I have a particular fondness for Hungary because I spent a formative time studying there.
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I have a particular fondness for Hungary because I spent a formative time studying there. It was just after The Wall came down. I had so many encounters that conveyed a sense of hope for a bright future. I imagine the squares of Budapest feel like that again right now. ↵
It was an amazing time. Remember how Prague was "cool"? Budapest was the low-fi version of that — more real. Underground bars, street signs being changed, nobody spoke English, absolute mayhem. If it wouldn't be pretentious I'd write a small memoir of that time: ↵
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It was an amazing time. Remember how Prague was "cool"? Budapest was the low-fi version of that — more real. Underground bars, street signs being changed, nobody spoke English, absolute mayhem. If it wouldn't be pretentious I'd write a small memoir of that time: ↵
Within a period of *one month*, I experienced:
- bomb scare at the airport
- Pope's first visit (to a *very* Catholic country)
- Iron Maiden's first visit
- the Russian putsch (Yeltsin on the tanks), which reverberated hard in Hungary
- Unix coming East for the first time ↵ -
Within a period of *one month*, I experienced:
- bomb scare at the airport
- Pope's first visit (to a *very* Catholic country)
- Iron Maiden's first visit
- the Russian putsch (Yeltsin on the tanks), which reverberated hard in Hungary
- Unix coming East for the first time ↵It was almost as if the country had gone into a deep sleep for decades, and then blinked hard at a very bright light. Of course Hungary had always been the most "Western" of the Eastern bloc, but that was still a pale shadow of what was happening in the West. ↵
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It was almost as if the country had gone into a deep sleep for decades, and then blinked hard at a very bright light. Of course Hungary had always been the most "Western" of the Eastern bloc, but that was still a pale shadow of what was happening in the West. ↵
It's also important to remember that while some countries were regaining autonomy, Hungary has a very long history of NON-autonomy. Even the Austro-Hungarian empire was A-H in name; the real power was in Vienna. The Hungarians had a definite inferiority complex about it, knowing they were second. ↵
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It's also important to remember that while some countries were regaining autonomy, Hungary has a very long history of NON-autonomy. Even the Austro-Hungarian empire was A-H in name; the real power was in Vienna. The Hungarians had a definite inferiority complex about it, knowing they were second. ↵
So it wasn't like HU had been a proper independent democracy that briefly lost independence. Rather, being on the Pannonian plains, it had been invaded from all directions: Mongols, Ottomans, Habsburgs, Nazis, Soviets. So it was like a fledgling trying out figure out what it *meant* to take wing. ↵
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So it wasn't like HU had been a proper independent democracy that briefly lost independence. Rather, being on the Pannonian plains, it had been invaded from all directions: Mongols, Ottomans, Habsburgs, Nazis, Soviets. So it was like a fledgling trying out figure out what it *meant* to take wing. ↵
Also, due to its singular language, Hungary had never been a particularly diverse country. I remember very well how my Jewish friend and brown self would get *stared at, hard* in public places. What I saw in subsequent decades (eg, Jobbik) was a very obvious extension of what I'd experienced. ↵
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Also, due to its singular language, Hungary had never been a particularly diverse country. I remember very well how my Jewish friend and brown self would get *stared at, hard* in public places. What I saw in subsequent decades (eg, Jobbik) was a very obvious extension of what I'd experienced. ↵
So I suspect it's not easy for many outsiders to understand Hungary. You have to view it both through the lens of its 1100 yr history, including long periods of non-independence, and through its linguistic isolation from its neighbors. And what it did under Nazis, and what was done to it by Soviets. ↵
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Also, due to its singular language, Hungary had never been a particularly diverse country. I remember very well how my Jewish friend and brown self would get *stared at, hard* in public places. What I saw in subsequent decades (eg, Jobbik) was a very obvious extension of what I'd experienced. ↵
@shriramk some of my lecturers during my time at CEU in Budapest were working on research arguing for re-integration of Roma schools that "accidentally" segregated the Roma children into special needs schools. CEU was trying to be very diverse. Unfortunately the entire university was forced out the country for what appeared to be political reasons. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/16/ceu-classes-move-to-vienna-orban-hungary-ousts-university
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So I suspect it's not easy for many outsiders to understand Hungary. You have to view it both through the lens of its 1100 yr history, including long periods of non-independence, and through its linguistic isolation from its neighbors. And what it did under Nazis, and what was done to it by Soviets. ↵
I went into a bin to find old photos I haven't looked at in 30 years. Here's a symbolic one. The flag-with-the-hole was symbolic of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, and this spot commemorates that event. It was revived after the end of the Soviet Union. I imagine some are flying it again now… ↵
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I went into a bin to find old photos I haven't looked at in 30 years. Here's a symbolic one. The flag-with-the-hole was symbolic of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, and this spot commemorates that event. It was revived after the end of the Soviet Union. I imagine some are flying it again now… ↵
This, I'm realizing, is from my grunge band album cover photo era. My friends John, Eric, and Jeff pose with me in front of the bas-relief sculpture of the coronation of Szent István in Esztergom. ↵
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This, I'm realizing, is from my grunge band album cover photo era. My friends John, Eric, and Jeff pose with me in front of the bas-relief sculpture of the coronation of Szent István in Esztergom. ↵
And finally, Paul Erdos (Erdős Pál) visited us and gave a talk, and kindly posed for photos. I was much better with a camera than my roommate, so he got the in-focus snap. (-: Unfortunately, this proximity did not make me any smarter, so here I am.
