-- SCANDALOUS WORDS FROM MAZUREK TO SKOWROŃSKA: http://wyborcza.pl/10,82983,24701859,skandaliczne-slowa-mazurek-do-poslanki-po-mam-duzo-wyrozumialosci.html

-- WP WRITES ABOUT GASIUK-PIHOWICZ'S ATTACK ON WASSERMANN: “A CAREER ON HER FATHER'S BACK”: "What are you so afraid of?", "Show respect for the election results in Krakow" (Wassermann's clear defeat by Jacek Majchrowski - editor's note) and finally, the cut-off "on her father's back" (Zbigniew Wassermann, who died in the Smoleńsk catastrophe, was a minister in Jarosław Kaczyński's government) - this is how Gasiuk-Pihowicz provoked the MP from Krakow". https://wiadomosci.wp.pl/gasiuk-pihowicz-kontra-wassermann-padly-bolesne-slowa-6374238662723713a

-- KUKIZ ON SOMEONE HAVING A HEART ATTACK DURING NIGHT VOTING - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2019/04/26

-- MARCIN FIJOŁEK WRITES ABOUT SPECULATION SURROUNDING THE "WSPÓLNY PLAN" (COMMON PLAN) ASSOCIATION OF JAŻDŻEWSKI AND SIENKIEWICZ: “And perhaps there would be nothing strange about it, were it not for the list of names that make up Wspólny Plan. Among them are, among others, Leszek Jażdżewski, editor-in-chief of 'Liberté!', Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz (former Minister of Interior and Administration), Nowoczesna activist Mateusz Sabat, and publicist Marcin Celiński. To this, one must add several people from the Civic Development Forum (Leszek Balcerowicz). Among PO politicians, a hundred-tongued rumour has emerged that this is another step by Donald Tusk, who would thereby be preparing the ground for his return. This thesis cannot be denied – at least at first glance – logic. Jażdżewski is the person preparing Donald Tusk's May 3rd appearance at the University of Warsaw, and previously the Freedom Games, one of the participants of which was precisely the President of the European Council. The name Sienkiewicz adds a purely political flourish to the new association, especially since the interested party himself has not ruled out a return to daily politics in his latest book.”

-- FIJOŁEK ON THE SHRINKING TIME TO INITIATE EVEN A HINT OF A POLITICAL RESET: “But will these subsequent leaks, signals, and impulses not cause the circumstances to change already in June? Schetyna's political clock is ticking louder and louder, and the time to initiate even a semblance of a political reset is simply running out.” https://wpolityce.pl/m/polityka/444010-plotka-z-sejmu-czy-wspolny-plan-to-forpoczta-tuska

-- SEE YOU IN THE AUTUMN - GW's lead story on the teachers' strike.

-- PIS ADOPTED THE GOVERNMENT'S "CARE" LAW - GW headline.

-- TEACHERS DID NOT LOSE THIS STRIKE - JUSTYNA SUCHECKA IN GW.

-- MICHAŁ SUTOWSKI WRITES THAT PIS ADHERES TO THE PRINCIPLE THAT THEY DO NOT DISCUSS WITH PEOPLE BETWEEN ELECTIONS - as he writes in Krytyka Polityczna: “PiS once again proves incapable of negotiating and concluding social agreements. A plebiscite at the ballot box – sure, but between elections, there is no discussion with people. Discretionary politics remains, meaning: the Leader will devise it, parliament will vote on it, the government will implement it – and that's that.”

