-- CZAPUTOWICZ ON RUSSIA'S ATTEMPT TO CREATE DISCORD BETWEEN POLAND AND UKRAINE, HOŁOWNIA'S COLLEAGUE CONFRONTS TUSK, KOWALSKI CONFRONTS EMILIEWICZ - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2020/07/16/ -- FIVE YEARS AGO, KOMOROWSKI, WITH THE SUPPORT OF THE ENTIRE MEDIA-CELEBRITY SYSTEM, HAD SLIGHTLY HIGHER SUPPORT AMONG YOUNGER VOTERS - JACEK KARNOWSKI: “Firstly, the combined votes of the conservative candidates – Duda and Bosak – amount to 42 percent. Is this truly a disastrous result in this cultural and civilizational context? In a world where it is not states and societies that raise the younger generations, but increasingly global corporations, large pop culture centers? I believe this is not a result to cry over, especially since the 'Hołownia project' was directed at the young, marketed in such a way as to draw as large a portion of this group as possible away from Andrzej Duda. This was partially successful, but only partially. Not enough to take away the victory. The President received his share – 36.3 percent in the second round. Many would want more, but is that possible for an incumbent president who cannot promise a revolution? In the case of a president representing the right-wing camp? Five years ago, Bronisław Komorowski – with the support of the entire media-celebrity system, that whole industry of assigning meaning and significance – garnered little more in the second round – 40 percent.” -- IS IT POSSIBLE TO WIN OVER VOTERS WHO INHERIT STATUS AND WORLDVIEW FROM THEIR PARENTS? - KARNOWSKI CONTINUES: “Is it possible to win over Trzaskowski's voters, who inherit status and worldview from their parents, succumbing to global cultural pressure towards leftism and secularization? Of course, it is possible, but on the condition that the PiS camp changes to the point where it ceases to be itself, and creates space for the further growth of Konfederacja or something similar.” -- DUDDA'S POSTERS HUNG ON ORDINARY POLISH FENCES, WHILE TRZASKOWSKI'S WERE ON THE FENCES OF COMPANIES THAT LOUDLY PRAISED THE ANTI-CRISIS SHIELDS - KARNOWSKI CONTINUES: “This also touches upon a more serious issue, namely the constant dream of breaking through to wealthier, urban, younger groups. A noble and ambitious endeavor, but unfortunately still in the planning stages. Neither material gains, nor solving the specific problems of these groups, nor ingratiating oneself, change anything here. Nothing. This fruitless game has been going on for 15 years, ending with a campaign appealing to the traditional base. And under these conditions, there can be no other outcome. Because these are environments so affluent and so entrenched that they can afford to prioritize worldview and environmental interests above all else. Symbolically, during this campaign, a rule was noticeable: Andrzej Duda's posters hung mainly on ordinary Polish fences, by houses, while Trzaskowski's posters most often adorned the fences of companies, both large and small. The same companies that, in fact – both privately and publicly – very loudly praised the highly successful Anti-Crisis Shields. They took the money, some even thanked them, but voted as they always do. Because they believe their place is with Civic Platform.” -- WITHOUT WHAT MANY CONSIDER A BURDEN, PIS WILL NOT WIN ANY CAMPAIGN, EVEN IF THEY POUR 500 BILLION ZLOTYS INTO THE ECONOMY - KARNOWSKI CONTINUES: “PiS, stripped of what many consider the camp's greatest burden today, will not win any campaign. Even if they pour 500 billion zlotys into the economy, they will not win. Just as they would not win now with a 'tamed,' constrained Polish Television, or with a message limited to proposals that carry no emotion. Because this is no longer politics, but physics – if there is energy on one side, there must be on the other; otherwise, people will yield to pressure.” -- THE PROCESS OF CHANGES SHOULD BEGIN WITH TVN - KARNOWSKI CONTINUES: “And therefore, the process of changes, for example in TVP, should begin with changes in TVN. And this is perhaps a broader diagnosis: where things are not going well, one should look for the mechanisms that hold the key