
Putin is implementing his repression by increments as needed.
Orban is obvious doing the same thing in Hungary with the new laws. The EU, NATO, and the USA are fully aware of this but avoiding dealing with it simultaneously.
Hopefully the Fidesz operatives here in the USA will be eventually prosecuted for being unregistered foreign agents of Hungary pursuant to the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) was enacted in 1938.
The Fidesz operatives in Cleveland, New York, Chicago, and Washington DC are pretty well known and are receiving funding from Fidesz using cultural covers or as part of US based conservative groups.
There can be little doubt about the priority on propaganda, in the Fidesz regime. In my opinion, that holds true for the entire Right-National movement, across the globe.
The promoting of compulsive liars and fantasists into the front lines of right-wing media proves that beyond discussion, I think.
But how to counter media madness remains a challenge unanswered.
For every lie and allegation, several points are scored with voters, while reality sits with the burdon of proof, which is slow and late.
If I could collect a dime for each time I hear someone say stuff, based on heresay and popular conspiracy theories, I would be very rich.
If only media would treat the political cult-leaders with proper questioning and stubbornness, they ,at least, would have to answer.
Well, this might not be a typical story, but …
I’ve probably written about it before.
My father came to Germany in 1935 from his home near Danzig (Polish Gdansk) because he was not happy with the developments there, his police job and joined the German army. Hitler was asking around and making good offers so my father became a Feldwebel (sergeant) in 1938 and later participated in the several Blitzkriegs.
He also met a nice Schwab girl and in early 1939 he “knew” that something big was coming and asked her to marry him. Afaik he fought in Czechoslovakia and in France but came home every few months.
This also happened after the war in Russia started because he had become an officer then.
So he and his wife were kind of lucky compared to regular soldiers which often didn’t see their wives and family for a long time.
It got worse when the war against Russia started but even then he had holidays and went home maybe once a year – that was when I was conceived (summer of 42) as a souvenir to his wife from him because he knew that he might stay or die somewhere in Russia – because at that time it was already clear to him that the war was lost.
He was lucky in a way to be hit by a shrapnel and sent home in late 1944 -one of my uncles was not so lucky and disappeared without a trace.
We did not talk much about the war, my parents told me some anecdotes however.
Thanks Wolf for your personal reply.
Do you know if there were ever any serious protests in Nazi-Germany by women? Are there anywhere reports/article/books about this?
Among the “White Rose” students were the Stoll siblings eg – which of course were executed by the Nazi:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_and_Sophie_Scholl
Because of those harsh reactions most people were too afraid to openly protest against the Nazis.
If you want more info on those horrible actions search for Roland Freisler known as the killer judge.
There are many accounts of resistance in Nazi-Germany.
Unfortunately, the fanaticism of the general public made any public effect irrelevant.
Thanks for the link, will “investigate” [or just surf] from there.
At first look this caught my attention, the Geschwister-Scholl-Preis [“Scholl siblings” Prize] – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geschwister-Scholl-Preis
Didn’t notice any Hungarian winners so far…
What about nominating our dear Eva for this prize???
PS: is the HS archive really down or only temporary unavailable?
There might be some useful references in this:
https://nvdatabase.swarthmore.edu/content/german-wives-win-release-their-jewish-husbands-rosenstrasse-protest-1943
This Magyar Nemzet article https://magyarnemzet.hu/belfold/2023/12/soros-legfontosabb-emberei-4-evelyn-farkas also targeted Eva’s old friend Charles Gati basically as a U.S. operative trying to undermine the Fidesz goverment. Really all of us who commented on Eva’s blog Hungarian Spectrum are likely on lists being created by Orban’s police agencies.
Commenters on HS listed by OV’s 1-Party-State police agencies?
Well that sounds as if the mygthi lidur is afraid of words by others, thinking about this makes me actually proud!
BUT if possible somehow, it should be investigated I think, anybody any [bad or proud…] experience with this?
Let alone people who at least for some don’t even live in HU. If this can reassure OV, most of us are just passive spectators.
Like most of the Hungarians, come to think of it.
Eva was truly hated by Fidez supporters in the USA. Her research skills were very high and she would not easily give up on proving Orban’s corruption when she smelled a rat in a story she read in the Hungarian media.
Once Eva received a grant from Soros for her work on the Hungarian Spectrum and acknowledged it she effectively became not an eccentric 56er but a US agent.
