-- ŁAPIŃSKI ADMITS PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE IS AWARE OF APPEALS FOR A VETO ON THE ELECTORAL ORDINANCE FOR THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2018/07/31/ -- ZIEMOWIT SZCZEREK: YOUR BROTHER, LEFTIST, IS A CURSED HOMIE - writes in Krytyka Polityczna: “Dear Leftists, stop shaming people who wear t-shirts with eagles and cursed wolves. They wear them not because they are hysterical nationalists, but because they want to feel pride in something.”

-- AND WHAT SHOULD THEY HAVE ON THEIR T-SHIRTS? THE FREEWAY? - SZCZEREK CONTINUES: “And what should they put on these t-shirts: little eagles? The freeway? Marx? They don't want Marx, they want something that will boost their self-satisfaction deficit concerning their new family: the European Union. The West. The West can be proud of this and that, human rights, industrialization, efficient institutions, good cars – we only have that we were the bulwark and, as Stasiuk and others wrote, they could tinker with all those Renaissances and Baroque periods. Yes, thanks to Gombrowicz, Mrożek, and many others, left-wing intellectuals have already processed this, but Poland is not made up solely of left-wing intellectuals. And intellectual chanting: ‘What, you uneducated guy, don't you know what an educated person should think about Poland's role as a bulwark? So you're stupid’ makes the average citizen dislike the left-wing intellectual, makes them annoyed and irritated. Just like a pretentious hipster drinking a kale-foam latte with a splayed toe annoys the average guy from the city. And that’s what this whole latte talk is about, dear Leftists, not about the fact that everyone on the left comes from a good home and can afford it.”

-- PO IS EMPTY INSIDE, THERE IS NOTHING THERE - SZCZEREK CONTINUES: “The empty inside PO has nothing to call people to beyond idealizing the Third Polish Republic; there is nothing to gather people around today. Only sometimes they manage to admit – after clearing their throat and swallowing the frog – that on the whole, it's worth considering social policy, which these young people who jump around behind barriers are postulating because they've read Marx over a latte, because it's fashionable now. And the fact that among PO members there are such phenomena as councilwoman Suska, who saw nothing wrong with railing on social media against 'letting in Ukrainians,' about whom the councilwoman 'has had her opinion for a long time' and attributing some evils, circulating in gossip, to them, testifies to the internal narrative prevailing in PO.” http://krytykapolityczna.pl/kraj/szczerek-ziomek-wyklety-twoim-bratem-lewaku/

-- A DEVILISH ALTERNATIVE - PIOTR IKONOWICZ IN RZ AGAINST PO AND PiS - writes in Opiniotwórcza: “A 'faction' is growing that is tired of PiS's increasing appropriation of power and public life. However, these same people have convulsions at the mere thought of the state returning to the hands of a corrupt, deceitful, and disdainful elite.”

-- IKONOWICZ ON A THIRD FORCE: “The need for the emergence of this third force, which will save us from the predicament of choosing between the current government and the liberal opposition, is obvious. The concentration of ever-increasing power in the hands of PiS, which in the short term allows for settling scandals, curbing the arbitrariness of dishonest judges, prosecutors, and bailiffs, somewhat mitigating the symptoms of poverty and social exclusion, or finally eliminating extreme poverty among children and youth, is, however, associated with enormous risk in the longer term.” http://www.rp.pl/Publicystyka/180739948-Diabelska-alternatywa-Miedzy-PiS-a-liberalna-opozycja.html

-- ANDRZEJ STANKIEWICZ WRITES THAT THE PRESIDENT HAS RETURNED TO PiS - GUARANTEES OF A LOYAL AUTOGRAPH - in Tygodnik Powszechny: “Andrzej Duda has ended his unsuccessful attempts to regain sovereignty. The stakes are a second term.” https://www.tygodnikpowszechny.pl/prezydent-wrocil-do-prezesa-154317

-- PRESIDENT ADRIAN HAS RETURNED - JAKUB MAJMUREK IN GW: “If Duda doesn't reverse this dynamic, for example by vetoing the new electoral ordinance for the European Parliament, it will be very difficult for him to get out of the role of Adrian, into which he has been pushed again. President Adrian might be convenient for Kaczyński in the daily management of the party, but in the long run, it does not serve PiS.”

-- THE OPPOSITION CANNOT PRETEND THAT EVERYTHING WAS FINE BEFORE 2015 - MAJMUREK CONTINUES: “Because PiS justified its grab for the judiciary by appealing to real social emotions. Although the truth about Polish courts is far from the caricature in Zbigniew Ziobro's speeches, the opposition cannot pretend that everything was in order before 2015.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,23736258,bilans-bitwy-o-sad-najwyzszy-prezydent-adrian-powrocil-majmurek.html

