-- TUSK SHOWED CONCERN WHEN MEDIA DEVIATED FROM PROPAGANDA – JOANNA LICHOCKA IN NIEZALEŻNA: “The Polish media market is not one where we can speak of full pluralism. Anyone involved with the media in Poland knows this. Until 2015, when all major media outlets, including public media, spoke with the voice of Civic Platform, any deviation from the propaganda chorus was immediately noticed, commented on, and often condemned. It was precisely Donald Tusk's famous phrase, 'Someone switched the lever,' that showed his concern that a non-propaganda tone had appeared somewhere in the mainstream media. A measure of hypocrisy is also evident now in the fact that not a single title published by the major media groups is engaged in a serious discussion about market deconcentration. The truth is that one can only criticize the idea itself on this matter; nothing else is permitted. In any case, every day we see that for some mysterious reasons, journalists at Onet, TVN, or 'Gazeta Wyborcza' are not seriously taking up this topic. Yet, the form of communication, or lack thereof, is also a form of communication – this is another truth that, in the context of media market deconcentration and the actual lack of pluralism, is visible to the naked eye. https://niezalezna.pl/352483-brak-przekazu-jest-przekazem -- THE EU OFFER PROPOSED BY MORAWIECKI IS TO BE MORE GENEROUS THAN THE KREMLIN'S – JĘDRZEJ BIELECKI IN RZ: “Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki mentioned in Vilnius the sum of the initial financial offer the EU might present to Minsk – the condition for its provision is the holding of free elections – 'at least 1 billion euros.' This is less than the loan promised a few days ago to Alexander Lukashenko by Vladimir Putin (1.5 billion dollars, or 1.27 billion euros). As 'Rzeczpospolita' unofficially learns, intensive work is underway to ensure the offer presented at the EU summit (September 24-25) is more generous than the Kremlin's.” -- THE PRIME MINISTER AND PRESIDENT OF LITHUANIA HAVE BET ON PiS – CONTINUES BIELECKI IN RZ: “It was during his tenure that bilateral relations improved; Vilnius defended Warsaw against EU sanctions under the rule of law clause. Skvernelis bet on PiS several times, even during Poland's election fever. The Prime Minister of Lithuania and President Gitanas Nauseda have supported Polish authorities in difficult international situations, most recently before the controversial visit to Washington by Andrzej Duda, who was seeking re-election.” https://www.rp.pl/Dyplomacja/200919400-Polska-Litwa-Pilsudski-juz-nas-nie-dzieli.html -- TERLECKI AND SUSKI ON THE COALITION'S FUTURE – 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/live/2020/09/18/ -- THE GREENING OF CONSERVATISM IS A DUTY – JAN ROKITA IN TEOLOGIA POLITYCZNA: “In the current reality, where for half a year it's almost impossible to breathe in thousands of Polish villages and towns, and hundreds of tons of crushed plastic bottles, bags, and cans, never removed from the verges of municipal roads, create a new quasi-Sicilian landscape of the Polish countryside, even a de Maistre, if he were alive, would have to become an ecologist. I know what I'm talking about, as I've been living in a truly dead-end village for several years, far from any metropolis, where even the civilizational benefit of sewage systems hasn't arrived, so the soil around is poisoned by feces slowly flowing through the open bottoms of neighbors' cesspools. I have no doubt that since such a province is the political base of the ruling conservatives, the greening of Polish conservatism is, in a sense, its moral duty. Or, to put it more politically – it's a repayment of an electoral debt incurred to the rural electorate, whose quality of life is increasingly diverging from the progressive, affluent urban agglomerations. This is entirely contrary to what the urban public, with their typically mythologized notions of rural life, usually thinks about this subject.” -- I VERY MUCH LIKE THE GREENING OF PiS – CONTINUES ROKITA: “Therefore, I would also very much like a Polish vision of a greening PiS, not only because it would revive, rejuvenate, and slightly color the naphthalene-scented political conservatism in Poland. But also, perhaps primarily, because I would see in it