Young Roma Are Making Their Way Forward

This is a piece I wrote for Euroblogas.lt that sparked lots of discussion on Facebook... therefore, I decided to share it here as well!

I met Crina Elena Morteanu in Budapest four years ago. At the time we were studying in the same - Central European - university (CEU), and occasionally passed each other in the corridors. Crina Elena had slightly darker skin, but in such multicultural space I would never have guessed her nationality and had no idea she is Roma until the very graduation. International University is indeed a remarkable space where different cultures mingle in everyday life, and the stereotypes are changing and melting away, because everyone here is a guest, and every guest becomes a minority.

But outside of this “greenhouse” life flows in slightly different furrow. "I was born in Romania in a Roma family. During my studies I felt discrimination from both my teachers and colleagues, "- Crina Elena was sharing her experience. “I have always had to double my efforts in order to meet the expectations of the professors. Although I was stigmatized in school, the experiences I passed through motivated me even more to further my education. Due to all my negative experiences and being thirst of justice, I decided to study law. After I completed my studies in law I felt I could be better empowered to fight for my rights and for other Roma people’s rights if I further my education and knowledge on human rights. As a result, in 2009 I completed a Master of Laws in Human Rights at Central European University in Budapest. Presently, I am working on right to education of Roma children in Europe, for a human rights organization, based in Budapest.”

The CEU each year invites Roma students to study under a special scholarship scheme, which was designed to enhance opportunities for gifted Roma youth and to help them integrate into society. Such grant programs are working in a number of European universities - it was available in Lithuania as well. However, young Roma are facing the biggest problems when trying to get employment. “After graduating, I got a master's degree, but for a long time I could not get work in my native town, because then I became ‘over-qualified’,”- says a young Romani woman from Romania. However, she did not let it stop her, improved her knowledge of English and went to continue with her studies abroad. 

The experiences of Crina Elena and her peers are not sweet, but they can be considered success stories. These young people have been able to break through, despite of many obstacles – not everyone is so successful. The young educated Roma often return to work in their own community, international organizations or local structures representing Roma interests. “The number of Roma intellectuals has increased over the years. This is one positive aspect that has changed since 1990 when Roma rights movement started, "- told Crina Elena when asked about the changes. Two years ago the integration of the Roma issue was raised at European level. For the first time it was proposed to create a strategy for Roma integration issue. However, until now, the process has not been significantly advanced. "The EU does not have policies for distinct ethnic groups: there are neither Jewish policies nor Basque or Breton, so I do not think that suddenly Roma policy will appear. The very structure of the European Union is not in favor for this - and perhaps this is a good thing, "- shared Michael Stewart, teaching at London's University College and CEU. 

Meanwhile, most of the Roma in Europe, however, go on in a vicious circle: they distrust, they fail to integrate - they are not trusted. Different countries have different approaches trying to solve this problem, sometimes in especially drastic ways. In 2010 the former French President Sarkozy decided to just send the entire Roma communities from his country back to Romania and so “to get rid of the problem” – just like Italy, Denmark and Sweden did before him. Even in Romania, where Roma comprises 3.2 percent. of the population, prejudices against Roma remain as strong as in other countries. Only last week a radical right-wing organization proposed an “initiative”: to pay Roma women, who voluntarily agree to sterilization. Fortunately, this proposal received his angered reaction from the public, and the district council member who welcomed the policy had to resign from his post. However, Romania had another project, which has been already finalized: the mayor of Transylvania’s Baia-Mare town has decided to move several Roma families to the outskirts of the city ... and then built a high wall separating the Roma from the rest of the town. “It is safer,” - he argued. Only for whom?

On the one hand, the European Union is often defined in terms of values, which we call its foundation. Freedom, equality, free movement of people - all this is promised to the candidate states and their citizens. However, stereotypes and attitudes against Roma remains a stone around the neck of these fundamental values. And while integration of the Roma is extremely complex and multifaceted problem, over the years some countries have moved forward. As Crina Elena says, “I believe what is happening with the Roma nowadays is not anymore a question of human rights but of acceptance. Is the majority ready to accept us, the Roma as part of the society?”

 

A perfect job

Perfect jobs don't exist. And not only because working couldn't be great - no no, my dear lazy friends. When you find an activity, which makes you jump happily out of your bed every morning, don't let it go, cause that sounds like you've found your place! But sometimes it happens in life that you are faced with a choice: to look for an office job, which would give certain frames and boundaries, or to try freelancing and create everything for yourself. 

