-- 10 YEARS AGO Bronisław Komorowski defeated Jarosław Kaczyński in the second round of the presidential election following the tragic death of President Lech Kaczyński. -- 31 YEARS AGO, the inaugural sessions of the 10th term Sejm and the 1st term Senate took place. -- THE PRIME MINISTER IS CAMPAIGNING AGAIN - HE SHOWED WHAT HE FOUND ON HIS SMARTPHONE, THE PRESIDENT PROPOSES A CONSTITUTIONAL BAN ON ADOPTION BY SAME-SEX COUPLES, TRZASKOWSKI RESPONDS THAT HE DOES NOT SUPPORT ADOPTION BUT IT IS A RED HERRING, DUDA ANNOUNCES A MEDIA ATTACK ON HIS FAMILY, TRZASKOWSKI ASKS ABOUT PRICES OF FOOD PRODUCTS - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2020/07/04 -- HE HAS ALREADY WON EVEN IF HE LOSES - PIOTR ZAREMBA ON RAFAL TRZASKOWSKI - writes RZ in Plus Minus: “He may have thin skin, he may be unaccustomed to clashes. But he has essentially already won, even if he loses. He is the politician who saved Platforma’s result by agreeing – reluctantly, I might add – to run, so as a would-be president, he will become one of its actual, not titular, leaders. He will turn Warsaw into a bastion of his influence. He has a long road ahead of him. And if he wins, he may turn out to be a much less polite, more predatory competitor than anyone imagined. Of course, the campaign is not just a function of the endurance and nerves of the two main players. The government machinery is working for Duda, including Prime Minister Morawiecki, who is persistently overlooked by TVP's Jacek Kurski. However, it is increasingly difficult to extract further promises. Rather, one must promise to maintain what exists and warn against liberals, who will supposedly take it away from people. This of course still works, but it is also possible that there has been an oversaturation with this theme. Poles already know they have 500+ and are increasingly less grateful. Or the vision of post-pandemic recession overshadows these benefits for them.” -- GOVERNMENT TELEVISION HELPED CREATE HIM AS SOMEONE VERY IMPORTANT - ZAREMBA FURTHER ON TRZASKOWSKI: “PiS people wanted Trzaskowski in the second round; he was supposed to be a more convenient competitor for Duda than Hołownia or even Kosiniak-Kamysz, with all his weaknesses. And it is possible that the persecution of his stance on LGBT issues took away some voters, and it will have an even stronger effect in the second round when Bosak’s supporters are undecided. But government television also helped create him as someone very important, to be reckoned with. And as a constantly slandered victim, he might have evoked sympathy or a desire to save him. Let's remember the great mobilization at the polls.” -- PLATFORMA'S HEART IS AMPLE, ITS STOMACH EVEN MORE SO, GIERTYCH IS ALREADY WATCHING OVER HOŁOWNIA - ZAREMBA FURTHER IN RZ: “Hołownia is left with the promise of a different, more civic style (of presidency, so the topic disappears when he loses the election), radical environmentalism, and anti-partisanship. It is difficult to sustain this for three and a half years until the elections as a binder for a social movement, let alone a party he disavows but is doomed to. This could happen sooner if Trzaskowski had won and, as president, forced parliamentary elections. However, by helping him, the celebrity might end up as one of many functionaries of the party machinery. Platforma’s heart is ample, and its stomach even more so. Roman Giertych is already watching over Hołownia.” -- THE CONCLUDED PiS SYSTEM IS MORE DANGEROUS, BUT THE ROLE OF ACCUCHEUR FOR THE PRESIDENCY OF “DEFENDER OF GAYS” IS EVEN MORE UNCOMFORTABLE - ZAREMBA ON THE CONFEDERATION'S DILEMMAS: “The concluded PiS system is more dangerous. But the role of the accoucheur for the presidency of a 'defender of gays,' a pro-German globalist, is still uncomfortable. And if this campaign now becomes a civilizational war of worlds, it will be even more uncomfortable. Bosak already felt compelled in a conversation with RMF to make statements suggesting he would support Duda (casting an important vote 'not for Rafał Trzaskowski') despite the harassment his milieu has experienced, for example, from government television. The question is also whether this less than 7% for Bosak is a harbinger of something more serious. It is still hard to believe that a general mobilization, full of unbalanced eccentrics, world-weary healers, and street demagogues, is capable of transforming into a professional machinery.” -- ZAREMBA ON ANOTHER REVOLUTION, SIGNALED BY UOKIK'S REFUSAL TO AGORA'S TAKEOVER OF ZETKA: “At the same time, rumors are intensifying