Sunday 11 July 2010

Cel uświęca środki – a message to my compatriots from the other side of the invisible barricade

I know it, the corporation has made me a sluggish blogger, the heat wave does not serve as an incentive to indulge in writing, so in the coming weeks you will probably find here only one post per week, published over the weekend. But do not worry, I will try to scribble something quaint for Polandian.

Recently I wrote here much about politics. After Mr Komorowski won the final battle I thought about giving up on that topic for a while, but I cannot make that break without having the last word. In the recent weeks I got caught up (yes, adthelad will say I provoked it and he will be actually right) in a discussion with Poland’s Best Political Blogger of 2009, Toyah. The main topic of his posts, published recently only on his own site (administrators of salon24 portal banned some of his posts and eventually he took umbrage and moved writing into an independent location) is not just politics. He is committed and ardent supporter of Jarosław Kaczyński and PiS. Some readers would surely accuse him of a big dose of bias in his blogging, so if you are one of them, glance at the box to the right, at the top of the page. We have democracy and it involves free speech, what means everyone should have a right to air their views, as long as they do it in a civilised way, do not insult nor libel anyone. But the at the heart of free speech lies the right to gainsay what your fellow men say and now I am going to exercise this right.

Toyah is a gifted and prolific writer, moreover he unfortunately is currently jobless, so he can spend much more time blogging than me I do not intend to make this post an endless string of polemics, so I will focus only on the posts published after the run-off of the election.

Over the past week Toyah has been in a funk after The Russian Bour had won the election, or, in other words 53% of manipulated voters had chosen to back the lesser of two evils.

In his post On winter in the middle of the summer he invokes a gross injustice which led up to the bad choice Poles made. Given the support for Mr Komorowski and Mr Kaczyński two months earlier he might claim Mr Komorowski has narrowly escaped failure. He writes about a wasted chance, but his post, as almost any other lacks an in-depth analysis, not of the support Mr Komorowski enjoys, but why so many voters hold something against Mr Kaczyński. Of course Toyah gives several reasons which boil down to manipulations plotted by the System, about a Bad Man, about a plan a deity from above follows out. In the comment thread one of the readers quoted Mr Tusk’s (probably) statement that Mr Kaczynski has a lust for power. Every politician has it, if they had not had, they would not have been into politics, the issue is just what means politicians harness to fight for power. Lemming, another active commentator and a graduate of my university briefly laid out why he voted for Mr Kaczyński. I fully accept his reasoning, the way we differ is how we understand what is good for Poland. We have common goals, the only difference is how we want to achieve them. Lemming would opt for aiming at those goals at all costs, I would prefer more compromise and reconciliation.

On Tuesday it turned out my request for a justification why Mr Kaczyński is the best choice prompted Toyah to change his plans and dedicate the inaugural post (after leaving the salon24), It is time for Jarosław, to me. Toyah is convinced my biggest dream is to exclude Mr Kaczyński from the public discourse for ever, for no specific reason, just because I think he should be denied the basic right to voice his views. In truth my view of Mr Kaczynski’s presence in politics is the same as in Toyah’s example of Mr Napieralski and Mr Kołodko. I simply think it would be better for Poland if he and his party did not wield power and nothing more! And I go along with Toyah who points out why Jarosław Kaczyński is a remarkable politician. If he had not been that unwavering and outstanding he would not have come back to power after being pushed out of politics in the 1990s. Moreover, given all assaults launched at him he keeps holding up well! I really regret Toyah refused to lay it out, step by step, in the simplest words, why Mr Kaczyński would be the best president of Poland. I may only wonder why. If it is so obvious, there is nothing easier than committing it to the blog, maybe he would even convert some other lost Poles. At the end he asks why people hate Mr Kaczyński so much if he is so wonderful. I would not bother to ask about those who hate him, hatred is not a commendable feeling and hardly ever builds anything, it usually destroys. I would ask why so many people are afraid of Mr Kaczyński. An Anonymous commentator speaks about the układ, he still believes it exists. Maybe it exists, maybe not, I am too small to answer that question, but is Mr Kaczyński big enough to crack down on the układ on his own? Or maybe conversely, would not they be more capable of destroying him? Many readers brought up the issue of the disadvantaged, those who did not benefit from the transition and who now are the target of Kaczynski. Yes, I agree, the discrepancy is growing, every week I see both opulence and poverty, they are worlds apart. This inequality is not shocking, it is indispensable in free-market economy, I personally cannot stand how the rich fail to understand the problems of the poor and how the poor refuse to accept the rich could have come into their wealth by playing their cards right.

