-- REPORT FROM ANOTHER PIS CONGRESS - KACZYŃSKI ON RABIEJ'S WORDS: https://300polityka.pl/live/2019/03/16/ -- PIS MP VOTED AGAINST JOINING NATO. TODAY SHE REFUSES TO TALK ABOUT IT - 300POLITYKA: https://300polityka.pl/news/2019/03/15/poslanka-pis-20-lat-temu-glosowala-przeciw-wejsciu-polski-do-nato-dzis-nie-chce-o-tym-rozmawiac/

-- WAITING OUT THE EUROPEAN COALITION LIKE AN INFECTIOUS DISEASE - MAREK SAWICKI IN DO RZECZY: “I am not Kuźmiuk or Wojciechowski, who left PSL when they didn't like something and then wanted to pull activists over to Law and Justice. I am a farmer, I'm not going anywhere. The decision to join the European Coalition was made democratically. Now we have to wait out our participation in this coalition. Exactly like you wait out an infectious disease. But who knows, maybe this coalition will be a form of vaccine for us, one that will immunize us for the future…” https://www.dorzeczy.pl/kraj/96950/polityk-psl-koalicje-europejska-trzeba-przeczekac-jak-chorobe-zakazna.html

-- LOBBYISTS ARE LEADING US DOWN A BLIND ALLEY REGARDING ALCOHOL - HEAD OF PARP KRZYSZTOF BRZÓZKA IN CONVERSATION WITH GRZEGORZ SROCZYŃSKI: “Of course. The alcohol business produces not only alcohol, but also information. Fake news. For years, lobbyists have been leading us down a blind alley: only prevention works, let's invest in education, let's have talks, lessons in schools about the harmful effects of alcohol. And they are happy to finance this because they are so responsible. Vodka companies. Social psychologist Thomas Babor has gathered data from around the world and proven that prevention alone simply doesn't work. You can spend any amount of money on it, but if it's not combined with tightening the screws on the alcohol business, limiting advertising, reducing the number of points of sale – it's money thrown down the drain. If knowledge alone were enough, there wouldn't be so many addicted doctors, pharmacists, and chemists. The alcohol industry benefits the most from anti-alcohol prevention funded by the alcohol industry.”

-- IN POLAND, ALCOHOL IS EVERYWHERE - SAYS THE HEAD OF PARP: “In Poland, alcohol is everywhere. Gas stations, 24-hour kiosks, grocery stores, TV ads. There is one point of sale for every 275 residents. This means that essentially every residential building has its own kiosk selling alcohol or a pub.”

-- WE ARE BREAKING EUROPEAN RECORDS IN THE NUMBER OF ALCOHOL AD SPOTS - CONTINUES THE HEAD OF THE NATIONAL AGENCY FOR ALCOHOL-RELATED PROBLEMS: “Excise duty was lowered and ads appeared. 'Mariola with a feline gaze.' 'Bols Boat.' These first ads didn't directly mention alcohol because there was a fairly restrictive law. And the business went to great lengths to dismantle it. In 2001, a terrible amendment came into effect, which means that today we are breaking European records in the number of alcohol ad spots.”

-- THANKS TO ADVERTISING, WE ARE THE NATION MOST SOCIALIZED WITH ALCOHOL - CONTINUES THE HEAD OF PARP: “Thanks to the flood of advertising, we are the nation most socialized with alcohol. We treat alcohol like a normal food product. The presence of vodka in every grocery store and at every gas station has a similar effect on us. A lot of money is spent on prominent display. It's not just about selling alcohol, but also about an important image effect: alcohol is meant to be something ordinary.”

-- THERE IS A DRAFT BILL IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH TO BAN THE SALE OF "SMALL BOTTLES" - CONTINUES THE HEAD OF PARP IN A CONVERSATION WITH SROCZYŃSKI: “Yes. As soon as possible. There is a draft bill in the Ministry of Health to ban the sale of vodka in 100 ml packaging. Ministers Radziwiłł and Pinkas – both anti-alcohol – were in favor.” http://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/7,114883,24553054,pijemy-wiecej-niz-w-prl-trzeba-zamknac-80-proc-sklepow-z.html