about Jarosław Kaczyński’s planned next phase of an top-down bureaucratic revolution after the elections. The beginning is supposed to be 'trivial' – the refusal by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection to grant Radio Zet to Agora. However, anything is possible afterward, including a government reshuffle. The question is whether a wider revolution will be possible when an opposition politician becomes president. To be honest, we don't know if Trzaskowski will opt for political offensive from the first moment, or if, in the interest of his own formation, he will feign an intention of compromise with the government, especially at the beginning. But he certainly will not facilitate PiS's revolutionary offensive.” -- CAN WE BE SURE THAT KACZYŃSKI IS AN INCURABLE DEMOCRAT? - ZAREMBA'S CONCLUSION IN RZ: “Wars at the top, of one kind or another, after the victory of an opposition politician or the conclusion of a one-party power structure, within which Prof. Pawłowicz already advises the removal of local governments from influencing the electoral process and its subordination to 'unified state power.' Of course, one can also consider all this empty speculation, because Kaczyński has remained an incurable democrat. But can certainty be built on that?” https://www.rp.pl/Plus-Minus/307039995-Slitfocie-Andrzeja-Dudy-i-kokietujacy-zmiana-Rafal-Trzaskowski.html -- TRZASKOWSKI MAY WIN BY 50 THOUSAND VOTES, THEN THE SUPREME COURT WILL ENTER THE GAME - MICHAŁ DANIELEWSKI IN OKO O WYBORCZEJ ARYTMETYCE NA KANWIE PRZEPŁYWÓW Z BADAŃ IPSOS: “An analysis of the OKO.press poll shows that the second round victory could be decided by tens of thousands of votes. It is even possible that the election will not end on July 12, and the decisive showdown will take place before the Supreme Court. (...) Trzaskowski's lead would be only 49,000 votes. So far, the smallest difference between candidates was over 646,000 votes in the clash between Aleksander Kwaśniewski and Lech Wałęsa in 1995. To grasp how small this difference is, it is enough to mention that the number of invalid votes cast in the first round was just over 58,000. One does not need to be a particularly astute observer of the political scene to predict that in the event of such a small difference, PiS will fight for a recount before the Supreme Court.” -- DANIELEWSKI ON HIGHER MOBILIZATION THAN IN THE 1ST ROUND AMONG THE OLDEST VOTERS: “According to Ipsos estimates, the turnout in the second round will be almost identical to the first – 65%. It is also worth emphasizing that the Ipsos poll takes into account the declaration of higher turnout among the oldest voters, who mostly opt for the president (60% to 39%); 85% of them declare they will participate in the runoff, while in the first round, turnout in this group was 56%. Among the youngest voters (66% to 29% for Trzaskowski), 68% declare a strong desire to vote, and in the first round, turnout in this group was 65%.” -- WILL THE EXIT POLL SHOW NOTHING AND WILL IT BE LIKE FLORIDA? - DANIELEWSKI'S CONCLUSION: “We also have one certainty: we will not know the election results on the evening of July 12. If an exit poll decided which candidate won the majority of votes, it would be quite a sensation. Therefore, we will probably not know the winner until after the National Electoral Commission announces the results from all polling stations. And it is not impossible that this will not be the end either, and we will face a situation analogous to that in the United States in 2000, when we learned the result of the clash between Al Gore and George W. Bush more than a month after the vote and after a fierce court battle.” https://oko.press/sondaz-oko-press-o-wyborach-zdecyduje-fotokomorka/ -- THE NEW ELITES OF THE GOOD CHANGE AND THE OUTRAGE ARE A COMIC EFFECT - MICHAŁ SZUŁDRZYŃSKI IN RZ: “As a result, we lose the ability to understand the complexity of our society. In the right-wing narrative, one is only allowed to speak of bad elites, liberal city dwellers who consider themselves owners of the Third Republic, but even mentioning that the ruling right-wing's support is particularly high among the working class causes scandal. This also has a comic aspect. The new elites of the good change, wealthy TVP functionaries, or thoroughly intelligent right-wing publicists acting as spokespeople for less educated town and village dwellers is a truly amusing sight. Especially since when these people voted for SLD and Aleksander Kwaśniewski, right-wing intellectuals identified much less with the lower