Talk:Jan Palach

Untitled
Palach stated, that he is a part of a group of suicide candidates and that they draw lots who will be the first one. Nothing else is known about that group. (speculations about CIA - involvement). --jvano 03:51, 14 Dec 2004 (UTC)

"...unfortunate popularity of Palach in the media" is a mean thing to say. For me and many other Czechs, who belong to a nation unfortunately often beset by inferiority complexes, Palach is a source of pride in one who cared enough about freedom and democracy to make the ultimate sacrifice, without being in any way a model as a suicide. (edit by User:132.185.144.122)

I am also Czech, but I am not proud of him at all. It is really an unfortunate phenomenon.--jvano 14:37, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
 * Discussion is old, but I hope we can agree to disagree (and that there's plenty of room for disagreement) and apply that to improving the article.
 * The pro argument, now made in many places, is that Palach's act of dissent spurred the 1989 protests to his memory,  which led to a cycle of confrontations with Communism that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall etc.  I don't know how you prove that statement!,  but it certainly "has legs" and should be reported from as neutral a perspective as possible. KenThomas (talk) 03:33, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

I removed the "unfortunate". Pavel Vozenilek 00:23, 15 August 2005 (UTC)
 * Belated thanks. KenThomas (talk) 03:33, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Revision as of 14:37, 8 January 2006
What an idiot. 81.178.234.43 23:27, 14 June 2006 (UTC)


 * You sir,are an untolerant fool,who does not know anything about being under a communist dictature for 40 yeares strait,after being under Nazi dictature 6 years strait.You dont make fun of (im an atheist,its just an exampleú say Christ,when he died for his teachings,nor of any other martyr,like say Jan Hus .Please think and RESEARCH before you dub someone an IDIOT stupidly,or it is only you,that has the right for that title.New Babylon 09:29, 20 January 2007 (UTC)


 * Not knowing what happened, perhaps the IP-only poster was an idiot etc.  However,  as an editor using only an IP,  they'll likely never to see your rant.  Therefore I'm not sure of the point of having the above on the discussion page (etc).  Could someone clarify the underlying issue?  Thanks.KenThomas (talk) 03:33, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Wave of Suicides
I would remove also the sentence "Reasons for such a wave of suicides are unclear.". The are very clear to anyone who has lived under a regime of tyranny. Anyone against this editing? --Vernetto 14:05, 29 April 2007 (UTC)

That sentence refers to a wave of suicides in 2003. Either you missed that or you're calling the current government of the Czech Republic a regime of tyranny, which is a little POV. =) - TheMightyQuill 23:34, 29 April 2007 (UTC)

Bronze cross
The bronze cross is fairly recent is it not? So the sentence saying it was put there after the Velvet Revolution (implying fairly soon after) is incorrect. Any comments? 89.240.14.166 21:49, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Jan Palach Square
Why the deuce wasn't there any mention of Jan Palach Square in this, when there is even an entire section devoted to "Place Names"?! I find the fact there is still a street named after him to be one of the most fascinating aspects of this story - in so many other countries, stories involving suicide are still censored for "the public good." One who took his own life would certainly never be considered a national hero in most Western countries, amirite? Omgplz (talk) 20:32, 21 October 2008 (UTC)

2003 deaths
Could someone more familiar with the incident, or able to read the local language, please indicate the reason given by these youths so long after the fall of the regime that oppressed Palach and all Czechs and Slovaks and so many others? The way the article reads now, it suggests that they felt their situation equal to Palach's. Were they oppressed minorities somehow, or was this some unrelated darkness in which Palach's name was implicated out of context? When I search for the name of the boy mentioned I come up with a sports figure. Abrazame (talk) 23:04, 11 April 2009 (UTC)


 * The reference used in the article seems more a rant against capitalism than a reliable source; it's a private page on the web,  which mostly complains that the velvet revolution did not solve a wide range of social ills (oh,  surprise ;).  I'll review the sources it links to see if there's any substance here;  it seems quite shocking that someone may have killed themselves over this,  and it could even be troll/parody.  I don't remember anything in the media at the time.  KenThomas (talk) 17:47, 25 June 2012 (UTC)


 * I do not see any independent sources for this story and the linked sources are all quite odd, as well as unverifiable.  I will likely remove this as non-notable unless there is further discussion.  KenThomas (talk) 00:34, 21 July 2012 (UTC)

Translating from Czech
NOTE: I've begun to translate this from Czech (which I read-- slowly). Started with more detail in the lede sentence, not sure when I'll have time to unravel and integrate the rest. Also will expand a bit, as in the addition. For those who may care, Radio Prague is the source of the first claim;  in Czech,  there's a lot more available about Palach in the past year. I'll source (and list potential sources here) also as I have a chance.

Please, no flame/edit wars. KenThomas (talk) 03:24, 25 June 2012 (UTC)

Unsourced claim
In the spring of 2003, a total of six young Czechs burned themselves to death - this definitely needs to be properly sourced. I live in the Czech republic and I've never heard of this. Yes, Adamec burned himself to death (he was apparently insane), but I have not heard of any other suicides in this manner. I'm sure it would have received much media coverage. Nazgul02 (talk) 11:19, 22 April 2014 (UTC)

The paragraph about his death is longer then the one about his life
Can we arrange this up please? It is so fast to die and so slow to learn walking before, maybe we should add something about the way he learnt walking when he was a child: before, on 4 legs, then on 2, you know the story don't you? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.199.199.92 (talk) 15:53, 30 July 2015 (UTC)

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Where was he really born -- Prague or Všetaty ?
Some sources say he was born in Prague, and some say he was born in Všetaty (Mělník District). Which is correct? Mksword (talk) 22:02, 30 January 2022 (UTC)
 * Czech sources say he was born in Prague. Všetaty is where he grew up. Nazgul02 (talk) 07:26, 9 February 2022 (UTC)