-- THANKS TO POLAND, THE EUROPEAN UNION IS REBUILDING ITS CREDIBILITY IN MIGRATION POLICY - KONRAD SZYMAŃSKI IN CONVERSATION WITH GRZEGORZ OSIECKI AND MAGDALENA CEDRO IN DGP: “It is thanks to Poland that the EU is rebuilding its credibility by abandoning the idea of forced relocation. If the previous government had effectively opposed relocation, a proper compromise, which we are so painstakingly reaching today, would probably have been achieved back in 2016. Today, everyone knows – although they don't say it publicly with the same enthusiasm – that the migration problem is a challenge for the entire Union, but the only thing we can do is to curb migratory pressure through external migration policy. As much as possible. And – we know this now – a lot is possible. Relocations have helped no one, bringing disproportionately high costs of political dispute to the EU.”

-- WE NEED TO LISTEN TO WHAT THE REBEL PARTIES ARE SAYING, WHICH DOES NOT MEAN FULFILLING THEIR DEMANDS - CONTINUES SZYMAŃSKI IN DGP: “The Union – and I know this is not easy to do – must listen to what the rebel parties are saying. Not all their expectations are justified, but millions of Europeans cannot simply be pushed out of the political community. This, of course, does not mean fulfilling every demand of the skeptics. Sometimes they say foolish things. There are areas where it is worth confronting them, one of them being, for example, the common market. But if the change in approach to migration had happened earlier, the EU would be in a better state today. A significant part of the rebel parties build their positions on the justified distrust of citizens towards what the EU is doing with technocratic tricks, for example, on such a crucial issue as migration. We should better present the EU's trade policy, which strengthens the position of all of us, for example, against China. The entire external and internal security agenda also offers potential for cooperation between countries. The Union must have a positive agenda. Then we will not be condemned to scare citizens by saying that without the Union, war will break out on the continent. This is what they tried to do in Great Britain, but no one bought it. The Union will survive on the condition that people have positive reasons for which it is worth being part of this project. The EU will not survive solely out of fear of the alternative. It must be a positive choice for Europeans.” https://wiadomosci.dziennik.pl/polityka/artykuly/593575,unia-europejska-konrad-szymanski-wywiad-zmiany.html

-- THE BISHOPS SEE ME AS THE DEVIL IN A SKIRT - JOANNA SCHEURING-WIELGUS IN CONVERSATION WITH MAŁGORZATA SKOWROŃSKA IN GW: “The bishops see me as the devil in a skirt. Friends who are close to the Church inform me that the hierarchs are asking who I am. And they are very surprised that this 'terrible Scheuring-Wielgus' has a traditional family, is the mother of three sons, and has been married to the same husband for 17 years.”

-- SMARZOWSKI, SEKIELSKI, AND SCHEURING-WIELGUS - ENEMIES OF THE CHURCH - CONTINUES JSW IN GW: “Recently, a recording of a meeting with bishops in one of the dioceses reached me – forgive me for being vague, but I cannot say more at this stage – and on that recording, where rape is discussed, three names of 'enemies of the Church' are also mentioned: Sekielski, Smarzowski, and myself. Sekielski will soon release a documentary about pedophilia in the Church – yes, I will use this slogan, let the bishops curse me. Smarzowski, as you know, 'Kler' [The Clergy]. The fact that I found myself in this company is an honor and a reason for pride, but priests are greatly mistaken. I am not an enemy of the Church or religion. I am an enemy of what is happening in an institution that considers itself holy. I am an enemy of the systemic cover-up of crimes.”

-- GĄDECKI AND JĘDRASZEWSKI COVERED UP PEDOPHILES, WHAT ELSE COULD THEY SAY? - CONTINUES JSW: “Bishops Jędraszewski and Gądecki are in the report we handed to the Pope. They are among the hierarchs who covered up pedophiles. What else could they say? It's terrible that both of them have retained the highest positions in the Episcopate. This says a lot about the Polish Church too.” http://www.wysokieobcasy.pl/wysokie-obcasy/7,163229,24553054,joanna-scheuring-wielgus-moj-rozwod-z-kosciolem-zaczal-sie.html

-- POLLS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN GAY RIGHTS - Wojciech Karpieszuk in GW.