classes. But that is a completely different story.” https://www.rp.pl/Plus-Minus/307039992-Michal-Szuldrzynski-I-lewica-i-prawica-Wszyscy-maja-swoja-polityczna-poprawnosc.html -- BOSAK PUT ON THE COAT OF A FREE MARKET MAN, HIDING VIEWS WITH WHICH NONE OF US GET ALONG, HATRED FOR EVERYONE WHO IS DIFFERENT, HE HAS SKILLFULLY HIDDEN IT FOR THE PAST MONTHS - BARBARA NOWACKA IN A CONVERSATION WITH PAULINA JANUSZEWSKA IN KRYTYKA POLITYCZNA: “Definitely yes – especially since Bosak completely transformed himself during the campaign. He put on the guise of a low-tax, free-market man, hiding all his radical views, with which, it seems, none of us get along. Xenophobia, racism, homophobia, aggression, and hatred for everyone who is 'different' – Bosak has skillfully hidden all of this for the past months. Thanks to this, some people have forgotten who the Confederation candidate truly is. Even among some voters of Hołownia, Trzaskowski, Kosiniak-Kamysz, or Biedroń, I heard voices saying that 'this Bosak, if it weren't for his views, would be quite okay.' Well, no – Bosak is not a cool, young politician with a vision. On the contrary – he is exactly like the beliefs that the extreme part of Konfederacja espouses. However, since he has charmed many people far from radicalism, Rafał Trzaskowski must do a lot of work to convince them that beneath the guise of a free market and support for entrepreneurship lies a dangerous, nationalist wave.” -- SOMETIMES ANTISEMITISM SURFACED LIKE WITH JEDWABNE, BUT AT LEAST THE ELITES DID NOT ALLOW THEMSELVES LANGUAGE OF CONTEMPT, NOW - QUITE THE OPPOSITE - THE AUTHORITIES INCITE AND REWARD IT - NOWACKA FURTHER IN A CONVERSATION WITH PAULINA JANUSZEWSKA IN KRYTYKA: “We can stop this. But these four years of hate speech in public media and incitement against refugees, Jews, people of different skin colors or religions (especially Muslims) have caused significant radicalization of attitudes. Although xenophobia, racism, and antisemitism have always existed, until recently they were latent and much less popular than today. For example – antisemitism has never completely disappeared in Poland, but it was contained by a consensus on correctness. This, of course, sometimes surfaced – like with Jedwabne – but at least the elites did not allow themselves language of contempt. Now – quite the opposite – the authorities incite and reward it. https://krytykapolityczna.pl/kraj/nowacka-pis-druga-tura-wybory-prezydenckie/ -- WITH THE INEVITABLE WEAR AND TEAR OF PiS AND THE MASKED EXHAUSTION OF PLATFORMA, BOSAK HAS GOOD PROSPECTS - MACIEJ JARKOWIEC IN GW: “Neither fear nor attacks from ideological positions will help. With the inevitable wear and tear of PiS, the exhaustion of Platforma (Trzaskowski's candidacy merely masks it), and the personal disintegration of the Left, Bosak, a politician barely 38 years old, has good prospects for expanding his base. He is easiest to neutralize with his own weapon: engaging him in a debate with rational arguments. His greatest strength is his greatest weakness. Bosak's views are neither sensible, nor clear, nor new. Mostly, it's a portion of reheated dishes, a collection of intellectually shallow and sieve-like pseudo-truths. A nice smile, an expensive suit, and fluent Polish only cover up this state of affairs.” -- PiS IS IMPLEMENTING A MILDER BUT MORE CYNICAL VERSION OF BOSAK'S PROGRAM - JARKOWIEC FURTHER IN GW: “It has not succeeded in the past and never will succeed in stopping the aspiration of the majority of the Vistula community to build ever stronger ties with Western civilization. The vision from Bosak's program, which PiS is implementing today in a slightly milder, but more cynical version: a Poland closed off from the free and inclusive element of History, with a homogeneous society organized on the basis of a narrowly interpreted Catholic doctrine – is in essence a utopia. Even if this course continues in Poland – which is a prognosis not without basis – it will still remain a utopia. Even when utopians hold power, they are only utopians. Their project eventually falls apart. The time of their reign is lost for the nation.” https://wyborcza.pl/magazyn/7,124059,26096143,poglady-lidera-konfederacji-sa-dziurawe-jak-durszlak-przykrywa.html -- WHEN BOSAK BECAME A SILENT ALLY IN THE FIGHT AGAINST PIS, HE WAS ALLOWED TO SHINE - PIOTR ZAREMBA IN POLSAT NEWS: “These ideological alliances have not disappeared, but they have lost their significance. Bosak did not hide his anti-European stance, but he recalled it with the objectivity of a traveling