A day later the blog had its official, belated premiere. In the post titled Right-wing dab hands Toyah brings to account the guilty of Mr Kaczynski’s failure. For Toyah Mr Komorowski’s presidency will be a punishment meted out by God – a good point, maybe this key will unlock the door… How did it happen that we let that woman become a first lady, he asks. Now a bit of malice – who would become a first lady if… you know what. Toyah reproaches journalists of Gazeta Polska for not giving due and sufficient support to Jarosław Kaczyński. The journalists pulled Mr Kaczynski up for what the contender had said about Edward Gierek (a patriot) or about Józef Oleksy (a middle-aged leftist politician). They saw those moves as a betrayal, for Toyah they were logical and justified, actually natural in his pursuit of power. Tactics needs to be changed and concessions have to made in order to reach the end. End justifies the means, Toyah only confirms it. I have to stand up for Mr Sakiewicz and Mr Ziemkiewicz. I have hardly ever agreed with their views, but I could not say about them what other fellows from my side of the barricade would say. They were not the acolytes of PiS. They and many other journalists, such as Mr Terlikowski, have their own views and at least stick to their guns, they are idealistic. Toyah is pragmatic – he thinks if a move can help win the election, there is no doubt it should be made. He highlights Mr Kaczynski’s intention: now it is time to win the election, later we will take back these words about ex-communists. I don’t know how it looks for you, dear reader, for me it is a fine example of duplicity and end-justifies-the-means approach to politics and I will not approve of it. I will not refer to the Wawel spat, but I will quote the last paragraph – he calls Mr Zawisza an enemy just because he pointed at Kaczynski’s inconsistency. Toyah took a leaf out of Mr Kaczynski’s book – the crucial thing is to find an enemy! Now I know why Kaczynski’s vision of Poland took his fancy.

Thursday’s post Men at work did not even need to have its title translated. I don’t know why Toyah wants God to get caught up in this little Polish cesspit. Maybe this is the punishment for "obeying" catholic teachings – is it in line with catholic teachings to accuse someone of murder if you do not have any evidence? Michael D. and I have asked Toyah to give us some details of that alleged murder. To no avail, words of murder are repeated like a mantra and if you repeat something several times, you will finally believe in it. This is how the myth has been created, it has been created from the very beginning. I know and even hold it against the government that circumstances of that tragedy are still unknown. I would love to see all doubts dispelled, but even then for Toyah and the likes it would still be an assassination.

And so we’re alive – Solidarni. The long story recounted. Tell about those people whatever you want, you do not try to deny the tragedy has brought them together. Once pushed around, ridiculed, degraded, they had guts to raise their heads and claim their presence in public debate. Since the tragedy they have shown how strong and united they are, proved their dedication and devotion. But there is a crack on the picture – why do they call themselves Solidarni? As a community they are united, but they are just a part of the nation. I would not like to destroy the new movement, but I am against the way they divided Poles – into the righteous patriots (themselves) and those who had not cried after the tragic death of the late president. This is unfortunately part of the rhetoric Mr Kaczynski has adopted – they and us, bad and good. There was a ceasefire for the period of the campaign but it was just a tactical move, soon it is gone. Actually ardent believers of Mr Kaczynski prefer that divide line – they need to separate themselves from the rest of the society who despise them. PO has supporters, PiS has ardent believers. I hope the new movement will grow in power quickly, quickly enough to mobilise German servants and Russian sidekicks to create the opposition to it. Hey, it is a daydream, PO voters would not give a damn. They will not join any movement, they can only go to the polls and thwart some plans… Maybe Poland is founded on lies and hatred, but the Solidarni are also full of hatred and I suppose it is a kind of revenge for all they suffered before. Anyway, there are people who hate Kaczynski, but there are much more who are afraid of him. I personally confess I am not that afraid, as long as dissenters are not his enemies I feel safe, but there was one moment after 10 April when a spark of hatred went through my head, but after a moment it morphed into anger. It was on 4 July, when Mr Kaczynski said his brother and other fatalities of the plane crash had died martyrs. Can anyone tell me why that tragic accident was a męczeńska śmierć?

Lord, listen to our prayers. The heat is getting unbearable so it is time to draw to a close. Can anyone tell me why Poles fall out and break friendships because of politics? I know many educated people, my peers, who are PiS-followers and guess what – it is not the reason not to be on speaking terms, we are still friends, we just avoid talking about politics! Political views should not tear us apart, but many hard-line supporters of both PO and PiS do that.

End justifies the means, not to a degree the world witnessed in the twentieth century, but small sins are surely acceptable in IV RP. As far as I know Jarosław Kaczynski did not accept his niece’s second husband, a son of one of SLD tycoons. Now Mr Dubieniecki is going to join PiS and soon might be one of the most prominent politicians of the party. Whenever the power is at stake it is surprisingly easy to change views.

Komentarze po polsku mile widziane.

15 comments:

Michael Dembinski said...

I shall discuss these issues this coming Friday in Dobra with Toyah himself.

Stefan Kubiak said...

I've just learnt about Toyah's existence from your post, visited his blog, went through some posts and come to conclusion that the guy is an incurable fanatic. The way he treats Anonymous Marek, who is not his enemy but just suggests a bit different approach, shows that Toyah's view of the world is black and white and there's no room for compromise. In one of his posts he proposed something that may be compared with ancient Roman proscription (a list of political enemies to eliminate). It's sick. The guy is a pathetic frustrated supporter of a utopia called IV Rzeczpospolita.