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@shriramk some of my lecturers during my time at CEU in Budapest were working on research arguing for re-integration of Roma schools that "accidentally" segregated the Roma children into special needs schools. CEU was trying to be very diverse. Unfortunately the entire university was forced out the country for what appeared to be political reasons. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/16/ceu-classes-move-to-vienna-orban-hungary-ousts-university
@t0yv0 Yep, CEU was a very neat project, and I thought it was cool that such a place existed. But clearly had no room in an "illiberal democracy". It could have turned into one of Soros's great gifts to his country of birth, but I guess they didn't want it. )-:
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@t0yv0 Yep, CEU was a very neat project, and I thought it was cool that such a place existed. But clearly had no room in an "illiberal democracy". It could have turned into one of Soros's great gifts to his country of birth, but I guess they didn't want it. )-:
@t0yv0 CEU was still in Budapest when I visited in 2014 or so (though I visited a tech company, not the university), but already Jobbik signs were prevalent and I wondered how long they would last there. Not much longer, it turned out. )-:
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And finally, Paul Erdos (Erdős Pál) visited us and gave a talk, and kindly posed for photos. I was much better with a camera than my roommate, so he got the in-focus snap. (-: Unfortunately, this proximity did not make me any smarter, so here I am.
@shriramk I didn't know you did Budapest Semesters! What an experience
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So I suspect it's not easy for many outsiders to understand Hungary. You have to view it both through the lens of its 1100 yr history, including long periods of non-independence, and through its linguistic isolation from its neighbors. And what it did under Nazis, and what was done to it by Soviets. ↵
@shriramk it reminds me of the title of a history of Hungary I read, I think the subtitle was something like "1000 years of victory in defeat"
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And finally, Paul Erdos (Erdős Pál) visited us and gave a talk, and kindly posed for photos. I was much better with a camera than my roommate, so he got the in-focus snap. (-: Unfortunately, this proximity did not make me any smarter, so here I am.
@shriramk damn that's a small number. And you simultaneously improved mine. Thank you for the reveal.
Hey @SteveBellovin and @mattblaze and @peterhoneyman your Erdos number may have just improved in my measurable universe
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@shriramk damn that's a small number. And you simultaneously improved mine. Thank you for the reveal.
Hey @SteveBellovin and @mattblaze and @peterhoneyman your Erdos number may have just improved in my measurable universe
@cigitalgem @shriramk @mattblaze @peterhoneyman I didn't think I'd co-authored anything with you. That said, @mattblaze and I have an Erdős number of 2, since we've co-authored stuff with Ron Rivest, who's a 1.
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@cigitalgem @shriramk @mattblaze @peterhoneyman I didn't think I'd co-authored anything with you. That said, @mattblaze and I have an Erdős number of 2, since we've co-authored stuff with Ron Rivest, who's a 1.
@SteveBellovin @cigitalgem @shriramk @mattblaze
i'm stuck at 3 by way of richard ladner and mihalis yannakakis
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@SteveBellovin @cigitalgem @shriramk @mattblaze
i'm stuck at 3 by way of richard ladner and mihalis yannakakis
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@SteveBellovin @cigitalgem @shriramk @mattblaze oh ha ha of course!