-- POLLS AND FOCUS GROUPS WILL WIN OVER CIVILIZATIONAL PROJECTS - SUTOWSKI CONTINUES: “Firstly, polls and focus groups among the electorate will always win over civilizational projects. Poles en masse distrust the state and public administration, and cash in hand is always cash – even if the opportunity cost is the degradation of public services, especially education and healthcare. But all this will happen sometime, someday, in the next term. Moreover, the bar of expectations is quite low; for some time, people won't notice that schools and clinics are getting worse. However, if a lot of money is added to salaries, a few hundred thousand people (teachers, nurses, social workers) will be happy, but they won't necessarily reciprocate at the ballot box – and those who use their services won't notice the improvement quickly either. So, it's better not to give to teachers (nurses, resident doctors…), or to give to someone else. https://krytykapolityczna.pl/kraj/michal-sutowski-zawieszenie-strajku-ustawa-maturalna-komentarz/

-- ŁUKASZ WARZECHA WRITES IN WP ABOUT THE SCORCHED EARTH IN EDUCATION: “The landscape after the teachers' strike – formally suspended since Saturday – is scorched earth. Today's round table on education won't water it down – it's just a spectacle that the government needed to show it cares and is attentive, but since the ZNP suspended the strike, the meeting will have almost no significance. The only good thing is that the matriculation exams will probably proceed without a hitch.”

-- HANDS CAN'T STOP FALLING WHEN THE PRIME MINISTER SPEAKS ABOUT WHAT A GREAT MINISTER ZALEWSKA IS - WARZECHA CONTINUES: “The government, admittedly, won this confrontation unequivocally. But only in the sphere of political tactics. When the Prime Minister extols what a great minister Anna Zalewska is, one's hands can't stop falling. This is not only primitive propaganda but also terrible short-sightedness. The teachers made a monumental mistake by not indicating – beyond formal strike demands – their diagnoses of the education system and proposals for change in any official form. But this does not mean that there were no such individual voices, generally coming from teachers who were striking but – as was clear – had a serious internal ethical problem with this strike. https://opinie.wp.pl/warzecha-na-strajku-stracili-wszyscy-okragly-stol-tu-nie-pomoze-opinia-6374414644389505a

-- MICHAŁ SZUŁDRZYŃSKI IN RZ ON A PYRRHIC VICTORY: “PiS achieved a Pyrrhic victory, however. The government decided to stand firm by its proposals, and the state television was busy all day long slandering teachers. The ruling party managed to have its way, forcing teachers to capitulate, but this does not mean it is even a little closer to solving any of the problems of the Polish education system. Minister Anna Zalewska is heading to Brussels, the problems remain.”

-- THE OPPOSITION IS ENTIRELY REACTIVE, THIS IS A DIFFERENT SITUATION THAN IN 2015 WHEN THE RULING PO HAD TO EXPLAIN EVERYTHING - SZUŁDRZYŃSKI'S CONCLUSION: “The opposition should therefore be pleased that the unpopular strike has ended. The problem is that this means it is left alone with PiS, and the European Coalition's new ideas for a campaign clash with Jarosław Kaczyński's party are not visible. It is PiS that has been setting the agenda of political problems for several months, coming up with new ideas and introducing – sometimes just refreshing – topics for political discussion. The opposition, on the other hand, is entirely reactive. This is a different situation than in 2015, when the ruling Platform had to explain everything, and the opposition PiS imposed its own narrative and tempted with the vision of building a different reality.” https://www.rp.pl/Edukacja/190429665-Szuldrzynski-Przegrana-ZNP-pyrrusowe-zwyciestwo-PiS.html

-- ZUZANNA DĄBROWSKA WRITES IN RZ ABOUT THE OPPOSITION'S RELIEF: “The opposition breathed a sigh of relief because they themselves no longer knew how to relate to the protest: teachers must be supported, but the prospect of unheld matriculation exams terrified the European Coalition. Now, finally, everyone will be able to focus on the European Parliament campaign and their own problems. Until September.” https://www.rp.pl/Analizy/190429648-Strajk-zawieszony-ale-niedokonczony.html

-- JACEK KARNOWSKI ON THE DEFEAT DUE TO THE POLITICIZATION OF THE STRIKE: “The ZNP leaders lost. They quickly allowed the strike to be politicized, which was one of the most important reasons for their defeat. They also allowed for toxic behaviour towards working teachers, and in many places, an atmosphere like a parliamentary coup. Finally, they allowed for the politicization of the school, for deep divisions within the community. Today, they probably see the natural charm of protest in this, but who knows if in some time they won't see the root cause of the clearly growing acceptance for a radical rebuilding of the school system.”