-- PIS EXAGGERATES AS WITH REFUGEES, BUT ALL OF POLAND IS NOT WARSAW - PIOTR ZAREMBA IN DGP: “Undoubtedly, PiS exaggerates threats, just as it exaggerated the prospect of bringing masses of refugees to Poland. However, it was the liberal opposition that provided it with ammunition. If this happened by chance, because Trzaskowski wanted to fulfill an electoral commitment right now, it means there is no coordination between local and national policy in PO. If, on the other hand, someone decided that bidding on gay issues is a convenient field for the Civic Platform, it means they don't understand politics there. All of Poland is not Warsaw, and the next two election campaigns are nationwide. Although attitudes towards the demands of sexual minorities are changing for the better, they generally do not gain majority support.”

-- ZAREMBA ON HIS MIXED ATTITUDE TOWARDS CIVIL PARTNERSHIPS: “I remember when a group of friends and I went to a venue that was a meeting place for gay people. They recognized me and one other colleague as representatives of conservative thinking. They sat down with us and started to convince us that the very idea of regulating their relationships is inherently conservative. They cited the example of Great Britain, where precisely (it was 2013) John Major's Conservatives fulfilled this demand. This gave me food for thought. Their path is the opposite of heterosexual couples. For the latter, partnership instead of marriage is a step towards loosening bonds, both legal and psychological. For gay and lesbian people, it is a path to a more lasting relationship. Of course, the question remains how the details of such regulation would look. However, this conclusion did not make me an unconditional supporter of this innovation. Firstly, I don't believe in creating such a solution 'only for minorities.' And civil partnerships for everyone would likely be a step towards a culture of general 'no commitments.' https://wiadomosci.dziennik.pl/opinie/artykuly/593643,lgbt-zaremba-karta-spor-liberalna-strona-konserwatywna-pis-po.html

-- SCHETYNA OUTPLAYED EVERYONE, ONLY WIOSNA REMAINS UNDER CONTROL - ADAM LESZCZYŃSKI: “Grzegorz Schetyna outplayed everyone in the opposition and became the main leader of pro-democratic forces in Poland. He showed that he is a tough and ruthless player. Of the significant parties, only Biedroń's Wiosna [Spring] remains outside his control. This is how he will try to subordinate it.”

-- LESZCZYŃSKI ON THE PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECT OF THE NATIONAL UNITY FRONT AGAINST PIS AND THE DOOM OF SMALL PARTNERS ON PO'S LISTS: “The National Unity Front means that for the members of Schetyna's coalition, joining it is a one-way street. One can deceive oneself that the European Coalition was formed only for the European elections. In practice, however, anyone who leaves it before the elections to our Sejm – the most important elections – will be condemned as Kaczyński's Trojan horse, a renegade, and a traitor. One can only leave a coalition with Schetyna – forgive me for this metaphor, but it fits here – feet first. (This is truly a metaphor; we are talking about democratic politics here, not a mafia family.) Schetyna is also incredibly pragmatic: he welcomes everyone, forgives old conflicts. 'If our cooperation with SLD allows us to add another 5–7 percent support for the coalition, then I think it's worth doing, because the threat is elsewhere,' he said in an interview for 'Kultura Liberalna' in March.”

-- LESZCZYŃSKI ON DEVOURING BIEDROŃ: “Joining Schetyna's coalition would, of course, be a defeat for Wiosna and the end of this political project, even if the leader and a few of his colleagues got into the Sejm. We would then be condemned to a PO-PiS duopoly for another term. It will be harder to devour Biedroń when Wiosna's polls remain around 10 percent. In this case, too, however, stories about the National Unity Front will be at play. Media favorable to the Civic Platform (and PiS, naturally) will remain silent about Wiosna's program proposals, but will loudly report on its gaffes.” https://opinie.wp.pl/leszczynski-schetyna-przytula-a-potem-zjada-koalicjantow-kawalek-po-kawalku-opinia-6359655487170177a

-- EUROPEAN COALITION LISTS WILL MAKE BIEDROŃ'S TASK MORE DIFFICULT - ŁUKASZ LIPIŃSKI: “Such a construction of lists will make Robert Biedroń's task more difficult. In his party, by definition – apart from the leader – there are no known names. The participation of popular politicians on the European Coalition and PiS lists favors the maintenance of political polarization, which Biedroń wants to fight.” https://www.polityka.pl/tygodnikpolityka/kraj/1786016,1,koalicja-europejska-liczy-na-gwiazdy.read?src=mt

-- THE OPPOSITION MUST BE PREPARED FOR QUESTIONS ABOUT SPECIFICS - JAKUB MAJMUREK: “If the trend continues, the opposition parties will face a serious challenge. When PiS's second term – still three to six months ago – seemed certain, it was enough to firmly promise that they would do everything to remove Kaczyński's people from power. Now that's not enough. The opposition must be prepared for questions from its voters about what exactly it intends to do if it wins.”