I had a chance to experience both of it and I can tell that it can be difficult to decide which one is better. Both options have their own pluses and minuses, both open new opportunities - and put certain constraints.

Working at the office:
- it has a beginning and it has an ending, which is well defined and can be at times great and awful. Yet in the end of the day you just close the door - and all the worries are left behind. The rest of the evening is all yours, and if it' Friday - there is something to celebrate!
- this kind of work is stable. You can sleep calmly knowing that in the end of each month you'll be getting your salary, and you can already start planning what you'll be able to afford for that. You can plan your holidays and wait for it with a booklet on the wall above your work station - for inspiration.

- oh, right, and you always have a work station! Which means, you won't have to spend hours (and $$$) in the coffee shops or stay in bed the whole day. Such job gives you a reason to get up every morning, look good and be efficient. Which is great!
- unfortunately, working according to schedule you will always have to plan your time carefully, and to do some personal stuff at work - hide it from your boss or ask permission. The same is when you're planning holidays. Or think of anything new/awesome.
- you have a boss.

Freedom and independence:
- freelancing is often attractive because it looks so relaxed - imagine, when you have so much free time, how many things you would do!... But in reality it all comes to one question - would you really? Would you manage to forget all the distractions around and concentrate on working, the whole time?
- people around you might forget that you are also working - "look at that dude, in facebook the whole time, not locked to one place, I wish I had such holidays too!" Unless you are a journalist. Or earn so much that it makes sense for everyone to call it "real job".
- free and independent also means - unprotected. All the natural hazards like political changes, electricity cuts or lack of contracts this month - it all weights on your little shoulders. Though at the same time it gives so much flexibility that with a bit of persistence and a bit of luck you can get much better results than expected. The sky is the limit!
- every day is a new challenge and a new beginning. And it is all up to you how much satisfaction you will have in the end of the day.

So, what to choose now?

Lacrimosa

Some days are just worse than all others. Heavy. Unbearable. Stretched to infinity. When all you want to do is shut yourself off from the world, crawl under the blankets and disappear.

What do you do?
Wait
Run
Walk for hours, until your feet starts aching
Talk about it
Be silent about it
Let yourself be sad
Cry
Pull yourself together
Listen to something soothing, that would help to take your thoughts away.
Like something heavy.
or Mozart
or Vintage Trouble.
Just drift in the music, until it's all over.

How much of Them do you want here?

Various dictionaries describe "alien" as:
- Owing political allegiance to another country or government; foreign; 
- Belonging to, characteristic of, or constituting another and very different place, society, or person; strange;
- A person who is not included in a group; an outsider.

This is a bitter post, or rather inspired by bitter experience - but I will try to keep complaints to myself, and concentrate on facts and observations. A while ago I posted an entry on integration in a new country - it is a curious process, for both sides. The newcomers must try, but not overstretch  until ridicule. The locals often see foreigners as some curious exotic pets, who need to be cared for, fed regularly and advised on every occasion. I've been on both sides, and did exactly the same - so no judging here. 

But the problem of foreigners - and the BIGGEST 'problem' - is that being different, they always bring change. Adaptation process necessarily means change, it means expanding your comfort zone, opening eyes to new thoughts and ideas, even though some can be exciting and some totally unacceptable. It is a deep issue - the whole Europe has been solving this puzzle for decades already. How much of foreigners do we actually want to see around us?

On one hand, having foreigners to come is good. For small countries it adds prestige, importance, tourism industry adds to the budget. Countries become known and have better chances for various bargains in international arena. It is generally great to be labelled as "open" and "innovative". Having foreigners on the main streets also shows that country is advancing and people from other countries also see their possibilities here. Most countries also declare openness for cultural exchange. 

But is cultural exchange really that positive? Or so widely accepted? In words - perhaps, but reality is often different. As my husband rightly nailed it - nobody really likes foreigners. Showing hospitality is one thing. Having them stay for a while, serving best wines, dancing and singing, partying, travelling together - all that is fine, is great, is...touristy. Bow how many people realize that in order to accommodate someone new, much more will have to change. It's like when people are sitting comfortably on a bench and invite one more to join - they will all have to move and squeeze a little. This is something most people don't think about. 