-- ANOTHER STRIKE - ACCORDING TO KARNOWSKI - MAY TRIGGER A LARGER REFORM OF EDUCATION: “Sławomir Broniarz announced that the strike could be resumed in September, just before the parliamentary elections. Given the political engagement of the ZNP leader, this is very likely. The government should therefore negotiate, seeking agreement, but it should also prepare a comprehensive education reform for the autumn. One that, in a way, rebuilds the system from scratch, on completely different terms, and which will be ready for implementation in case the ZNP continues to want to decisively influence the election outcome. The consequences of the strike may therefore turn out to be more far-reaching than we think.” https://wpolityce.pl/m/polityka/444051-liderzy-znp-przegrali-bo-pozwolili-na-polityzacje-strajku

-- MICHAŁ KARNOWSKI WRITES ABOUT THE FALL OF THE STRIKE AS A DEFEAT FOR THE "MEDIA OF THE THIRD REPUBLIC": “I would add my own conclusion, which is important to me: on this strike, the media of the Third Republic lost the most. Not only because they so unequivocally led a large and important social group towards an image and financial defeat. Not only because of the revelation of such strong ties with the decision-making centre of the opposition and its campaign plan. They lost primarily because it became apparent how weak they are. How ineffective. How detached in their media violence from what the citizens (in the vast majority) think and feel. The media of the Third Republic threw all their resources into the fray. They went for emotions. They didn't let up for a moment. They acted in a coordinated manner. They had a precise plan (inter-school strike committees that were supposed to create a political network).” https://wpolityce.pl/m/polityka/444145-ten-strajk-najbardziej-przegraly-media-koniec-pewnej-epoki

-- MONIKA OLEJNIK ON BISHOP MERING AND THE PIS PRESIDENT - writes in GW: “The same Primate of Poland says that the Church could be a mediator between the government and teachers, but no one listens to him. As can be seen, even the role of the primate has diminished in Poland. On the other hand, Bishop Wiesław Mering of Włocławek is grateful to the President for what he does, saying, while shaking his hand: 'I wish you to be not only accepted but also admired. Your successes are our successes.'” http://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,24700906,sukcesy-kaczynskiego-sukcesami-kosciola.html

-- ADRIANA ROZWADOWSKA ON UBER'S ENTRY INTO POLAND - writes in GW: “The entry into force of the law will not eliminate entities that easily acquire hundreds of millions of dollars for development worldwide. Start-ups with multi-billion dollar capital are capable of meeting the requirements that any small Polish entrepreneur can handle. During the teachers' strike, we are still asking when a truly functioning civil society will emerge. It will emerge when – even if we disagree with someone's demands – we begin to consider dialogue a necessary foundation, and the principle 'If you don't want to help? Don't hinder' will apply to everyone.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,155290,24699013,nie-chcesz-pomoc-nie-przeszkadzaj.html

-- GW ON TWARDOCH: “Boxing, cars, firearms, expeditions to Spitsbergen, 'a speedboat skimming between ice floes.' In his newly released collection of essays, 'How I Didn't Become a Poet,' Szczepan Twardoch cultivates his image of a manly man with manly interests, but also a sensitive heart.” http://wyborcza.pl/7,75517,24693975,szczepan-twardoch-chce-zebysmy-go-uwielbiali-jego-zbior.html -- DEER FREED FROM A PLASTIC BOTTLE: A deer with a plastic bottle on its head, wandering around Wrocław, has been freed. - This is a success for the people of Wrocław who so eagerly helped in the search - emphasizes Anna Chrobot from Ekostraż. http://wroclaw.wyborcza.pl/wroclaw/7,35771,24701663,sarna-z-glowa-w-plastikowej-butelce-uwolniona.html

-- BIRTHDAYS: Sławomir Nitras, Jadwiga Staniszkis, Tomasz Machała, Krzysztof Kozłowski, Grzegorz Zasępa, Tadeusz Słobodzianek, Zofia Ławrynowicz, Cezary Grabarczyk, Łukasz Zaręba, Urszula Bury.