hope for overcoming the dirt, pollution, and contamination of public spaces in the Polish countryside, which contrasts so defiantly today with the meticulously maintained private homes and farms in the German style.” https://teologiapolityczna.pl/jan-rokita-psie-neminem-captivabimus-felieton-1 -- JACEK LIZINIEWICZ ON HOW THE FIGHT IS NOT OVER – WRITES IN NIEZALEŻNA ABOUT BRIBED MEDIA: “But we should wait for final praise. I won't believe in this change until I see the law on President Andrzej Duda's desk. And if, as a result of pressure from bribed journalists, PiS stops halfway again, it will become as disgusting to me as a silo of ground-up slaughterhouse waste used to feed minks.” https://niezalezna.pl/352647-norki-zmienne-sa -- MICHAŁ KARNOWSKI RECALLS THE PRINCIPLES THAT LED TO THE RIGHT'S VICTORY – INCLUDING JAROSŁAW KACZYŃSKI'S UNEQUIVOCAL LEADERSHIP: “Let's remember this: there will be no other right-wing, no better PiS, Solidarna Polska, and Porozumienie will be born shortly. Awareness of how rare a gift pro-Polish, patriotic government is for Poland, under these internal and European conditions, is perhaps the most important factor distinguishing our media environment from others, nominally similar. I will humbly say that we know what others will only discover later: if this camp falls apart, we will wait two decades for another similar one. This is not a game. It is worth reminding the politicians of the United Right of three principles that – alongside the program – brought them success: Jarosław Kaczyński's unequivocal leadership, mutual respect, and avoiding bickering in the media. These still apply, despite natural differences.” https://wpolityce.pl/polityka/518155-czy-zjednoczona-prawica-naprawde-moze-sie-rozpasc -- RAINBOW KOSINIAK IS THREATENING THE END OF SCHNITZEL – KARNOWSKI'S RIDICULE: “Rainbow Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, who once applauded Leszek Jażdżewski for suggesting priests are pigs, is now concerned that the 'Five for Animals' proposed by Law and Justice means the end of schnitzel. No – it means the end of places that, unlike pig farming, do not serve to feed or clothe people, but solely for pleasure founded on unnecessary suffering.” -- PIS WAS RIGHT TO CALM THE MOOD AROUND 447, CONFEDERATION IS FOLLOWING THE SAME SCENARIO TODAY – CONTINUES KARNOWSKI: “This does not mean the issue should not be discussed. I consider the arguments of farmers related to exports to Muslim and Jewish markets to be important. A compromise should be considered here. However, in the case of fur farming, it's hard to talk about discussion, as these are simply attempts to incite hysteria. Exactly the same kind that circles around the Confederation tried to incite around the American law 447. If the threats made then were true, if the thunderbolts cast at PiS were justified, Poland should already be paying for so-called heirless property. So-called, because this term does not exist in the legal system. As we know, it is not paying. And it was PiS that was right in calming the mood.” https://wpolityce.pl/polityka/518083-opozycja-znow-probuje-wywolac-atak-histerii-jak-przy-500 -- IS THIS THE BEGINNING OF TAKING THE MONOPOLY OF THE GREEN AGENDA FROM THE OPPOSITION? – JAKUB BODZIONY IN KULTURA LIBERALNA: “The PiS leader is presenting himself as a defender of animals, and the fuel giant is declaring climate neutrality by 2050. Is this the beginning of a process whereby the right will take the monopoly of the green agenda away from the opposition? The bill currently being processed, the so-called 'Five for Animals,' patronized by the PiS leader – and which has become a pretext for another crisis in the ruling camp – shows three things. Firstly, Jarosław Kaczyński knows how to wait for the right moment for a political offensive on a matter important to him. Secondly, although the PiS leader's sympathy for animals is widely known, the edge of the law is aimed not only at the fur industry but also at coalition partners from Solidarna Polska. It is enough to mention that Szczepan Wójcik, the largest fur animal breeder in the country, was present at the convention of Zbigniew Ziobro's party in Warsaw. Finally, thirdly, this move is part of a broader process of changes that may occur in the United Right