salesman of other goods. Of course, many liberals and leftists saw this only as a disguise, just like in Bosak's past appearances in 'Dancing with the Stars.' But when he went from a minor rival to – presumably temporarily – a potential silent ally in the fight against PiS, he was left alone, indeed, he was allowed to shine on Pudelku. He also avoided geopolitical disputes, where Konfederacja, with its 'realistic' stance towards Russia, could raise various suspicions.” -- IS BOSAK'S GENTLE STYLE A HERALD OF A MARCH TOWARDS GREATER STRENGTH OR THE PEAK OF HIS POTENTIAL? - ZAREMBA FURTHER: “PiS, turning more towards the older generations, does not provide them with satisfaction. This does not necessarily have to mean immersion in paramilitary or reconstructionist activity. A climate of disagreement with political correctness is enough. I don't have a general answer as to whether Bosak, with his gentle style, represents the peak potential of this camp, or a harbinger of the aforementioned long march towards greater strength. Will the demagogues destroy him with centrifugal movements?” -- OUT OF FEAR OF PiS, WILL THE CONFEDERATION SUPPORT A POLITICIAN WHO WOULD MOST GLADLY DELEGALIZE IT? A DEVILISH ALTERNATIVE - ZAREMBA'S CONCLUSION: “If it were to grow, it probably wouldn't push PiS further towards the center as Jobbik pushed Orban's party in Hungary. In Poland, the liberal-left camp remains robust, defending the right's access, especially to larger cities. Therefore, the growth of Konfederacja is a mortal threat to Kaczyński's party. It threatens to crush it from two sides. But out of fear of Kaczyński, will Konfederacja help the victory of a politician who would most gladly illegitimize it? That is a devilish alternative.” https://tygodnik.polsatnews.pl/news/2020-07-03/zzz/ -- IT'S NOT LGBT THAT'S THE PROBLEM, BUT POLAND'S LACK OF SUFFICIENT COMMUNICATION WITH THE MODERN WORLD; OPEN-AIR MUSEUMS ARE PERHAPS BEAUTIFUL, BUT THEY ARE MUSEUMS - RZ EDITOR-IN-CHIEF BOGUSŁAW CHRABOTA: “So it is not LGBT that is the problem, but modern Poland's lack of sufficient communication with the modern world. To this day, our national ailment is civilizational marginality. Partitions and occupations excluded us from the European mainstream. Poverty made us a reservoir of labor. Poor education and language barriers isolate us from participating in the global cultural and technological race. This is the problem, and it must be addressed. Open-air museums may be beautiful, but they are just museums.” https://www.rp.pl/Plus-Minus/200709828-Boguslaw-Chrabota-Polska--cywilizacyjny-margines.html -- AN INCREASE IN TURNOUT TO 68% IN THE SECOND ROUND WOULD MEAN APPROXIMATELY 1.2 MILLION NEW VOTERS; IF THEY ARE FROM SMALLER TOWNS, IT WILL BE GOOD NEWS FOR DUDA - PROF. ANTONI DUDEK IN A CONVERSATION WITH MACIEJ KLICZKA ON TVN24: “Experience from presidential elections in Poland so far shows that turnout in the second round is always higher. Only in 1990 was the turnout in the second round lower than in the first. Afterward, a few more voters always went to the 'final match.' If turnout in the second round reaches 68 percent, it means that an additional 1.2 million people would go to the polls. This is a powerful number of new voters who can behave very differently and tip the scales one way or the other. If these are voters from larger cities, it will be good news for Trzaskowski, and if from smaller ones, then rather for Duda.” -- SMALLER CENTERS ARE GRADUALLY DEPOPULATING, WHICH IS WHY I DO NOT BELIEVE THERE ARE NO PROSPECTS FOR LEFT-WING AND LIBERAL FORMATIONS - DUDEK FURTHER IN A CONVERSATION WITH KLUCZKA: “Of course, this map looks depressing for Trzaskowski's campaign, and it's no coincidence that when I published it on my FB profile, Trzaskowski's supporters immediately attacked me, asking why I was showing it, that it's demobilizing, because it probably is... However, it is worth noting one thing... We have a completely different trend running in parallel. It's the process of depopulation of small centers. This process is ongoing and will intensify in the coming years in rhythm with the aging of Polish society. In these tiny yellow islands that we see today, in a few years there will be even more people, and in this blue sea, there will be fewer. This is what the process of changes in population distribution looks like today, which is happening before our eyes. Young people born in small towns finish secondary school there and leave for studies in larger cities, from which they usually do not return. Poland is