to the situation, rather than dressing up in someone else's clothes.” https://wpolityce.pl/polityka/509354-pis-bez-tozsamosciowej-nogi-polegnie-szybciej-niz-mysli -- THE STRONGEST RESENTMENT FUELING POLITICAL LIFE IS NOT ANTI-PIS AT ALL, BUT ANTI-PO - MIŁOSZ WIATROWSKI IN GW: “The strongest resentment fueling political life in Poland is not anti-PiS, as Civic Platform politicians and media experts would like us to believe. It is anti-PO. We have a period of record voter mobilization behind us in local, European parliamentary, and presidential elections. PiS won all of them by scaring Poles with the return of the Civic Platform.” -- MORAL BLACKMAIL UNDER THE GUISE OF DEFENDING DEMOCRACY - WIATROWSKI CONTINUES: “However, under the guise of 'defending democracy,' Civic Platform and its supportive authorities resort to moral blackmail, calling other opposition initiatives and their voters 'useful idiots of PiS.' From PO's perspective, this narrative is understandable because, in addition to the common democratic goal, the party also has a specific objective – in its maximum plan, its own return to power, and in its minimum version, defending the status quo within the opposition.” -- IT'S TIME FOR A NEW HAND, NOT FOR SWORN ALLEGIANCE TO THE CIVIC PLATFORM - WIATROWSKI CONTINUES IN GW: “As long as we insist that the best way to defeat Law and Justice is to subordinate the opposition to the goals and interests of Civic Platform, things will not get better. Civic Platform first lost the presidential and parliamentary elections. It spent the next five years convincing everyone that it was our only hope for defending Polish democracy. PO went for the king. It missed 4 times. If the opposition is to have any chance of defeating PiS in the future, it cannot make the same fifth attempt. It is time for a new hand.” https://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,26130329,pora-na-nowe-rozdanie-a-nie-skladanie-holdow-lennych-platformie.html -- WE SHOULD NOT HELP RUSSIAN PROPAGANDA MOCK THE POLISH PRESIDENT - MICHAŁ SZUŁDRZYŃSKI IN RZ: “If the goal of Russian propaganda is to ridicule the Polish president, we should not help them. It is the right of the opposition to criticize the head of state from another political camp. But it should also set certain boundaries so as not to help the Russian side. The ruling camp, on the other hand, should not claim that nothing happened. Explaining that Vovan and Lexus once tricked Boris Johnson, Petro Poroshenko, or Recep Erdogan, is scant consolation. Poland's security is not only a matter of a strong army, an alliance with the USA, or even securing critical infrastructure against cyberattacks, but also resilience to propaganda actions and information warfare. So, instead of traditionally fighting each other, thus fulfilling the Kremlin's goal, let's draw conclusions from this situation for the future.” https://www.rp.pl/Komentarze/200719548-Michal-Szuldrzynski-Nie-wspierajmy-propagandy-Kremla.html -- ON ONE HAND, FEAR OF DESTROYING INSTITUTIONS; ON THE OTHER, FEAR OF THE RETURN OF THE PAST - MAGDALENA BIEJAT IN CONVERSATION WITH PAULINA JANUSZEWSKA IN KRYTYKA POLITYCZNA: “The mobilization of many voters, both those who supported Andrzej Duda and those who voted for Rafał Trzaskowski, was mainly driven by fear. On one side, there is a strong fear of human rights violations and the destruction of democratic institutions, while on the other, there is a fear of returning to the past, of losing the stability and social security supposedly provided by PiS. I say 'supposedly,' because the social solutions offered by the United Right are not systemic, and the government's actions in response to the coronavirus clearly showed that this social security is very illusory.” -- THE CIVIC PLATFORM CONTINUES TO REPEAT THE SAME DIAGNOSES; THE CIVIC PLATFORM'S POST-ELECTION PRACTICE IS INSULTING PIS VOTERS AND THOSE WHO DO NOT WANT TO RETURN TO THE TIMES OF WORKING FOR 3.5 ZLOTYS PER HOUR - BIEJAT CONTINUES, SPEAKING TO JANUSZEWSKA: “It is certainly not possible for POPiS to achieve this. These two parties and their environments dig in their heels very