Polite or Helpful

The other day I was riding a marshrutka, standing with a heavy bag on my shoulder - it took exactly 20 seconds for a woman sitting nearby to suggest that she could hold it for me, and no no, this is really not a problem, and cmon, it will be easier for me. I took different buses and marshrutkas several times that day, and the same story repeated each time.
It got me thinking: so many times I was complaining that Georgians lack politeness - not that nobody smiles on the street, but people can push you, cut line right in front of you; drivers always beep their horns and shout on each other (and swear too! oh gosh, that's where I'm learning all the swearing words in Georgian....). And they never let the pedestrian cross the street at the zebra place - don't even try that. But I don't want to continue complaining - the point is, being a polite foreigner, one can get really frustrated and stressed out on the street. You have to struggle and fight for yourself, every single day and in many situations. And you also have to get rude at times. Which is hard.
But one thing that outweighs all of this is the extreme warmth and helpfulness of the people when you are in trouble. Not even very serious trouble: if you need to find your way, or to get some information, or you're carrying something heavy, and need an extra hand - there will always be someone near and ready to assist. People give help and ask for it a lot - something that is quite forgotten in some Western countries, where it's just so important to be independent.
I still think that being polite is necessary, and that it helps to make everybody's life just less intense and more pleasant. But being helpful is something so much more real.
If I even had to present Georgia and Georgian people, I would surely put it as a point #1.

Who rules the rules

Recently I've been thinking about freedom, and where it actually comes from. I was reading a travel blog of my friends, who are trotting around the world - what an ultimate sense of freedom it must be! Living in such simplicity, surrounded by nature, people and silence, and having the rules that make sense. 

Cause there are so many rules that don't really make sense. We limit ourselves - mostly, to feel safer and more comfortable, and to not need to try what's new and unexpected. That's one thing the world could learn from Georgia - braveness to give it a try. If there is a space, it means it's possible to pass through it; if there is a chair, it means it's possible to sit on it. There is no questioning, "oh, is it allowed?" Of course, it is allowed. And if not, you'll find out in due time - but till then maybe you will have achieved what you wanted already. I guess, it's a survival skill, quite lost in richer countries. 

We are so careful in Lithuania. Sometimes it makes sense, of course (!!!), but other times just stops you from improvising. And getting you where you didn't expect to go, but where you'd enjoy yourself the most. 

How To Be An Alien. And Not To Loose Head.

I found one very smart text, that is worth sharing. Written by George Mikes [1912-1987] a while ago, published  by Wingate, London / NY in 1946, and sill great source of learning. Presenting to you, ladies and gentlemen: "A Handbook for Beginners and More Advanced Pupils".

"It was like this. Some years ago I spent a lot of time with a young lady who was very proud and conscious of being English. Once she asked me - to my great surprise - whether I would marry her. "No," I replied, "I will not. My mother would never agree to my marrying a foreigner." She looked at me a little surprised and irritated, and retorted: "I, a foreigner? What a silly thing to say. I am English. You are the foreigner. And your mother, too." I did not give in. "In Budapest, too?" I asked her. "Everywhere," she declared with determination. "Truth does not depend on geography. What is true in England is also true in Hungary and in North Borneo and Venezuela and everywhere."

I saw that this theory was as irrefutable as it was simple. I was startled and upset. Mainly because of my mother whom I loved and respected. Now, I suddenly learned what she really was.

It is a shame and bad taste to be an alien, and it is no use pretending otherwise. There is no way out of it. A criminal may improve and become a decent member of society. A foreigner cannot improve. Once a foreigner, always a foreigner. There is no way out for him. He may become British; he can never become English.

So it is better to reconcile yourself to the sorrowful reality. There are some noble English people who might forgive you. There are some magnanimous should who realise that it is not your fault, only your misfortune. They will treat you with condescension, understanding and sympathy. They will invite you into their homes. Just as they keep lap-dogs and other pets, they are quite prepared to keep a few foreigners."

To what extent is this true? So many my fellow nationals, and myself, have chosen to become alien somewhere, for all kinds of reasons. It is very exciting - and emotional - in the beginning; frustrating after some time passes and it becomes no longer a holiday; and getting more "normal" after a while. Local people are indeed very welcoming, although some have their own understanding how to help you integrate. (Oh, and I was doing same at home, too!!). When in reality all that foreigner needs is to be treated like everyone else. But then again - the language barrier, all the cultural misunderstandings.... Complications, complications!..

There are certain rules, however, following which one can blend in and make oneself as "acceptable and civilised as one possibly can". And that is probably the best way of integration. 

There is only one danger of overstretching. Just as George Mikes said: "Study these rules, and imitate the English. There can be only one result: if you don't succeed in imitating them you become ridiculous; if you do, you become even more ridiculous." True story.