starting to depopulate primarily in these smaller towns, and this will affect election results. Because it turns out that these people, after moving to big cities, start to adopt more liberal views, they vote differently than their parents. That is why I do not believe that there are no longer prospects for left-wing and liberal formations.” -- TRZASKOWSKI'S VICTORY COULD BE A PENDULUM SWING MOMENT - DUDEK FURTHER: “However, we are currently experiencing a crisis of liberal democracy, and we observe it not only in Poland, and the populist movements we are dealing with now more often have a nationalist-right-wing hue than a left-wing one. It used to be the other way around, and it may be so again, but of course, not in the perspective of a few years, but rather of a dozen or so years. Nothing is decided here. The pendulum of social moods is shifting. At the moment, it has swung strongly to the right, it may swing even more, but at some point, it will start to shift the other way. We are unable to determine the speed of this process, but it is happening and can be traced over the past 30 years. Perhaps this pendulum will start to slowly shift in the opposite direction already on July 12; if Rafał Trzaskowski wins, it could be a turning point. Presidential elections in Poland have often been the primary cause of changes on the party scene.” -- THE ATTACK ON WARSAW IS BUILT ON A CONTRAST: THE ELITE, RICH CELEBRITIES VERSUS THE HARDWORKING INDIVIDUAL - DUDEK FURTHER AT KLUCZKA'S: “Now, in turn, the so-called 'Warsaw' is being attacked. So there is a new kind of enemy, no longer on the worldview level, but built on a contrast: the elite, rich celebrities versus the ordinary, hardworking person. A contrast, of course, based on false assumptions. Furthermore, when the president talks about the bad redistribution of economic growth, it is an accusation not only against previous governments but also against his own political camp, which has been in power for five years. The final stretch of the president's campaign will likely be based on social promises, which, incidentally, 'hitting Warsaw' complements rhetorically well. For me, the symbol of what awaits us in these last days of the campaign was Duda's statement on Friday before the first round, when he suddenly recalled research suggesting that the Polish average salary could reach two thousand euros in five years. https://tvn24.pl/magazyn-tvn24/jesli-trzaskowski-wygra-to-moze-byc-punkt-zwrotny-w-polskiej-polityce,278,4876 -- LUDWIK DORN NOTICES A SURPRISING DROP IN TURNOUT IN CITIES - as he writes on TVN24: “In large cities – over 250,000 inhabitants – turnout not only did not increase, but slightly decreased – from 71.3% to 70.8%. It might seem small, but given the overall turnout increase of 2.8 points, it's puzzling. For example, in Gdańsk, it dropped by 1 percentage point, but Warsaw turned out to be the record holder – a drop of over 2.5 points. It wasn't much better in cities over 50,000, where it was roughly the same, while it increased significantly in cities under 50,000. It seems to me that there is one reason for this stagnation: the start of the holiday season, which begins with the end of the school year, and this occurred before June 28.” https://tvn24.pl/magazyn-tvn24/dorn-palac-prezydencki-moga-zdobyc-wozy-strazackie,278,4872 -- THOSE WHO FOCUS ON NUANCES AND PASSIONATELY CONSUME MEDIA HAVE ALREADY WON - JACEK KARNOWSKI: “We need to say what we think. We need to speak directly to people. We need to continue building the wave that brought a truly very good result in the first round. And we need to focus on the goal: convincing the undecided, mobilizing those who can vote. And this can only be done with clear, readable signals. Those who focus on nuances, who passionately consume media, have already decided.” -- KARNOWSKI ON THE SUBLIMINAL MEANING OF THE FACT'S COVER: “Finally, we must not be afraid. The other side is crossing all boundaries: they are even attacking with suggestions that the president is a pedophile (that was, in my opinion, the subliminal meaning of 'Fakt's' cover), they mass-produce false information and distribute it without any shame. We must draw the appropriate conclusions from this. The biggest asset of the pro-Polish camp today is President Duda. He doesn't have to pretend to be anyone; he doesn't have to disguise himself. During this campaign, he made an almost unbelievable effort. Physical effort too. If the rest of the pro-Polish camp gave even half of what the president did, it would be a done deal. There