-- 29 YEARS AGO, the Sejm elected Tadeusz Mazowiecki as Prime Minister.

-- ARCHIVAL TEXT FROM WIĘŹ ON TADEUSZ MAZOWIECKI'S JOURNALISM: "In his journalism, he touched upon the most important issues, delving into them meticulously and deeply. In his moving existential essay 'Return to the Simplest Questions' from 1973, he contemplated the meaning of life and suffering, and where to find hope. He wrote about an increasingly clear alternative: 'either we start to unlearn asking ourselves such questions, or – to put it differently – we completely submit to the influences of a civilization that does not anticipate such questions and removes them from our field of vision – or we must have the courage to face the problem of 'why,' and especially to answer whether it makes sense to ask ourselves such a question, whether it makes sense to make it an element of our own conscious life'. http://wiez.com.pl/2017/04/17/powrot-do-tadeuszowych-pytan/

-- INCREASINGLY MORE DECISIONS IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH ARE DICTATED BY PHARMACEUTICAL CONCERNS, AND INDIVIDUALS CONNECTED TO THEM GAIN INFLUENCE - Judyta Watoła in GW: "In the drug policy department of the Ministry of Health, more and more decisions are being dictated by pharmaceutical concerns, and individuals connected to them are gaining influence. (...) Lipska also sat on the team that prepared the document titled 'State Drug Policy.' Alongside two other ministry employees, Czech invited Iwona Skrzękowska-Baran, Artur Fałek, and Rafał Zyśk to it. All three were or are connected with pharmaceutical companies. Fałek, formerly the director of DPL, works at Rafał Janiszewski's law firm, which advises concerns. Zyśk worked at the National Health Fund, then had a company advising pharmaceutical firms, and in the spring became a scientific advisor to the tobacco concern Philip Morris." http://wyborcza.pl/TylkoZdrowie/7,137474,23819248,kto-miesza-w-naszych-lekach-chaos-i-decyzje-pod-dyktando-koncernow.html

-- WE'VE STARTED HAVING BAD FUN - Piotr Skwieciński on the frigates issue: "This is happening in the international arena. One should not hysterize about Poland's image abroad; even the most important players often behave publicly differently than a Pole prone to inferiority complexes would expect from 'great Western democracies.' Nevertheless, it is not good that, after the Caracal helicopter affair (again: I am not commenting on the substantive side of the decision here), our country is once again discrediting itself to some extent. Generally speaking: I have the impression that we have started to have bad fun." https://wpolityce.pl/m/polityka/409155-to-zla-zabawa-czyli-fregaty-jako-symptom

-- ZUZANNA DĄBROWSKA ON ATTACKS ON WOŚ DENYING HIM THE RIGHT TO EXPRESSION: "It is therefore not surprising that, following the provocative declaration of publicist Rafał Woś that 'democratic socialism should be built together with PiS,' a powerful discussion erupted in many left-wing circles, and various defenders of freedom began denying Woś the right to freedom of speech. The most zealous were those who aligned themselves with Civic Platform, believing that PiS is destroying democracy and freedom." https://www.rp.pl/Analizy/180829667-Z-PiS-czy-z-PO-Diabelska-alternatywa-paralizuje-lewice.html&template=restricted

-- PIS PUBLISHES A NEW SPOT SHOWING HOW METRO WILL BE BUILT IN BIAŁOŁĘKA, TRZASKOWSKI ON RECEIVING CALLS FROM KACZYŃSKI - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2018/08/24/ -- FOREIGN POLICY ANALYSIS ON TUSK: "Tusk, who served as Polish prime minister from 2007 to 2014, has emerged as a lonely voice of strident resistance against far-right attacks on European liberal democracy." -- IS TUSK MORE NEEDED AT HOME? - FURTHER FROM FOREIGN POLICY: "It’s clear that Tusk is eager to enter the fray wherever right-wing populists increasingly pose a challenge to European liberalism. But it’s likely that he will soon have to choose his battles. For now, Tusk is focused on facing down Trump’s erratic economic and military threats to the entire continent. He may soon decide, however, that he’s more needed at home." https://foreignpolicy.com/2018/08/20/europes-donald-can-fight-dirty-too/

