October 13th, 2008 — Articles, Personal Stories, Politics
If any Serbs are reading this blog (and I hope some are), please read this great article by Rosemary Bailey Brown. She’s married to a Serb ex-pat. While Rosemary has a unique perspective on things, she missteps comparing the histories of the two countries. Serbia is an OLD country; the U.S. is a very young country, relatively speaking. We can’t claim roots that go back to the 10th Century. Plus, it’s a bit disengenuous to think that Serbs want to befriend America or even to understand it. Their kneejerk reaction to a country that unilaterally and without provocation bombed them, bombed their highways and byways, power plants, electrical sources, water sources, radio towers (Avala, anyone?) is abject hatred and who can blame them?
I may be one of those small handful — two percent — of Americans who even know anything about Serbia and because I do, I’ve managed to delve into quite a bit of its history, and particularly into what really went on in the 1990s. Our country, along with Western mainstream media, has swept just about all of this right under the rug. They have reason to. What our country did was wrong and there is no excuse for it. And because of that, I’m ashamed to be an American.
But YOU have a chance to make a difference in how the majority of Americans view Serbia. And in how Serbia views the U.S. Myself? I have been fortunate enough to get to know a great Serbian man. I’d LOVE to think that most Serbs are like him, honest, forthright, gentle, decent, loyal, kind. He accepts me even though I’m sure he’s not happy about what my country did to his. But we got past that. Maybe others can too. Pozdrav!
October 13th, 2008 — Current Events, Politics, Protests
Podgorica, Montenegro Thirty four people have sustained injuries after riots broke out in the Montenegrin capital city of Podgorica. Opposition supporters gathered to protest against Montenegro’s recognition of Kosovo as a sovereign state. Thousands carried Serbian flags of various shapes and forms and banners proclaiming “KOSOVO IS SERBIA,” “MONTENEGRO IS ALWAYS WITH SERBIA,” “TRAITORS,” “HONOR IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVERYTHING.” His Eminence Metropolitan Amfilohije of Montenegro and the Littoral (of the Serbian Orthodox Church) said that the day Montenegro recognized Kosovo was “the darkest day in Montenegro’s history.” The rally was peaceful but loud, for the most part.
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May 26th, 2008 — Current Events
From my friend in Belgrade… thanks, Petar, for the pictures and narrative!
Russia’s Dima Bilan won the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest held in Belgrade. Maria Serifovic, last year’s winner from Serbia, handed him the flowers. Next year, Moscow will host the Eurovision Song Contest for the first time ever. An unusual thing is that Bilan sang barefoot and (almost) shirtless. In Russia, he has already become a national hero.
The Eurovision fireworks in Belgrade were spectacular - at Branko’s bridge, Kalemegdan, in front of the City Hall, outside the Belgrade Arena, and even inside the Belgrade Arena.
Thousands of people partied in front of the Belgrade City Hall. Eurovision 2008 was held on the 20th, 22nd, and 24th of May in Belgrade and about 20,000 foreigners came to the Serbian capital, and Belgrade became a city of major social events for those few days. All this took place at the White Palace, at the Communist-styled building known now as the Palace of Serbia (Palata Srbije - ex-Palata federacije), at the Sava Center, and at various embassies and clubs. Everyone had a good time and no incidents were reported.