is still a week until the election. Let's remember: what matters is what Poles think, not what the media say. These are of course often related matters, but often also quite divergent.” https://wpolityce.pl/polityka/507684-strategia-opozycji-jest-jasna-jak-przekaz-nieslawny-faktu -- ON THE PARAGRAPH OF IMPOSSIBILITY IN THE FACE OF ORCHESTRATED MEDIA HUNTING AND LEFT-LIBERAL MURDER IN THE ADVERTISING MARKET - MICHAŁ KARNOWSKI: “In the case of Law and Justice's stance towards the media, the paragraph of entanglement and impossibility lies in the fact that if this party wins subsequent elections despite orchestrated media hunts, provocations, and millions of reach of ordinary lies, manipulations, and meanness, despite tolerance of 'beetroot juices' financed by unknown entities and complete left-liberal murder in the advertising and distribution market, then after the elections, it usually concludes that there is no urgent (or perhaps any) need to change anything. However, if it eventually loses the elections due to such tactics, it will no longer be able to introduce changes. And the circle closes.” -- I WROTE THAT IN THE FINAL STRETCH, THE POLITICAL CHARACTER ASSASSINATION MACHINES WOULD BE ACTIVATED TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT - KARNOWSKI FURTHER: “About two years ago, my brother Jacek Karnowski suggested that I should no longer write further commentaries on the necessary changes in the media market, not to be surprised by certain things, because it only annoys everyone around, and nobody takes it seriously. And I wrote almost prophetically: that in the final stretch of the most important battle for Poland, the political character assassination machines would be activated to the maximum extent. My brother, however, was right, because these are the rules of public life, that one cannot be a voice crying in the wilderness on too many matters – and our list of hopeless causes we are fighting for is long enough as it is. However, I hope he will forgive me this exception.” https://wpolityce.pl/media/507693-medialny-paragraf-22-prawa-i-sprawiedliwosci -- THERE IS A LACK OF A TRUMPET CALL, STRONG UNAMBIGUITY IN THE OPPOSITION'S SUPPORT FOR TRZASKOWSKI - WIESŁAW WŁADYKA IN POLITYKA: “The state of play is, of course, greatly influenced by other participants, i.e., the candidates who finished their fight in the first round. There is some trouble with this. Even if some of them (like Hołownia or Kosiniak-Kamysz) constantly, let's say, announce their support for Trzaskowski, there is a lack of a trumpet call, strong unambiguousness. Instead, there are some grimaces, particularistic calculations, malice towards PO and its candidate (who, incidentally, is doing a lot to weaken this party's brand). Let the words of Marek Sawicki, close to the PSL leader, who announced in a radio interview that the time has come to stand against the dictatorship, sound as a memento. This call was missing – he said self-critically – in the campaign, and now is the highest time for it. One can rub their eyes and ears.” -- THE OPPOSITION WILL BRING A SAD FATE UPON ITSELF - WŁADYKA'S CONCLUSION: “If the democratic opposition, in all its pluralism, all its diversity, and in a state of internal competition, does not manage to provide unambiguous support for Trzaskowski's candidacy, it may bring about a sad fate not only for us, the citizens, but also for itself. Because Jarosław Kaczyński's political system, closed by Duda's re-election, will strive to incapacitate this opposition. Directly – as much as possible – or indirectly.” https://www.polityka.pl/tygodnikpolityka/kraj/1962586,1,stan-gry-duda-bez-hamulcow-trzaskowski-dojrzewa -- KACZYŃSKI MANAGED TO CONVINCE PEOPLE HE IS AN OUTSIDER, AND WE HAVE RIGHT-WING HEGEMONY - JAKUB MAJMUREK IN GW: “The PiS leader managed to convince almost everyone that Poland after 1989 was a country where not only he and his circle, but the entire right-wing and the part of society it represents were marginalized, persecuted, denied access to power, communication channels, economic opportunities, and recognition. Almost nothing in this narrative is true. Firstly, Kaczyński is not an anti-system politician at all, but since 1989 one of the most insider players of the Third Republic, possessing powerful influence even before 2015, constantly promising to overturn the political table, but glued to it for decades. Secondly, in Poland after 1989, we are dealing not with the political dominance of the liberal center or modern Christian democracy, let alone the left, but