-- THE PRIME MINISTER, NOT THE PRESIDENT, IS BEGINNING TO PLAY THE ROLE OF THE MODERATE - Michał Szułdrzyński in RZ:“A year ago, the president himself said that he would like to lead a moderate faction within the right-wing camp. Today, there is no trace of his moderation, and Mateusz Morawiecki is increasingly taking on this role. And according to well-informed sources, the president's relationship with Morawiecki has become purely official. And Morawiecki has made significant contributions to the ruling camp, such as easing tensions with Israel and the USA over the IPN law, which was amended thanks to the prime minister's efforts. And Duda? What can he boast about, apart from the failure of his flagship project, the 'Constitutional Referendum'? If there is any political support behind the president – which is not at all certain – it should start sounding the alarm. Because the stakes in this game are nothing less than the authority of the head of an almost 40-million-strong state.” http://www.rp.pl/Komentarze/180739936-Prezydent-Andrzej-Duda-gra-o-powage.html

-- IS PiS A VICTIM OF ITS OWN SUCCESS? - ŁUKASZ ROGOJSZ ON THE AUTUMN WAVE OF PROTESTS - writes in Gazeta.pl:“For PiS, this would be the worst possible scenario on the eve of local elections. In turn, the opposition is already rubbing its hands with glee and hopes that nationwide protests by various professional groups will help it launch a political counteroffensive. A counteroffensive that would culminate in a spectacular electoral victory.” http://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/7,114884,23735045,pis-pada-ofiara-wlasnego-sukcesu-partie-kaczynskiego-czeka.html

-- THE END OF THE OPPOSITION'S LOVE IN WARSAW, PO MARGINALIZES RABIEJ: “In recent weeks, Rafał Trzaskowski's coalition partner – Paweł Rabiej – has not participated in many pre-campaign activities. He did not take part in PO MPs' press conferences, nor was he present during the '18 districts in 18 hours' campaign, during which Trzaskowski visited all Warsaw districts in one day. The politician also did not participate in a tweetup (informal meeting) for journalists organized by Trzaskowski last week.” https://wpolityce.pl/m/polityka/405946-koniec-milosci-opozycji-w-warszawie

-- DR RAFAŁ CHWEDORUK ON THE CRITICISM OF TRZASKOWSKI'S CAMPAIGN: “Criticizing Trzaskowski in the context of his campaign problems is not particularly difficult. This is one of the strangest stories in Polish politics in recent years. A major political party with a relatively experienced politician is faltering in its campaign launch in its electoral stronghold. When it comes to the second round, the notorious Rafał Trzaskowski will inevitably be more susceptible to the conditions set by various liberal, critical, or ambivalent circles towards PO. We should absolutely not be surprised by this.”

-- CHWEDORUK ON THE SOURCES OF THE CRITICAL TONE OF THE REPORTAGE IN GAZETA WYBORCZA'S LONG-FORM JOURNALISM:“This party was formed, among other things, as a result of conflicts within the Freedom Union (Unia Wolności), a party that merged the Democratic Union (Unia Demokratyczna) and the Liberal Democratic Congress (Kongres Liberalno Demokratyczny). The milieu of former liberals, which became the core of PO, left UW in an atmosphere of conflict. This was remembered for many years in circles close to the former UD. Therefore, the relationship between some opinion-making elites and the narrow leadership of Platforma, originating from KLD, has always been very complex. In short, it was an alliance due to the power of PiS, not necessarily due to forgiving all sins and full program compatibility. In short, the liberals realized that politics cannot be conducted in an aristocratic and elitist manner. I suspect these relationships are conditional.” https://wpolityce.pl/m/polityka/405877-chwedoruk-krytyka-trzaskowskiego-w-gw-to-efekt-podzialow

-- MICHAŁ ŻEBROWSKI RESPONDS TO ACCUSATIONS REGARDING A CAMPAIGN SPOT FOR TRZASKOWSKI WHERE HE APPEARED AT THE EXECUTION WALL: “10 years ago, I took part in the campaign of a then little-known politician, Rafał Trzaskowski. I have known Rafał for 40 years and I know he is an honest and wise man. There aren't many like him in politics today. By participating in that spot, I didn't expect that 10 years later someone would dare to try to give it a different meaning. I truly would have died for Rafał, the problem is that the spot referred to my role... as Kordian, and has nothing to do with the context some people are trying to assign it today. Using a campaign from 10 years ago and linking it to the Warsaw Uprising commemorations is malicious, cunning, and deceitful. For your convenience, I am informing you that 'Kordian' is a Polish drama by Juliusz Słowacki. I recommend reading it in its entirety, and for public television researchers, here is a link to brief information on Wikipedia.” https://www.facebook.com/111780615505106/posts/2227731730576640/

-- SEBASTIAN KALETA TO ŻEBROWSKI: “Are you pretending to be stupid, or were you asked to act that way? The context of the spot is obvious. The wall, the shots, a shout associated with the shouts of subsequent generations of insurgents, as well as civilians. For example, please look at the bullet holes in the prison on Rakowiecka Street, where civilians could have been executed during the Warsaw Uprising. And the Wola Massacre? Have you heard of this mass murder? It's easy to hide behind your interpretation of the performance, but it's weak. It's a shame that your friend doesn't have the courage to apologize for this and you are covering for him. By the way, in which year did you receive a theater hall in Warsaw? Wasn't it by chance the same year this spot was made, i.e., 2009?”