camp.” -- PIS MIGHT HAVE THE LAST LAUGH – CONTINUES BODZIONY: “This action also elicited loud laughter and mockery from some commentators. However, PiS might have the last laugh on this matter. On the day the first TikTok video from Forum Młodych PiS was published, I was at a debate about internet influencers. During a discussion with the panelists, the topic of the PiS leader's presence on the internet was brought up, which briefly dominated the discussion. Krzysztof Gonciarz, one of the most recognizable Polish YouTubers, who publicly opposed many of PiS's actions, said that 'it's beyond my comprehension that Jarosław Kaczyński is discussing our, left-wing topics on TikTok.'” -- A MODERATE PiS WITH MORAWIECKI IS A CHALLENGE FOR THE OPPOSITION: “However, if the modernization faction, led by Mateusz Morawiecki, prevails within the United Right, it will pose a difficult challenge for the opposition. Thanks to broad financial transfers, an increase in the minimum wage, or the reprivatization law, Kaczyński managed to capture a part of the social electorate, thereby attacking categories to which the left had claimed exclusive rights. Now, the climate may face a similar fate. A symbol of this might be the fact that on the same weekend the PiS leader debuted on TikTok, Lewica organized a programmatic conference that most media outlets learned about after the fact.” https://kulturaliberalna.pl/2020/09/18/zielony-konserwatyzm-bodziony-w-piatek-czas-na-green-pis/ -- THE SEJM SMELLS OF ELECTIONS – MICHAŁ KOLANKO IN RZ: “Animal protection and the Covid-19 act are dividing the United Right. The Sejm smells of elections.” https://www.rp.pl/Polityka/200919389-Proba-sil-na-prawicy-W-Sejmie-zapachnialo-wyborami.html -- KACZYŃSKI HAS CHOSEN A BATTLEFIELD THAT EVOKES SOCIAL SYMPATHY – ZUZANNA DĄBROWSKA IN RZ: “A good strategist chooses their battlefield. Jarosław Kaczyński has therefore chosen terrain he knows, which evokes good emotions and social sympathy, while simultaneously isolating him from the right-wing herd of haters like Krzysztof Bosak, for whom conservative values merge into one with skinning animals. And from this, the president already gains his first benefit. Next to be isolated are the warriors from Solidarna Polska. The louder the fur lobbyists support them, the more Ziobro's people believe they have gained real social support. And the more they believe in themselves. Unjustifiably.” https://www.rp.pl/Komentarze/200919391-Zuzanna-Dabrowska-Do-wladzy-po-grzbietach-norek.html -- ZIOBRO'S OFFENSIVE LIKE THUCYDIDES – FEAR IN THE BACKGROUND – LUDWIK DORN IN GW: “The question remains: where does Zbigniew Ziobro's insane charge come from? Readers of Thucydides' 'History of the Peloponnesian War' know that the strongest motive for political action is fear. In July, Kaczyński allegedly rejected Ziobro's proposal to merge PiS and Solidarna Polska, which would have given the latter the position of vice-chairman, and his people positions in the central and regional bodies of PiS – thus securing their interests in the process of creating election lists in 2023. (...) By taking on the role of the conscience and guarantor of the orthodox right-wing stance of the United Right, Ziobro has begun preparing his shahid belt, because he knows that only in such a vest will he be able to negotiate effectively with Kaczyński on election lists. On the principle: you want to kill me politically and make me a puppet, then remember that I can press the button. I will die myself, but you, even if you survive, will be a powerless cripple.” -- A LASTING COMPROMISE WILL BE DIFFICULT BECAUSE IT IS A FIGHT FOR REAL POWER – CONTINUES DORN: “It is obvious that the PiS leader must have felt threatened. He knows that the longer he doesn't react to this strategy, the stronger Ziobro will become. At a meeting with PiS MPs, Kaczyński allegedly said: the tail will not wag the dog. This means that either the tail, i.e., Ziobro, will tuck itself in, or it will be 'curtailed.' Snap, crackle, pop, and it's over. A compromise here is really very difficult.” https://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,26313525,albo-kaczynski-albo-ziobro-to-walka-o-realna-wladze.html -- BIRTHDAYS: Robert Mazurek, Marcin Wrona, Renata Janik, Marcin Zydorowicz, Wolfgang Schäuble.