strongly, often uncritically, and clearly do not learn from their mistakes. This is a jab, especially at PO, which has lost elections for the sixth time in a row, continues to repeat the same diagnoses and conclusions, and proposes no new solutions. The Civic Platform's constant post-election practice is to insult PiS voters and people who, for entirely understandable reasons, support pro-social policies and do not want to return to the times of a cosmically low minimum wage and working for 3.5 zlotys per hour.” -- THE CIVIC PLATFORM INTERPRETS EVERY DEFEAT LIKE ALL THE PREVIOUS ONES - BIEJAT CONTINUES: “I believe this is a sign of the immaturity of PO politicians. PO, it seems, cannot see the stalemate it is in, of its own making. Grzegorz Schetyna interprets yet another consecutive defeat in exactly the same way as previous ones, which bodes nothing good for the entire formation. Because how many times can one make the same mistake and then explain it in the same way? It's time for PO to take responsibility for its decisions and actions, because the fact that we have two Polands today, people on two sides of the barricade who cannot engage in dialogue, is also its fault, not – as Grzegorz Schetyna would like to believe – solely PiS's.” -- LET THE CIVIC PLATFORM START BRIDGING DIVIDES INSTEAD OF LOOKING FOR GUILTY PARTIES EVERYWHERE - BIEJAT CONTINUES TO JANUSZEWSKA IN KRYTYKA POLITYCZNA: “It seems to me that PO should revise its strategy as soon as possible and start taking actions that will serve to bridge divides, rather than looking for guilty parties around. This does not serve citizens. The dreams of building a cross-party agreement in the opposition camp are valid, but they cannot be tantamount to unifying the message of individual, very diverse groupings. None of them, especially the Left, can abandon its own agenda and postulates for the interests of a larger player, which PO still tries to be.” https://krytykapolityczna.pl/kraj/biejat-jest-szansa-na-dialog-lewica-ma-szanse-januszewska/ -- NO WOMEN ON TV, AND IF SO, THEN WARSAW-CENTRIC - KAROLINA WASIELEWSKA IN KRYTYKA POLITYCZNA: “On TVN24, I couldn't find a single woman – among politicians, Bartosz Arłukowicz, Krzysztof Gawkowski, Michał Kamiński, Kamil Bortniczuk, or Krzysztof Bosak appeared; among independent commentators – Professors Antoni Dudek and Jarosław Flis. Strange for a station that 'discovered' other media and often invites experts from the University of Warsaw: Anna Materska-Sosnowska, Renata Mieńkowska-Norkiene, or Ewa Marciniak (a separate article could be written about the 'Warsaw-centricity' in the selection of interviewees).” -- IN 'KROPKA NAD I', 11% OF GUESTS ARE WOMEN, AND 'KAWA NA ŁAWĘ' IS 'CHŁOPILON' - WASIELEWSKA CONTINUES: “A study conducted in 2014–2015 as part of the 'Ekspertki.org' project, run by Krytyka Polityczna, showed that in Poland, for every seven people commenting in the main media, there was only one woman, which translated to a mere 13% share of women in public debate. In Monika Olejnik's program 'Kropka nad i,' women constituted less than 11% of those invited. 'Kawa na ławę,' due to its consistently male guest list, earned the nickname 'Chłopilon' online, referencing the old program exclusively featuring female experts, 'Babilon.' It is unknown how much has changed since then, as newer data is lacking.” https://krytykapolityczna.pl/kraj/na-wieczory-wyborcze-w-glownych-mediach-pan-nie-zaproszono/ -- BUYING MEDIA LOYALTY, BUT ONLY TO ONESELF - JACEK GĄDEK IN GAZETA.PL REPORTS THE WORDS OF A PIS POLITICIAN BASED ON A REPORT IN MONDAY'S WIADOMOŚCI: “But why this attack on Morawiecki right after the election? – In our camp, it's been said for some time that Mateusz Morawiecki is pouring large sums of money into media outlets that don't criticize the prime minister himself, but attack the entire camp – says a politician of the 'good change' critical of Morawiecki. In this way – this is the argument of critics – he would be buying media loyalty, but only to himself. Of course, the 'Ziobroists,' and especially Jacek Kurski, ensured that the 'pouring' of money into media was talked