-- BIEDROŃ IS CAPABLE OF REACHING MANY ELECTORATES - Jakub Majmurek in wp: "After four years in the Sejm and another four in local government, Biedroń has proven his political talent, diligence, and ability to learn from mistakes. Today, he is one of the few politicians capable of reaching a very diverse electorate: intellectual and plebeian, from large, medium, and small cities, strongly identity-left-wing and lacking a distinct ideological identification. In this regard, he resembles – albeit on a much smaller scale – Aleksander Kwaśniewski from the 1995 campaign or Donald Tusk from 2007. Neither Razem nor SLD have anyone like him in their ranks – a leader capable of stepping outside the party's natural bubble, post-communist in the case of Sojusz and urban-intellectual-activist in the case of Razem. https://opinie.wp.pl/jakub-majmurek-zjednoczenie-lewicy-logiczne-i-wciaz-nieprawdopodobne-6287449102317185a

-- INVESTIGATORS WILL JUDGE JUDGES - front page of Rzeczpospolita.

-- THIS ENTIRE OPERATION OF SELECTING JUDGES IS UNTENABLE - Wojciech Tumidalski in RZ: "This entire operation is untenable and strips the future Supreme Court of the credibility necessary for its functioning. It is painful to watch. I would not be surprised if, under the influence of the upcoming judicial appointments, more widely respected judges – not only those who are already thinking about retirement due to their age – were to resign from serving in the Supreme Court. In the grand reshuffling of the Supreme Court's composition, the fait accompli method prevails. Always effective. The European Court of Justice, which is soon to assess the reform of our judiciary, will have to grapple with it. Is the aim to preempt the Court?" https://www.rp.pl/Opinie/308239871-Latwiej-zostac-sedzia-SN-niz-awansowac-do-sadu-rejonowego---komentuje-Wojciech-Tumidalski.html

-- SELECTING THE MOST IMPORTANT JUDGES IN POLAND CURRENTLY TAKES 15 MINUTES - NEWSWEEK: "Moreover, the members of the National Council of the Judiciary had little time to ask candidates for Supreme Court judges questions, thus limiting their hearings to self-presentations only. 'Rarely in any company does a recruitment interview last 15 minutes, yet here it turns out that this is enough time to select a judge for a court that adjudicates the most important cases in Poland,' notes Dr. Barbara Grabowska-Moroz from the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights." http://newsweek.pl/polska/polityka/wybor-najwazniejszych-sedziow-w-polsce-trwa-obecnie-15-minut,artykuly,431817,1.html

-- ZIOBRO'S CHAMBER IN THE SUPREME COURT - headline in GW.

-- BLIND DATE - MONIKA OLEJNIK IN GW ON THE SUPREME COURT: "I don't see any changes for the better. Only that the selection of representatives for the most important chambers of the Supreme Court is a blind date. It's like a teacher giving grades without looking at homework. And it's clear what it's about – to beat the ruling of the European Court of Justice on the reform of the Polish judiciary." http://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,23819545,randka-w-ciemno-olejnik.html

-- TRZASKOWSKI AS, ACCORDING TO EXPECTATIONS, THE FUTURE CHAMPION OF THE PLATFORM, IS STRANGELY UNRESTRAINED IN HIS GALLOP - Looking at such results, it's easy to believe that even if PO fielded a lame horse with no teeth, it would still win. However, Trzaskowski is – according to the expectations of the liberal electorate – the Platform's future champion, only strangely lacking in the initial burst of gallop.

-- A CALM ANALYSIS INDICATES THAT EVEN A VISIBLE LACK OF DETERMINATION SHOULD NOT DEPRIVE TRZASKOWSKI OF VICTORY, BUT WHAT SENSATION CAN HE CAUSE - FURTHER FROM GĄDEK IN GAZETA.PL: "A calm analysis of the numbers suggests that even a visible lack of determination should not deprive Trzaskowski of victory in Warsaw. Even the intrusive propaganda on public television aimed at Trzaskowski. Even the condescending smiles over his campaign when other media assess it. On the other hand, observing Patryk Jaki's determination, following the plethora of his promises and the emotions he evokes among people, one can believe that the PiS candidate is capable of causing a sensation."

-- HE MAY BE CONSIDERED A POLITICIAN WHO DOESN'T WANT TO, WHO WALKS DIGNIFIEDLY ON THE GRASS RATHER THAN CHEWING IT: "Running over a nun won't make him lose the Warsaw election immediately. But it might do something else: make him widely regarded within the party as a politician who doesn't try hard. That Trzaskowski walks with dignity on the grass, rather than biting it. That even Platform sympathizers will see him as a lazy socialite, not a fighter ready to confront PiS. As a candidate who, with his attitude, says: 'I don't feel like it, so what are you going to do about it? You'll vote for me anyway.' For the Platform, such temptation for the recalcitrant is risky. And although we are still far from the realization of such a scenario, Trzaskowski has already written the first chapter in the pre-campaign."