-- PERHAPS PIS CANNOT REACH BEYOND THOSE ALREADY CONVINCED - CONTINUES MAJMUREK: “In 2015, PiS defied this stereotype. It won in all age groups, in large cities, among people with higher education. Its support was lower the larger the city, the older the voters, and the lower their education, but it managed to compete effectively on every terrain. Today, it cannot. The caricature of PiS as a party of older, poorly educated people from the provinces is becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. The 'Gazeta' poll was conducted after the announcements of 500+ for the first child and the proposal to exempt people up to 26 years old from paying PIT – both proposals do not appeal to the youngest electorate, although they will be their main beneficiaries. If further polls confirm this trend, it will mean that PiS's social proposals will not help it reach beyond electoral groups already convinced of the party.”

-- MAJMUREK ON THE EUROPEAN COALITION'S PROGRAMMATIC DIVERSITY ISSUES - GOVERNING WILL BE DIFFICULT: “Even if such a majority emerges, it will be very difficult to govern. Programmatic differences are already visible at the level of the European Coalition, where the culturally conservative PSL has a problem with – in their opinion – the coalition's overly liberal worldview. Meanwhile, Wiosna will have to make much more far-reaching demands on every coalition partner with whom it will form a government than the LGBT card. Biedroń's voters are not voting for him to support a government that, on issues like same-sex marriage or abortion, behaves like the cabinets of Tusk and Kopacz – postponing them to 'never-ever,' so as not to offend the 'conservative majority' and not bring PiS to power.”

-- VICTORY FOR THE DEMOCRATS IS INCREASINGLY LESS IMPROBABLE - CONTINUES MAJMUREK: “As a victory for the democratic camp seems increasingly less improbable, more is needed: concrete proposals for the post-election period. If the new government stumbles in conflicts with Duda and Kaczyński during the first months, it will quickly politically lose its electoral victory and open the way for Duda to a second term. Voters do not like ineffective power, preoccupied with itself, and unable to fulfill its promises. Therefore, a program for a difficult half-year is needed, projects that Duda will either be unable to refuse to sign, or whose veto would make his re-election more difficult. Only when the president changes will today's opposition be able to think about 'cleaning up after PiS.' https://www.tvn24.pl/magazyn-tvn24/czy-pis-moze-stracic-wladze-otworzyly-sie-drzwi,203,3535

-- IS JĘDRASZEWSKI CREDIBLE - JACEK GĄDEK on GAZETA.PL: “Let's confront the hierarch with his own words. Was Archbishop Jędraszewski 'impeccably firm' regarding the reaction to the sexual excesses of his superior in Poznań? Was he 'impeccably firm' when it came to rescuing clerics from a bind? Nothing is publicly known about Archbishop Jędraszewski's heroism. Is he therefore credible now when he condemns the crimes and sins of clergymen?” http://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/7,114884,24551904,papierowy-przelom-w-polskim-kosciele-analiza.html

-- NO ONE HAS DONE MORE FOR SECULARIZATION THAN THE CONFERENCE OF BISHOPS - SZYMON HOŁOWNIA in TYGODNIK POWSZECHNY: “No one has done more for secularization in Poland than this one press conference by the Polish bishops. Because after something like this, it's hard to consider that the KEP [Polish Episcopal Conference] lives on the same planet as the vast majority of those who listened to and watched its leadership.”

-- JĘDRASZEWSKI LIKE A NICHE COLUMNIST FOR AN ULTRA-RIGHT-WING PORTAL - CONTINUES HOŁOWNIA: “Archbishop Jędraszewski is not the first to reveal that while he would certainly do well as a niche columnist for an ultra-right-wing portal, or as the curator of a history club in high school (but then God help the youth in that school), he unfortunately has not an ounce of ability for empathy or listening to people outside his political and ideological bubble – although this seems to be a fundamental competence in a missionary religion, which Christianity is.” https://www.tygodnikpowszechny.pl/z-przerazeniem-158026

