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Talk:Zbigniew Brzezinski

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Looks bad now because there are disproportionately too many images in relation to text, it'll be filled up soonish i hope --thames 03:02, 30 Oct 2004 (UTC)


How does one pronounce his first name?

Oddly enough, you pronounce it the way it's spelled. "Zbig" is like "spig", but you vocalize it. "Niew" rhymes with "pew". Accent is on the "Zbig". The last name is kinda like "burr-zizz-inski", but the "burr" is very short. Accent on the "in". Quadell ] 14:57, Oct 16, 2004 (UTC)
If you want to be even more correct in the pronunciation of his first name, make the "w" at the end sound a bit (but not entirely) like a "v", but that's only if you want to impress Polish speakers --thames 03:56, 18 Oct 2004 (UTC)
The Polish pronunciation is more or less: ZBEEG-nyev bzheh-ZHEEN-ski. I guess Americans may pronounce it as they wish. -- Kpalion 18:32, 21 Nov 2004 (UTC)


I deleted the following:0 ==External Links==

  • Photos of Zbigniew Brzezinski inspecting Osama bin Laden's dragunov rifle while at a terrorist training camp.
There is no scintilla of evidence that that rifle belonged to bin Laden.
I agree, there's no indication whatsoever that the person pictured is Osama, moreover the person pictured doesn't even look like Osama--thames 00:37, 15 Oct 2004 (UTC)

I'm also concerned about the contention that ZB supported "terrorist" training camps. There is no proof given in the article. -- Zoe

24.68.108.109, please provide proof of your accusations. -- Zoe

The claim is reasonably plausible, but I too would like to see a source. I have the Spiegel archive which contains the issue (45/2001) that reproduces the small photo, and the caption (translated) reads: "US security advisor Brzezinski: Russians went into Afghani trap. - At the Pakistan-Afghanistan border." No word about bin Laden, and even the web page above only mentions this in passing. The other guy in the photo could be bin Laden, I dunno. I found no email address on the website above to ask for details. If we can confirm the claim, I'd actually support putting the picture in the article under fair use, but as one of many photos demonstrating US support of fundamentalists it's not particularly interesting. --Eloquence

I have decided to remove the link http://www.unansweredquestions.net/timeline/1990s/grandchessboard1997.html because it contained material that asserted that ZB was part of some global conspiracy to impose a world dictatorship. Check the link yoruself. Neilinoz

I've added actual textual support for Brzezinski's relationship to the Afghani 'freedom fighters' as Reagan would later call them.--thames 00:37, 15 Oct 2004 (UTC)

Diacritical Mark on the 'N'

I've removed the diacritical mark. It may be the correct Polish spelling, but it is not used in English-speaking countries. The overwhelmingly predominant usage, in the United States especially, throughout Dr. Brzezinski's career has been without the diacritical. As far as I can tell, from Dr. Brzezinski's op-eds and TV appearances and books, he does not use the diacritical either. I've not gotten ahold of any of his books in their Polish translations, but it is possible that they use the diacritical—I'm not sure. In any case, I'm inclined to keep his name plain on the english version of the wikipedia entry for Brzezinski. —thames 04:11, 22 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Yes, the name is witten with the diacritical mark in Polish. I know he's better known internationally as Brzezinski but perhaps it should be written somewhere in the article that back in Poland he's known as Brzeziński? (Compare Nicolas Copernicus and Mikołaj Kopernik.) --Kpalion 10:14, 22 Nov 2004 (UTC)
Perhaps then you'd like to add to the intro blurb a small bit on proper pronunciation and the Polish spelling, distinguishing between the proper Polish and the American spelling/pronunciation which is used commonly (Zbig-new Bruh-zhin-ski vs zbeeg-niev brzheh-zeeń-ski). —thames 13:25, 22 Nov 2004 (UTC)
OK, I added Polish spelling and pronunciation. I'm not sure about what pronunciation is most common in English so I'll leave it to someone else. --Kpalion 15:27, 22 Nov 2004 (UTC)