From "wooden ship" to sensitivity

Never before I really thought what it means to be sensitive towards different ethnicities. Not only being respectful, but also communicating it, in the right way. That the famous cake in Lithuania "Negriukas" can sound like a deadly insult to somebody. That people can leave the room only because somebody said the "N" word out loud, in English. Or that there is a difference between "people of color" and "colored people".

So many misunderstandings can come just from the fact that we don't know about each other, what is sensitive in other cultures and what is actually not. I remember a story how in one hotel in Vilnius a Latino guest was asked to show some additional documents, only because he was served by a new receptionist who followed the rules with more scrutiny. He took it personally and it wasn't easy for personnel to calm him down! You never know where you can get an intercultural lesson.

Here in Georgia I heard many stories that make one smile. Like, people expressing their affection to foreigners of other ethnicity in the most inappropriate language - but so honestly and warmly, that their intentions couldn't be mistaken. Or when someone would point at differently looking people on the street and shout names at them - this is not funny, but makes one raise both eyebrows and think, why would anybody do that?. When even wearing red sneakers can be considered "Weird....", it is hard to stand out of the crowd. But still worth it. Because it is really interesting to watch how diversity transforms from an "old old wooden ship" into something more real. What will it bring here? I wonder...

More on the Music and the Barriers

I have noticed that people have different attitudes on chewing gum - when is it polite/nice/appropriate to have something in your mouth in public? Well, it depends. But there is an absolute no to it - when you are on the stage. I was thinking of it during Dato Evgenidze's concert, where one young boy was blowing (a trumpet? cannot remember for sure....) and chewing gum at the same time. He was good. But so out of the context with those jaws moving. At those moments he was not sincere, was not all in the music - some part of him was distracted from it.

 ...what are you 
hiding from?...








 
People like making barriers. Having a safe space between themselves and others. It is pretty frightful to endorse the world and be to the fullest - but if you try once to see others as simply human beings, who maybe came to listen to your music; or to hear what you have to say; or just happened to be around, you can make some big discoveries. The biggest one - that everything is much more simple than it looks...

Pic borrowed, from http://www.simonedecker.com/WorksChewinginVenice10.html

Dato Evgenidze - living in the music

There are such musicians who are clearly in their shoes. They enjoy what they are doing - and let you enjoy it too. A little while ago I attended a real party on the stage - Dato Evgenidze's anniversary of 45 years on the stage. It seemed he knows that it's his evening, and he was taking it all - the fun, the attention, the sound, and the joy of improvisation. And for the listeners it was over one hour of most sincere musical performance: how often can you see a piano player who uses it all - the keys, the strings, the inside, the outside....? I left wanting more, and thinking that music can be everything and come from everywhere - if you only thirst for it.

Schlafes Bruder

Sometimes it happens that I cannot fall asleep. It's been two weeks now - no matter how I try, my eyes are not closing until 3am. It's a strange feeling - being alone in the middle of the night, no sound, no movement, only thoughts. They start from one, which sticks in  the mind and screams "please develop me into an endless thread of other thoughts, please please - are you sleeping yet? and now? and now? cmooooon". Wish I had a switch-off for thinking.

But then I always remember one book, read long time ago, which explains the meaning of insomnia. "Schlafes Bruder" (by Robert Schneider, would be in German. It tells the story about a boy who helplessly fell in love and decided not to sleep - because he who sleeps does not love. And then, not willing to loose those precious moments, he decides not to sleep - even though it means eventual death. The story is so tragic, and yet has something magical in it... and so musical too.

From a movie "Schlafes Bruder", according to the book

Komm, o Tod, du Schlafes  Bruder,

Komm und führe mich nur fort. 

Löse meines Schiffleins Ruder, 

Bringe mich an sichern Port. 

Es mag, wer da will, dich scheuen, 

Du kannst mich vielmehr erfreuen. 

Denn durch dich komm ich herein 

Zu dem schönsten Jesulein.

Mountain roads

...Tas nepakartojamas jausmas, kai naktį kalnuose mikroautobusiukas išvažiuoja į priešingą eismo juostą posūkyje, o aplinkui tik žvaigždės ir juodos medžių viršūnės.
Tik tiek, kitų mašinų nėra, jas išduotų šviesos, bet virpuliukas vis tiek išlieka: "Kažin, kiek dar tų posūkių?.."