Listening to Jaroslaw Kaczynski I sometimes agree with some of his opinions. Reading Wildstein or Ziemkiewicz I also share some of their views. There are several points I disagree with but still I respect these guys (I mean J.Kaczynski and the journalists). Raading Toyah I'm simply terrified. I personally believe that Jaroslaw Kaczynski is civilised politician, in contrast to the popular belief. However, it is his zealous fans like Toyah that scare me off Kaczynski himself and his party.

adthelad said...

Oh dearie me! The lights are on, but nobody's home! :)

adthelad said...

...and studentSGH, please don't take the above to mean I believe or claim you're stupid (I'm not trying to be offensive). That's not the sense in which I'm using the idiom above. I just think you're really OTT and wiiiiiide of the mark with a lot that you've written.

student SGH said...

Adam, you should know me good enough to know I don't take umbrage that easily.

OTT? - what's the abbreviation?

And if you want to comment - pin it down, flesh it out, don't confine into two sentences, because now I can only infer I'm wrong but you didn't take trouble to tell me why.

adthelad said...

It would take so long do disentangle all you've written, że ręce mi opadają :) Best left for a time when we can babble at leisure.

OTT = over the top

toyah said...

@Student SGH
"At the end he asks why people hate Mr Kaczyński so much if he is so wonderful"
I am very sorry, but this is not what I have asked. This one is in fact your problem, not mine. I know the answer very well. And I have presented it well enough.
To Stefan Kubiak:
Marek was a strict troll. If you can't see it, don't blame me. I have to take care of my blog.
To accuse me of getting rid of people only because they don't share my point of view is perfect injustice, not to say stupidity. Michael and Student SGH, just to name a few, are perfectly on the other side and I don't mind having them there.

student SGH said...

@Adam
I realise I have a knack for tangling things up, but is the piece above so convoluted that it would take you ages to write a concise and substantive response?

@Toyah
I did a double-take on the excerpt you quoted - indeed it was a tad angled.

I don't keep track of all comments left on Toyah's blog and as he points out there is a respect for the dissenters as long as they "behave themselves". Netiquette always applies!

adthelad said...

I thought I did write a short and substantive response :)

And as to your, and I think this time I'll go all the way, 'inane' question to toyah as to how the 'accident' might have been caused, think about the following. We are aware that there has been a lot of (dis?)information by 'witnesses' regarding how many approaches were made, how many landing attempts there were, how the presidents plane dumped fuel and even a report of a flash in the sky. Well, just prior to the flypast by the Tu-154 an Il-76 took the same landing route, and we 'know' from the stenogram that a plane on the same frequency reported that it had completed a dump (rzut). What if a dump was indeed made by the Ił, only not of fog creating chemicals during the 2 hours it was flying around but, of fuel during its 'landing' attempt. What would have happened to the Tu-154 and it's engines if it had flown through a mist of aviation fuel?

regards,
a

student SGH said...

Adam, didn't I write above I'd like to know all details of the disaster. There's too much obfuscation about the circumstances but I don't hold out much hopes that it ever clears up.

it's engines - why this error crops up so frequently?

adthelad said...

Details of the disaster? In your dreams. Have a nice read http://wiadomosci.dziennik.pl/swiat/artykuly/296470,bada-katastrofe-tu-154-ma-wiele-tajemnic.html,komentarze,3

and 3 pages here

http://www.niezalezna.pl/article/show/id/34882/articlePage/1

adthelad said...

Oh, and for your further amusement http://ndb2010.salon24.pl/209148,zyski-zamachowcow-oraz-geneza-i-przebieg-zamachu

student SGH said...

Adam, if Russians are to cover up something, they'll surely try to hide their own faults, not Polish threads in the plot.

I was always against the Flexible Credit Line. We need it like a hole in the head and all stand-by charges are money down the drain, but I can't believe it was a reason to kill 96 people. I have a rather low opinion of IMF, to my eye thsi organisation fosters interests of powerful groups if the world is ruled by obscure lobbies to such an extent it's time to check how the afterlife feels like.

Tusk and Putin walking down the pier in Sopot plotting how to liquidate inconvenient Kaczynski.

Maybe The royal family caused Lady D's accident, maybe 9/11 was an inside job, maybe in 2012 the world will end and all disasters we witness herald the inexorable doomsday...

Take care!

adthelad said...

I agree, and perhaps I overstated the point but it makes you realise how a open and meticulous investigation would help to dispel any wild theories or doubts (well most of the sane ones you would hope).

For all we know the conclusion reached may become obvious and have little to do with all tests and procedures and their results. I assume they have a procedure for these things they've published somewhere? The point is 'Is a democratic 'opposition' justified in questioning the governments?'. Of course it is, it's the opposition's duty to challenge all the time, to question and to try to bring to account. Is this investigation being carried out with due regard to our sovereignty (or is that a silly question)? Trouble is, given what we know so far it doesn't seem so.

So this fear mongering of PiS seems a little bit OTT. Well, actually, I suppose you might be saying it tongue in cheek :)

pozdrawiam,
a

p.s. every time I read what Palikot has to say I keep being reminded of the Monty Python argument sketch :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQFKtI6gn9Y

adthelad said...

Actually - that 'fearmongering' sentence of mine is in not very good English - I meant I feel you're 'exaggerating' the PiS's fear factor :)

Anyway....