Magyar Nemzet’s attack article today https://magyarnemzet.hu/belfold/2023/12/soros-legfontosabb-emberei-5-wesley-clark#google_vignette is targeting a fellow retired U.S. Army officer and Vietnam veteran General Wesley Clark. He is named as one of the key Soros agents and enemy of Hungary.
General Clark served with honor as a combat officer in Vietnam before I did (he went to Vietnam in January 1970 I went in early 1972) and he was severely wounded in a firefight yet continued to command.
General Clark led NATO and after his retirement became a public supporter of the Democratic Party and outspoken opponent of Trump. General Clark ran as a Democratic presidential candidate in 2004. I was more typical of retired Army officers in that I became a Republican but abandoned the GOP with the rise of Trump.
To this day I disagree with some General Clark about some of his comments in the media in particular Clark’s endorsement of President Biden’s quick exit from Afghanistan, but the Magyar Nemzet claims Clark became “konzul” to Péter Márki-Zay in his campaign against Orban. I have been searching for comments from General Clark on Péter Márki-Zay, but so far have found none. I know MZP during his campaign against Orban visited with NATO officials in Brussels and met with MEPs – including Manfred Weber, leader of the European parliamentary grouping of centre-right parties the European People’s Party (EPP) but really I can find no evidence of General Clark acting as an adviser to MZP.
I found a report on a meeting between General Clark and MZP. It is discussed in this article https://hungarytoday.hu/marki-zay-hungarian-troops-ukraine-wesley-clark/. The article states: “In his post, Márki-Zay said Clark had also brought up that the Western world sees Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán as Putin’s “puppet.” According to the post, Clark argued that Orbán’s back and forth maneuvering between Russia and the West is an attempt to weaken Hungary’s transatlantic and European ties.
Márki-Zay said the neighboring war is an affirmation of his stance that the April 3rd election is a decision between the East and the West, either “the Hungarian Putin or Europe,” the wrong or the right side of history.”
There was no ongoing consulting work going on between General Clark and MZP from what I can see.
Clark, being a semi-official Nato Ambassador, at this point, must have taken the job of improving relations with Hungary seriously and of course a good relation with MZP would have priority..
Any alliance with Orbán was already highly questionable, to say the least, so naturally, another horse to bet on would be a potential asset.
In my (northern) end of Nato-Europe, Hungarian forces are as close to being a potential enemy as possible. They proved themselves counter productive and poorly qualified in Nato excercises, lacking in training and courage and serve as remote reserves by now.
Orbán made no secret of his priorities – He simply awaits a tilt of the global power balance, to where the overpolpulated regions follow China’s lead.
Russia is part of the authoritarian equation, so he supports them.
Of course to ring in the new year team Orban put yet another bad US citizen on the list of targeted Soros agents see https://magyarnemzet.hu/belfold/2024/01/soros-legfontosabb-emberei-6-anne-applebaum .
Really one has to wonder if Anne Applebaum could be charged under the new laws if she reported from Hungary?
On George Lazar’s facebook page you’ll find a scathing comment on this latest Fidesz idiocy:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=508220147
Unbelievable!
He also reports with many details on the “Hungarian Boy Scout Association” which combines fascist ideas of the arrowcross with other fascust ideas – horrible!
Yes the same Hungarian scouts still exist in the USA. There is one troop in a Chicago suburb that meets at a reformed church as I recall.
Indoctrination of emmigrant youth seems a desperate measure, unless the political climate in the US has groomed enough young people for extremism – like it did in the days of McCarthyism, not too long ago.
By the way as a child I was a member of the Külföldi Magyar Cserkészszövetség (Hungarian Scout Association in Exteris). Our scout master back then was likely a former Arrow Cross member.
When I was commissioned US Army officer in Vietnam I received many letters from Hungarian American scouts . Of course after participating in the US invasions of both Panama and Grenada I had an ideological apithany. But in 2004 when the Book “Vietnam Chronicles The Abrams Tapes 1968-1972” Texas Tech University Press was published I had to question everything about my own military career.
My father and grandfather both were anticommunists so it’s not surprising the path I went down.
“Really one has to wonder if Anne Applebaum could be charged under the new laws if she reported from Hungary?“
Well she could test it by going there and keep reporting…
And then somebody else could translate her reports into Hungarian and publish locally, preferably on both paper and in digital format…
PS: if I had time and means, I think I would have voluntered…
The US media-scene is the perfect testing ground for Orbán’s brand of extremism.
Hungary is lost, media-wise, but if you think Hungarians would consider an active stance, publishing alternative views would be a start.