with right-wing hegemony.” -- A FALSE DESCRIPTION OF REALITY; THE RIGHT-WING ELITE MUST STEP ASIDE - MAJMUREK'S CONCLUSION IN GW: “This reaction is both right and wrong. Right, because PiS diagnosed genuine areas of exclusion and anger. The democratic bloc, from Zandberg to the right wing of PO, must have something to offer this Poland – from former state farms, towns where the train last arrived in the mid-90s – so that it goes somewhere else than to Kaczyński. In other words, the frustrations of the PiS populace should be heard and addressed. Without a doubt, there must be a place for a conservative elite in Poland as well. The problem is that today this elite occupies everything and does not really recognize the right of anyone else to power, prestige, or even a voice. It is they who deny people with identities other than conservative and Catholic the right to exist in public space. It is they who falsely describe reality and cannot control their own resentment, feeling – a ruling right-wing party in a right-wing country – like 'a Jew in the Third Reich.' Therefore, it is primarily the right-wing elite that must step aside.” https://wyborcza.pl/magazyn/7,124059,26096572,to-nie-ja-to-oni-tak-urzadzili-kraj-najwieksze-klamstwo-kaczynskiego.html -- GALLOPING MAJOR DEFENDS LEADERS OF RAZEM: “And finally: no, I have absolutely no problems with this action; the money received from taxpayers for the campaign ultimately went to the campaign. No one got rich, except for the tax office, which collected the tax (and rightly so). I actually have no problem, except one: the idea of Razem’s relatively low earnings brings more harm than good, which they are now witnessing. Razem members earned 4100 gross, they transferred all the extra money to the campaign anyway, and now they will be called thieves by fans of POPiS or conspiracy theorists who have been earning big money for years and are still shouting that they deserve it.” https://krytykapolityczna.pl/felietony/galopujacy-major/znalazlem-200-tys-zlotych-razem/ – MAŁGORZATA TRZASKOWSKA TELLS DOROTA WODECKA IN GW HOW HER HUSBAND TOOK ON THE CHILDREN SO SHE COULD CATCH HER BREATH: “In partnerships, duties are distributed according to capabilities. They cannot always be divided equally; sometimes the emphasis is on one person so that it can later shift to the other. I never felt like I was sacrificing myself or putting in disproportionately more work and commitment to the family than my husband. At that time, he returned for all weekends, including Fridays. He took on the children so I could catch my breath or get some sleep when they were little. A dozen or so years ago, few fathers walked with strollers, he did. Today, this has changed, and it fills me with joy that fathers, of their own free will, not out of necessity, want to use infancy to be close to their child.” -- MAŁGORZATA TRZASKOWSKA ON THE DISAPPOINTMENT WITH THE INSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH: “I am a believing person. It gives me strength and hope. We were a practicing family; we went to mass every week, I had a church wedding, but the institution of the Church disappointed me when its representatives did not speak out when PiS was dismantling the judicial system and attacking judges, when mothers with disabled children protested in the Sejm, when, due to arrogance and an attempt to take away our rights, we women were forced into mass 'black protests,' when language of division and hatred became commonplace in public space. I won't even mention the reckoning with pedophilia. It seems I am not the only one disappointed by this institution, as statistics show that over 50 percent of Catholics have stopped going to church in recent years. However, my lack of acceptance for the institution's actions has nothing to do with my faith, but we won't discuss that, because I adhere to the principle that matters of faith belong to the private sphere.” -- MAŁGORZATA TRZASKOWSKA SPEAKS ABOUT HER IDEA FOR ACTIVITY: “But I didn't give up working; I only left the city hall to continue developing and prepare to implement an idea that had been maturing in me for some time. I want to create a place where children will learn about entrepreneurship, get acquainted with the role of money, learn how to save, because children should already know that the money the government spends is not pocket change, but that we earn it through our work. Due to the pandemic and lockdown, I couldn't realize the plan, and then the campaign came.” -- THE DEBATE BETWEEN SZYMON HOŁOWNIA AND RAFAŁ SHOWS A