-- LET'S IMAGINE A NATIONALIST PLUS CARD - MICHAŁ SZULDRZYŃSKI IN RZ: “Let's imagine this situation: in some city in eastern Poland, a mayor belonging to the ONR [National Radical Camp] wins the elections. A few months after his victory, he signs the Nationalist+ card with local nationalist circles, which involves introducing patriotic classes in schools conducted by supporters of Falanga. The classes will cover examples of crimes committed by immigrants, the formation of Muslim ghettos in Western European cities, and cases where LGBT organization activists have been convicted of pedophilia. Would supporters of tolerance like such a situation? It seems to me that not, because school is not a place for conducting political or ideological crusades.” https://www.rp.pl/Szalenstwa-tego-swiata/303159983-Michal-Szuldrzynski-Ideologia-w-szkole-czyli-edukacja-czy-indoktrynacja.html&template=restricted

-- THE INSURGENTS INSPIRE US - THEY CALL FOR COMMITMENT AND ACTIVITY - JAN OŁDAKOWSKI IN CONVERSATION WITH PIOTR WITWICKI IN RZ: “We should pay tribute to the heroes and tell about the complicated times they had to live through. The Cursed Soldiers had heroism and stubbornness, but no connection to the present day. The insurgents inspire us because they call for commitment and activity at every moment of their lives – whether in war or peace. To take responsibility.”

-- OŁDAKOWSKI ON THE QUESTION OF WHETHER HE RECEIVED SUPPORT FROM THE PFN: “I have urged them several times to support our activities. They never responded. I consider that we have separate goals or different methods of operation.”

-- I REGRET THAT WE DID NOT REACH CONSENSUS AROUND THE FIGURE OF LECH KACZYŃSKI - CONTINUES OŁDAKOWSKI: “I have a very emotional relationship with Lech Kaczyński and I get the impression that he is a bit underrepresented. I regret that we did not manage to reach a consensus around this figure. He should be a common value.” https://www.rp.pl/Rozmowy-Witwickiego/303159979-Jan-Oldakowski-Gwiezdne-Wojny-w-okupowanej-Warszawie.html&cid=44&template=restricted

-- PIOTR ZAREMBA ON THE FILM ABOUT JAN NOWAK-JEZIORAŃSKI AND THE COMPLAINTS OF A RIGHT-WING REVIEWER: “When I read the complaints of a right-wing reviewer ('Do Rzeczy') that the film was 'mediocre,' therefore 'below expectations,' I will respond: perhaps it's time to accept the fact that instead of waiting for a single 'magnum opus,' we will watch further contributions to the story of Polish history. Which does not depreciate them at all. Especially since at the same time, popularization is demanded, and it also assumes a certain averaging of the message, not striving for excessive artistic or intellectual ambitions. Here, by the way, we have a lot of observations and dilemmas, but simplicity and clarity in telling them also prove to be an equally important advantage.”

-- ZAREMBA MOCKS GAZETA WYBORCZA REVIEWS: “This, of course, also raises more substantive disputes. The reviewer for 'Wyborcza' traditionally opposes the apotheosis of the insurgent decision. However, this means that he does not understand the thinking of the man whose newspaper Michnik's has long considered an authority. There is no obligation to agree with him, but I would expect at least a serious attempt to intellectually grasp his reasoning. Meanwhile, the response is politically cliché. The Uprising serves the right today, we are against the right, so we mock. The Nowak-Jeziorański himself probably didn't expect that his former intellectual partners would patronize simple intellectual vulgarity. Let's be frank: stupidity.”

-- POLISH CONSERVATIVES ALWAYS THINK THEY KNOW BEST HOW THE WAR LOOKED - CONTINUES ZAREMBA: “Polish conservatives always think they know best what the war was like. They consider themselves experts on it. I know that the few remaining insurgents said after the screening that the atmosphere of Warsaw at the time, feverish under the influence of images of German defeat, was rendered quite well. And whom should I believe? Well, the choice seems clear to me.” https://polskatimes.pl/piotr-zaremba-czy-tworcy-filmu-kurier-osiagneli-swoj-cel-recenzja-filmu-kurier/ar/13967690/2

-- BIRTHDAYS: Tomasz Piątek, Anna Grodzka, Michał Adamczyk, Wanda Buk, SUNDAY: Elżbieta Jakubiak, Andrzej Rozenek turns 50, Zbigniew Girzyński, Ewa Tomczyk.