...That unique feeling, when at night in the mountains minibus goes to another lane while turning, and there is nothing around only stars and black peaks of the trees. That is all, there are no other cars - they would be visible, their lights would betray them, but the thrill remains: "I wonder, how many turns left?.."

Back to USSR or happy Sarkozoba!

I like the Beatles, and I do like their songs - but this one sometimes makes me depressed. Especially when I see it become a reality - in the most amazingly obvious way.

Today the whole Georgia - or at least its capital Tbilisi (but anyway almost half of the country lives here) - celebrates a semi-official festival "Sarkozoba". The title came from a Georgian fashion to add a suffix '-oba' to the names of their celebrations. And it has little to do with Sarkozy himself - his only contribution is that he came here to Tbilisi today. He is indeed a well known politician of a powerful country, who deserves some respect. No argument here. But Saakashvili's office has an interesting attitude to paying respects to someone important.
First, the annual celebration Tbilisoba was moved from the end of October to match the weekend of Sarkozy's visit. Now some say it is because of the bad weather in the end of October. But Tbilisoba usually marked the end of grape harvest in all the regions, so that many people could bring their grape or fresh wine to Tbilisi for this day. Thus even though the sun will be shining this weekend, the whole occasion kind of looses its original sense. Well, unless Sarkozy will stay until tomorrow and will be able to see the fun of Georgian people.
Also, today was an official day-off in all schools and public institutions. And yet not for free - all public officials had to attend obligatory gathering on the main -Rustaveli- street, which was organized to greet Sarkozy. Can you imagine, whole long street full of people - what a warm greeting it had to be! I wonder if Mr.Sarkozy actually knew how these people appeared there. But I know, because I have seen with my own eyes how over 40 special buses passed towards Rustaveli, full of people, just half an hour before the official meeting. Some said that it probably brought people from the regions, though others thought that they just gathered officials from the ministries.

Does not it remind the sad soviet experience, when everyone was forced to participate in the official parades on national holidays? I was told, my grandfather would come out to the street and start sweeping it while the parade was passing - it was his protest, of which I am so proud. It seemed that the soviet era finished. But the soviet style of celebrating somehow still finds its way...

Oh, show me round your snow peaked
mountain way down south
Take me to you daddy's farm
Let me hear you balalaika's ringing out
Come and keep your comrade warm
I'm back in the USSR
Hey, You don't know how lucky you are, boy
Back in the USSR...

P.S. Next morning addition - it appeared that those public officials were searched by security before entering the square; some items, like mirrors or umbrellas were taken away. Then they had to stay there for 3 hours, while whole meeting with Sarkozy lasted only half an hour. And to think that a low ranking official earns ~400 GEL (that is, ~180 EUR)...

There are times when people get a little crazy

Have you ever noticed how strangely people act when they fall in love? They make funny faces, talk in baby's voice, call each other by animal-names; sometimes even do something completely stupid, just to make their one and only smile. How cute is that!

I was watching one couple on the street the other day and wondering, why is it so? Why does love make people act in all those silly ways, which normally one would never do? Maybe they want to impress that other person, to show oneselves better than they really are - such act usually looks rrrrreally funny from the outside. Or maybe, just maybe, when you find that one person with whom you can feel completely free, all the craziness comes out, which has been suppressed deep under the serious surface.

The magic button — Make Everything OK

The magic button — Make Everything OK

Amazingly soothing effect. I guess sometimes you just need to take it all to your hands, press the button - and move on!

All the things you do or 100 ways to waste your time

Who doesn't know the feeling when you have some big task, quite enough time for it - and millions of distractions that keep you from starting!.. I wonder why human's will is so tricky sometimes, but there is already a loooooong list what I've been doing instead of working.

• Watching movies (can be interesting and even useful if you choose the right ones);
• Watching TV serials (no no, not the famous telenovelas, that would be already a huge step down......although even real funny serials can steal whole working day. not funny anymore);
• Watching youtube videos / checking some funny websites / FACEBOOK / writing emails (sending emails, deleting emails..... actually it seems that computer is kind of a perfect time killer. So how should one use it for a real work???);
• Cleaning home (that's the constructive one! though if I reach some long-not-opened drawer.....the day is lost again);
•  Remembering something that you thought to do long time ago. Why starting from the urgent stuff, if you can start from the old stuff?
• Looking through your photo albums; 
• Calling a friend for a cup of coffee (which might turn to a whole day + evening out);
• Cooking! Start from something nice, with a lot of ingredients, so you could enjoy it slowly... after that a dessert is, of course, a necessity. Of course, home made. Of course, with some real nice drink by a new recipe.
• Learning something new and impractical, like to edit your photos on a newly released program, which later appeared take up too much your energy, so you drop it in the middle. 
• Start making some crafts - actually, this is really nice and relaxing (and my results will appear on a world wide web soon!);
• Sports. I heard people do that. I envy them a little.

