It All Seems Just Like Yesterday

I’m not quite sure where I found this picture, but it’s stuck with me for the past few weeks. At first, it seems rather simple, but it reminds me of a lot of Romania’s recent history. Here’s the picture: There are several things to unpack here: The man in the photo is Nicolae Guta, a man I’ve written about many times before. You can see … Continue reading It All Seems Just Like Yesterday

Down By Law

WORD COUNT: 2809 Oh my. You know, it’s relatively easy for me to sit here at my keyboard and remotely dissect all of the overwhelming number of serious problems with the Romanian justice system. But it’s quite another thing to hear about it from a true insider, in this case, Raluca Pruna, the “technocrat” Justice Minister. Note: In this article, I won’t even refer to … Continue reading Down By Law

Un rien pervers, un rien nunuches

Wow. I’m a huge fan of the arts but there’s something surreal about seeing one of the most significant moments in recent history turned into a plot line for a show. If you understand French, you can read this interview about a new theater production entitled “Un jour, un destin” (A day, a destiny) all about the lives of Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu, with a … Continue reading Un rien pervers, un rien nunuches

A Hated Oligarch is Romania’s Last Hope

Moldova is rapidly heading towards the precipice: Moldova’s president on Wednesday rejected a proposal to nominate an influential politician and businessman to become the next prime minister, saying there were doubts about his integrity. But President Nicolae Timofti said there were reasonable suspicions about Plahotniuc’s integrity and said he would not nominate him for the job. He told the pro-European coalition to pick another candidate … Continue reading A Hated Oligarch is Romania’s Last Hope

Romanians Will Also Be Extremely Sensitive Toward Any “Talking Down” By Super-Power

I know with a title like that, you’re probably expecting some kind of extremely lengthy fulmination complete with a million blue links underlined. I know, I know, it’s like the recipe for blogdeath. Write too much = say byebye to your readers. However of course the secret upside to all of that is, of course, that you can do whatever the hell you want to. … Continue reading Romanians Will Also Be Extremely Sensitive Toward Any “Talking Down” By Super-Power