-- MOCKERY OF THE EXECUTION OF POLES - WPOLITYCE: “The internet has recalled a scandalous film from Rafał Trzaskowski's past European Parliament campaign! Actor Michał Żebrowski in a staged execution scene shouts: 'For Rafał!'. Is this mockery of the heroic sacrifice of the soldiers of the Warsaw Uprising, the sacrifice of many Poles executed by criminals?!” https://wpolityce.pl/polityka/405972-kpiny-trzaskowskiego-i-zebrowskiego-z-ofiary-polakow-wideo

-- THE CLIP WAS PUBLISHED BY DAWID WILDSTEIN: “Trzaskowski went too far. Yes, at one time he encouraged people to vote for him. Mr. Trzaskowski. Stupid jokes about the execution of Poles fighting for our freedom and using that in a campaign is simply barbaric. It's time to apologize.” https://twitter.com/DawidWildstein/status/1024159775624450048

-- KAJA PUTO RESPONDS TO CRITICISM: THE SOLDIERS OF "POPiS" WERE STUPID AGAIN, OR THINK BEFORE YOU POST: “The only evidence that the demonstrator was Skidan was supposed to be their physical resemblance. Despite this, the message quickly spread through the anti-government information bubble. Although no serious media outlet reported on it, sensations from Twitter were shared by politicians, public figures of all kinds, and even… journalists. Including, among others: PO spokesperson Jan Grabiec, Beata Czuma, Borys Budka, Hanna Lis, and Krystyna Janda (the latter three have already deleted it). And behind them, thousands of other critics of PiS. A separate paragraph should be dedicated to Monika Suska, a Warsaw PO councilwoman, who was inspired by the fake to express her eternal opinion about Ukrainians, and then deleted the post and apologized 'to everyone she offended.'” http://krytykapolityczna.pl/kraj/pomysl-zanim-poszerujesz/

-- PLATFORM OF FAKE NEWS - Michał Wróblewski on WP: “Civic Platform (Platforma Obywatelska) likes to present itself as a modern, tolerant party fighting against lies. Meanwhile, politicians of this group showed everything this past weekend that they supposedly condemn: a PO councilwoman revealed her xenophobia, and leaders and activists of Platforma massively disseminated fakes that could have resulted in a lynching of an innocent person.”

-- THEY LAUNCH AN ANTI-FAKE PLATFORM AND LIE - Wróblewski continues: “Not even a few hours have passed since the launch of the anti-fake website, and PO politicians are doing everything that the party's candidate for Mayor of Warsaw warns against: they are manipulating and lying. In the worst possible way.” https://opinie.wp.pl/pfn-czyli-platforma-fake-newsow-6278936856946305a

-- THERE IS NO ALTERNATIVE TO SLD ON THE LEFT - ANDRZEJ ROZENEK in conversation with Jacek Nizinkiewicz in RZ: “On the left, SLD is the only real force. I regret that not all left-wing circles want to cooperate, but thanks to the determination of my colleagues, 24 entities are entering the SLD Lewica Razem committee: political parties, associations, think tanks. PO is turning left, there is the Together party (Partia Razem), Jan Śpiewak's circle, Piotr Ikonowicz, Robert Biedroń has his ambitions, and in addition, PiS is grabbing part of the left-wing electorate with social slogans. Isn't there too much movement on the left? There is movement because there are numerous left-wing voters who deserve dignified and honest representation. Is Grzegorz Schetyna suitable for this? I doubt it. The next time the polls show that there is demand for an anti-European or nationalist-Catholic party, will he also make such a turn? Where is the limit of disgrace?” http://www.rp.pl/Wybory-samorzadowe/180739941-Andrzej-Rozenek-Gronkiewicz-Waltz-byla-zlem-Prezydent-z-PiS-Wieksze-zlo.html

-- WITOLD JURASZ ON THE ROLE OF SECRET SERVICES - writes on Onet:“The role of the secret services in certain areas of Polish foreign policy is greater today than it was under the PRL. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is considered leaky and thus does not guarantee the confidentiality of conversations. It has therefore been sidelined. A situation where secret structures completely non-transparently control a significant area of the state means that this area ceases to be an element subject to democratic control and democratic debate.” https://wiadomosci.onet.pl/tylko-w-onecie/witold-jurasz-rzadzaca-polska-prawica-ulega-czarowi-tajnych-sluzb

-- SE ON THE WEDDING OF MYRCHA AND GAJEWSKA:https://www.se.pl/wiadomosci/polityka/poslowie-po-kinga-gajewska-i-arkadiusz-myrcha-sa-juz-malzenstwem-dzieci-schetyny-na-slubnym-kobiercu-aa-mU7B-9o2h-gAvS.html

-- BIRTHDAYS: Paweł Łączkowski, Rev. Kazimierz Sowa, Jacek Ambroziak, Jan Truszczyński, Arkadiusz Litwiński, Artur Burchacki, Marek Osiecimski.