Mmmmmm, it is not a definite list, naturally, anyone can edit it adding bunch of ideas. Steering through the window or blogging, I heard, are also quite good ones. But enough of that. There is a cure, and I will share it with you. One my professor used to call it "the Principle of Cheburashka". (Cheburashka is a sexless cuddly little creature from a great soviet animation, who was found in a box of oranges. For the ones who didn't have a chance to see it - check here.) The principle sounds:
start doing it
do it 
and you will do it. 

And the best part - it really works! :)

Nuotrauką teko pakeisti, bet šią mielą radau kitame bloge - apie Jerevaną! (http://mary-watcher.blogspot.com/)

One big or two smaller? The future of Ist and Anbul

When do politicians come up with the best ideas ever? That's right - before elections! And with the coming Parliament elections in June this year and Presidential ones next year Turkey is becoming the hub of fun. 

One of the grand new ideas that came to the Prime Minister Erdogan is to split Istanbul into two cities.  It is true - the city is too big; it is hardly manageable; migration in and out (but especially in) is uncontrollable - as well as the growth of the city. 

But with all due respect, what will happen with the Turkish legend of "the city that unites Europe and Asia"? Will the birth of Ist and Anbul be just as glorious - and even more important, would it change anything? For all that is clear, if you bring more bureaucrats and politicians, and build more institutions, it does not mean the system will start working better. But now the most important is to blow the wind of changes.

And for the ones watching - wait for more. There will probably be, as elections approach :)

and here is the beauty of Istanbul - enjoy while you can. official video of European Capital of Culture 2010.

Careful, just careful

One of the every-day pearls from the South Caucasus - you never know what you can hear here. Just two weeks ago a Georgian granny switched off internet for whole Armenia and Eastern Georgia; and now the news arrived that Izrael had declared Georgia "a dangerous country". It stayed in Izraeli black list for over a week only, but still - would be funny if it wasn't so ridiculous.

What was the problem actually? For one thing - Georgia has become too close to Iran, could be called its best friend in the region. One needs investments, another - a space where to invest, travel and cooperate... would be a win-win, but it seems, not everybody likes it.

"According to the State Staff for Fight against Terrorism, the list of countries dangerous for the Israeli citizens included Egypt, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, Mali, Mauritania and Venezuela, Armenia, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.
The Israeli security service advised its citizens to restrain from traveling to the above-mentioned countries," - says the press.

"The Anti-terrorism Headquarters of Israel named Georgia and Armenia amongst those countries where the Israeli might be kidnapped and acts terrorism could be conducted against them," - says another peace of press.

Cornering the Devil - ????

Recently I have watched a movie with Nicolas Caige, and I think he is the strongest man on this planet. Why? cause....he managed to corner the Devil himself, with the bear hands holding him to the wall (wow!). Now, it is both sadly heroic - as in a way it symbolizes the eternal human's wish to fight the evil. And yet it is mostly sad and disappointing. Since when Devil has been so underestimated? Did the moviemakers do their homework to get deeper in this subject, or did they purposely place the Devil next to "all other bad guys", making him just another terminator, terrorist, some wicked madman, whom a human could match and actually beat? (and beat - with a sword, as if it was of flesh).
The trailers and a scene where the good guys are fighting with the evil spirits, I suppose, show enough.
Enjoy the trailers and save your time. The movie's not so much worth it :)

Surviving New Year

Some believe the end of the world is going to come in 2012. After yesterday I think it might be similar to New Year's Eve. Just think: the drunk euphoria, the madness of the crowd, the explosions of fireworks, people running to all directions few minutes before midnight...
No, I had a fun evening - after that. But witnessing NY in Munich was something of an experience!

At all times people wanted 'bread and games'; Romans had their somewhat cruel circus; a hundred years ago or even earlier colorful carnivals were already being celebrated where wives "were not allowed to be jealous"; now - you name it, everyday might turn to a festival, sometimes smaller, sometimes bigger. Occasions like NY occurred as one of these all-including moments of madness, or steam-blowing, or however you call it. Giving all yourself to the celebration, taking it all from this one night - as if it was the last one.

Just why it looks so different with sober mind...

"Man Power" talks for itself...