NEW QUALITY OF POLITICS - TRZASKOWSKA FURTHER: “This is a makeshift solution that people use because they don't see much else. If the quality of politics were to change, if we started to speak in a different language, to exchange views with calm, mutual understanding, people would start to transfer these patterns to their families or friends and finally be able to talk to each other again. I believe that such a change is possible, as shown by the public debate between Szymon Hołownia and Rafał.” https://www.wysokieobcasy.pl/wysokie-obcasy/7,163229,26096930,malgorzata-trzaskowska-aktywnosc-mam-we-krwi-nie-bede.html -- PO AND PiS ARE BUSINESSMEN WHO CAME UP WITH THIS WAY OF LIFE; IN THE CONFEDERATION, THERE ARE COLORFUL PEOPLE - ARTUR DZIAMBOR IN A CONVERSATION WITH PIOTR WITWICKI IN RZ: “Today, I have fun in this company and try not to lose my sense of humor. I'm glad to be among colorful people. It's impossible to be bored in such company. In PiS and Platforma, there are no longer people who have any dreams; they are only businessmen who have invented this way of life for themselves: one time they are in the Sejm, another time in the regional assembly, and another time in a State Treasury company, even though they have nothing to say. In Konfederacja, there is a collection of personalities, where everyone has their own ideas. If even a quarter of them were implemented, it would be good, because everyone else wants to impose galloping socialism on us. We have many curiosities in our club… I don't know, maybe a bit too many. Can you imagine one of these boring parliamentarians proposing an amendment that Ms. Jadwiga Emilewicz should have a helicopter from which she would drop money, and everyone would be healthy and rich? A very funny amendment. The problem with its author, Grzegorz Braun, is that I rarely see him in a serious capacity. We prepared amendments to the shield as a team.” -- FOR US, IT IS A PASSION; FOR THEM, IT IS A PROFESSION - DZIAMBOR FURTHER: “For us, politics is a passion, and for these gentlemen, it is a profession. They have an independent majority and take responsibility for everything. So be it, since they do not consider our amendments. At least everyone likes you now. And not long ago, some called us Russian puppets, and others fascists. Now it turns out we are patriots, and the free market is okay after all. Both sides know that Konfederacja voters are key to winning these elections.” https://www.rp.pl/Plus-Minus/307039985-Artur-Dziambor-Korwin-Mikke-tylko-tak-zartuje.html -- PHOTO. The Last Voyage of the Temeraire, William Turner, National Gallery in London -- POLISH RADIO BROADCAST WITH DR. GRAŻYNA BASTEK ON TURNER'S PAINTING: In 2012, this work "acted" in "Skyfall," serving as an allegorical backdrop to a conversation between a weary, aging James Bond and a young Q. Q: This painting always makes me feel a bit melancholic. A big, old warship being towed to scrap ignominiously. The injustice of time, don't you think? What do you see? Bond: A damn big ship. The quoted dialogue from "Skyfall" takes place in the National Gallery in London before "The Last Voyage of the Temeraire," a painting created in 1839 by William Turner. A year earlier, this magnificent warship, which bravely protected HMS Victory – Admiral Nelson's ship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 – was destroyed in a shipyard in Rotherhithe. The painting was a great allegory of a passing world. Turner consciously omitted the true circumstances of the event from the painting. The Temeraire was towed by two steam tugs, not one; it did not happen at sunset but during the day, and the ship itself already had its masts dismantled. The ships in the painting sail east towards the west, yet Rotherhithe is west of Sheemess, from where the Temeraire was taken on its last voyage. The allusion between the young Q and Bond and the Temeraire, towed to demolition by a steam tug emitting clouds of smoke, is obvious. Turner's painting was a tribute to the dignified sailing ship departing into the past. The setting sun became a fanfare in honor of the ship and a symbol of the end of the era of great sailing ships, and perhaps even the end of British naval power. A dangerous modernity, devoid of dignified beauty, is coming. -- PODCAST AVAILABLE HERE: https://www.polskieradio.pl/8/406/Artykul/2252626,Alegoria-przemijajacego-swiata-pedzla-Williama-Turnera -- BIRTHDAYS: Jan Szomburg, Janusz Gromek, Jarosław Szostakowski, SUNDAY: Krystyna Naszkowska, Wojciech Włodarczyk, Jerzy Kropiwnicki, Agnieszka Burzyńska.