Seriously doubt it. The Cardinals are all hardcore conservatives and fiercely protective of Catholic dogma. Change won't come from the top - it will come from Catholic civil organizations.

The only thing I'll give him is his influence in Poland during the 1970's-80's. The pressure of having a Polish Pope was too much for the communist government to handle. Talk to some Poles or visit Gdansk's Solidarity museum. They firmly believe that there would have been no Lech Walesa or Solidarity without John Paul…

Well, he actually wanted to retire back in 2005, even before being elected as the new Pope. I remember back then that he said that he had prayed to God wishing that he wouldn't be elected since he was already very tired, but God didn't listen. He warned his team that his papacy would be short - 3 years max.…

Yep. My mother is Spanish, and I lived for a while in Spain... they get an A+ in red tape as well. However, my story took place in Berlin. Granted, Berlin is not stereotypically German. I have an Italian friend and we often joke around that, being Italian/Spanish, we have high expectations on German efficiency so it…

"Maybe it's a stereotype, I don't know, but Germans may sometimes be more serious/strict/bureaucratic, don't you think?"

I disagree with this. I think we are giving baby boomers a lot of credit for the sexual revolution in the 60's, the feminist movement, civil rights etc. They didn't really push for it, they didn't really accept it (hello there sexism/racism/homophobia, you are still alive and kicking!). Just like with the Soviet…

I wouldn't say that these cultures are more restrictive - at least not when it comes to their children. I think there is a combination of two things: a) Kids often live with several generations of the same family, either at the same house or in the same neighborhood/community. That means that they are used to talking…

"are forcing me to share responsibility without authority"

"Only here in USA people expect children to behave like adults as soon as possible, and are intolerant of misbehavior in any context, at all times!"

You know, I think kids should be exposed to adult behavior early on. Meaning: it is a good thing to take kids to a fancy restaurant, or to museum/art gallery, or go to a classical music concert. Kids need to learn that not everything in life is Chuck E. Cheese, smiley fries, hot dogs and playgrounds. How the hell are…

Oh yeah. When I was around 3-4 years old, my family spent some time in Mexico City. My parents had this little game to keep me distracted while they finished their meal: I had to count all the people that I could spot from my seat that were wearing glasses, men with a moustache, women with earrings, etc. One day, they…

*slow clapping"

*slow clapping*

THANK YOU! Oh, how you speak the truth….

Nope, it doesn't make you a bad person. But in Rihanna's case, if she choses to stand behind a guy that has so obviously deceived a judge about his community service, then yeah, I kind of think she is a shitty person.

Oh God... *shudders*

I don't know.. they are making a profit indeed, but to me they don't sounds like a blockbusters at all. To me that sounds like they are just breaking even. Plus, you have to consider: how much are they paying her for each movie? If you are paying your stars something between 5-10 million dollars a movie, then I would…

Oh, I agree with this. I think it is too much sometimes. When you are asking me for the third time if everything is ok or if I need anything, then yeah, it becomes annoying. As long as you are polite, take my order, bring my food, be gracious if you made a mistake... then that would be more than enough for me. Don't…

Well, no, because the Battle of Puebla had nothing to do with defeating Napoleon III or kicking Maximilian out of the country. Mexico won de Battle of Puebla, and a year later, the city fell again to French forces. And they ended up staying for three years. That's the reason why Cinco de Mayo is not really a holiday…

Cinco de Mayo is an interesting case. For starters, Cinco de Mayo is NOT a holiday in Mexico. It is a total average day: kids go to school, all banks are open, people go to work and there is barely any mentions of it in the media. Nobody really celebrates it: no margaritas (not Mexican, btw), no burritos, no sobreros…