-- HE MAY BE STRIPPED OF HIS IMAGE AS A PROMISING TALENT, EVEN IF HE WINS - FURTHER FROM GĄDEK: "If Trzaskowski doesn't change his activity much, he might still limp to victory and move into the city hall. But he will be stripped of his image as a brilliantly promising talent. Instead, he will bear the stigma of a politician who, even if he won the election, was defeated in the campaign. And this will take away his chances of continuing his career at the highest levels. http://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/7,114884,23808643,jacek-gadek-trzaskowski-moze-wygrac-wybory-ale-jednoczesnie.html

-- HE IS NOT A GOOD CANDIDATE FOR THE CURRENT TIMES - RAFAŁ KALUKIN IN POLITYKA: "Clearly, everyone sees Trzaskowski's deficits. Sometimes he sets himself up. No one forced him to make narcissistic pronouncements with Geremek in the background or trivial comments on Polish Army Day. He is not a good candidate for the current times, especially in the current context. Because if you are a typical representative of the intellectual society of the capital, and facing you is a spirited young man from the housing estates, there is no mercy. The stereotype of 'elites' is immediately activated, and a person must fight not so much with the opponent as with their own self-made image."

-- KALUKIN WRITES ABOUT THE LOW DEMANDS OF CONTEMPORARY MEDIA MECHANICS, THAT TRZASKOWSKI HAS BEEN COMPLETELY UNDERCUT AND THAT, MOSTLY BY NOMINAL ALLIES: "And yet the media, theoretically largely favorable to the current opposition, have insisted on further reinforcing this stereotype. Because the constant urging for Trzaskowski to work harder, all this choral 'more activity and commitment,' 'take an example from Jaki,' primarily highlights the inability to meet expectations. After Komorowski's defeat, such advice even seems sensible. The only problem is that the PO candidate will never be agile enough, active enough, or diligent enough. He will not copy Jaki's audacity, his efficiency in casual encounters with the electorate, his cleverness, and his reflexes. Nor will he be equally determined, as politics is likely the only life option for the PiS candidate, while Trzaskowski has a fairly wide range of options in reserve. But all the worse for him. In every episode of the campaign, he ultimately has to confirm the stereotype of a jaded and lazy liberal. He has been completely undercut, and mainly by nominal allies. https://www.polityka.pl/tygodnikpolityka/twojemiasto/1761196,1,jaki-lepszy-od-trzaskowskiego-a-w-czym.read

-- GW ON PIS'S COSTLY LEGISLATIVE MISTAKE: "Heads of state and municipal companies are receiving severance pay, even though they remain in the same positions. This is the result of changes thanks to which PiS wanted to save money. Over PLN 100 million could have flowed out of the state treasury." http://wyborcza.pl/7,75398,23819378,bubel-prawny-zamiast-oszczednosci-dzieki-regulacjom-pis-szefowie.html

-- JAN ŚPIEWAK PROMISES TO PROTECT ALL ALLOTMENT GARDENS IN WARSAW: "- We want to save all allotment gardens in Warsaw, to make it impossible for developers to build on them - declared Jan Śpiewak, candidate for the president of the capital from the Wygra Warszawa committee, on Thursday. As he emphasized, the gardens are the 'green lungs of Warsaw.' https://tvnwarszawa.tvn24.pl/informacje,news,spiewak-ocalimy-wszystkie-ogrody-dzialkowe-w-warszawie,269119.html

-- SMOG HAS STRONGLY DIVIDED THE GOVERNMENT - Rzeczpospolita.

-- RZ ON THE SILENCE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS REGARDING SMOG:Aleksandra Ptak-Iglewska in RZ:"The government may not reach an agreement. But during the election campaign – local governments have a strong voice. Meanwhile, the topic of smog is practically absent from the media from April to October. And it's a shame. Because candidates for the presidential office of Warsaw, instead of conducting or fighting a negative campaign, could address a socially important issue. Krakow has shown that even without coal standards, it is possible to ban burning coal in furnaces. It is possible to co-finance furnace replacement programs, introduce central heating. Cities have a voice, if only they would finally take up the challenge." https://www.rp.pl/Blogi/308239892-Gdy-samorzady-milcza-rzadzi-lobby.html

-- BIRTHDAYS: Beniamin Bielecki, Jerzy Polaczek.