about. And he adds: – We face a discussion about whether to stick to Morawiecki's 'warm water in the tap' policy, or to focus on reforms. Zbigniew Ziobro publicly demands a tougher course. On the air of Radio Maryja, he stated, without naming Morawiecki: – To use biblical words, one must be either hot or cold; one cannot be in between.” -- THE WIADOMOŚCI REPORT CAUSES AMUSEMENT, AS LONG AS IT DOESN'T GO BEYOND ACCEPTABLE LIMITS - A PIS POLITICIAN CONTINUES TO GĄDEK: “Is the sidelining of Mateusz Morawiecki possible in the nearer future? – No, not now – replies our source from PiS. And he explains that from the perspective of a PiS activist, who also went through lean years in this party, such a jab at Morawiecki, as made by 'Wiadomości,' can even bring satisfaction. And – as we hear from the ranks of this formation – it is not surprising at all, and even causes amusement, as long as it doesn't go beyond acceptable limits.” https://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/7,114884,26130329,szarza-wiadomosci-przeciw-morawieckiemu-moze-i-zabawna-ale.html -- INVESTING IS IMPOSSIBLE WITHOUT COMBINING POTENTIALS - DANIEL OBAJTEK IN CONVERSATION WITH RZ: “I completely disagree with that. First and foremost, we will achieve an incredible economies of scale, which is essential for us to compete in foreign markets. It will be a multi-energy concern with annual revenues of around 200 billion PLN. Is that not enough scale to achieve savings, for example, in procurement? Let's look at other concerns in the world – they sell both oil and gas. Today, Orlen, Lotos, and PGNiG conduct separate exploration businesses. Why not combine this potential and make ourselves increasingly independent of external supplies of resources crucial for the country. When we talk about refineries, the petrochemical sector, which we want to develop, is a continuation of that. In turn, PGNiG has a strong energy and heating business, which interests us greatly. After all, we want to build more gas power plants. The synergies are obvious – no one would undertake such a powerful operation if it weren't profitable. International law firms and a host of financial advisors are working on this. Business must emerge from this.” -- WE WILL INVEST IN HYDROGEN AND NEW TECHNOLOGIES - OBAJTEK CONTINUES: “New technologies are costly, investments in hydrogen or alternative fuels are not cheap. We have common interests, and together we have enormous potential. Municipalities will not lose a single zloty from the taxes paid by Lotos; in fact, they can expect higher contributions. We also do not plan mass layoffs, as that is not what great synergies are supposed to be about. When selling assets, one must ensure other jobs for employees within the group. And this is the message we have conveyed to the trade unions.” https://www.rp.pl/Wywiady/307159898-Daniel-Obajtek-prezes-PKN-Orlen-Po-polaczeniu-osiagniemy-niesamowity-efekt-skali.html?cid -- PHOTO: David and Goliath – an oil painting created between 1599 and 1600 by the Italian Baroque artist Caravaggio, Prado. In Christian iconography, the victory of David over Goliath symbolized the victory of Christ over Satan. Caravaggio was mainly interested in the moment of Goliath's beheading, which was an expression of the defeated enemy's humiliation. The painting was created in the early period of the artist's work, when he stayed at the home of Cardinal Francesco Maria del Monte. David is depicted as a young boy. His body is illuminated by light, and his face shows astonishing calm. With dexterity, he ties the hair of his opponent's severed head with a strap to easily carry it before Saul. Completely different emotions are seen on Goliath's severed head, visible in the foreground. Behind it is his massive body clad in armor. The face of the giant expresses terror, his eyes are open, and his mouth is frozen in an inarticulate scream. A wound from a stone blow is visible on Goliath's forehead. Around the figures, there is only darkness, which further emphasizes the significance of the entire scene – the struggle between good and evil. -- BIRTHDAYS: Lech Sołtys, Danuta Grabowska.