News / Poland leads in child well-being -- UNICEF [75]


Right, so familial disfunction, sexual abuse, delinquency, alcohol abuse etc should be 'resolved within the family'.

Not hard to see that statement for the nonsense that it is.

News / Poland leads in child well-being -- UNICEF [75]


Can you be sure about everyone else there? About those out in the villages where nobody sees what happens.


I think I'd rather wait to see a highly trained NHS GP in a group practice than someone who's so popular as a doctor that nobody is waitng to see him. For myself, back in the UK I've never had to wait for more than a day or so to get a GP appointment and in any case, most large cities have a drop-in centre now.


I think you'd find that someone who'd gone in the other direction from the UK to Poland would say much the same about social care for the homeless and mentally ill here. During that especially bad winter we had a few years ago, 70 homeless people had frozen to death in Warsaw alone by early December. Yes, homeless people and the mentally ill can sometimes be very hard work, however somebody working with them, annoying though that can be, is essential to an integrated society.


This is a field I have a lot of experience with and you will doubtless be reassured that since the report you mention and as a result of very hard work by the police, social services and the CPS, the number of reports of crimes against children (whether genuine or false allegations) has increased


I wonder how many are reported in Poland where there are no large scale campaigns to report such crimes, and nor is there any significant compensation or benefit to do so, that and pressure from within families not to break that family up by making a report.

News / Poland leads in child well-being -- UNICEF [75]


Exactly.


You don't see how child safety might be underreported? Perhaps you presume all those Poles the 'zły dotyk' posters on public transport are aimed at routinely confess their sins to the authorities...


And all too many 'home remedies', 'self-treating' by families, private doctors, inadequate reporting mechanisms - the list of reasons is very long, Greggs.

Plus all the unreported violence, all the dark things that go on and are never seen outside the home. Hey, Greggs, if you don't think these things happen on a large scale in Poland, perhaps you should campaign for the relevant paragraph in the criminal code that makes them illegal to be removed. After all, if you believe that a. such things don't happen much in Poland and b. Poland is as effective about monitoring child safety issues as a much more developed country, why not...

News / Poland leads in child well-being -- UNICEF [75]


And of course more thorough reporting and recording procedures, picking up on things that in Poland would be kept within a family, whether that family be decent people or not.

Travel / Rail Travel in Poland - getting to Zakopane from Krakow Airport [14]

Cheap enough not to worry about - in 2nd class it's less than £5 (25zl to be exact) and less than £10 in first class, not that many trains Krakow-Zakopane have that (but worth it for a bit of extra comfort during the holiday season when the trains can be busy).

News / Poland leads in child well-being -- UNICEF [75]


That would be the same 2007 presumably when the Citizens' Platform took office, having ignominiously booted out the deeply unpopular Jaroslaw Kaczynski from his very brief term of office.


I suspect a lot is swept under the carpet here; simply never coming to the attention of authorities and this is of course easier in a more rural society.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


Many? All of them. PiS people live in a bubble.

UK, Ireland / A new mayor in London: opinion of Polish people in the UK? [317]


It says a lot. Either those opposed to him can't be bothered to vote or more likely that most people are OK with either candidate.

UK, Ireland / How might Britain`s withdrawal from EU affect Poles there and here? [474]


The greyest of grey areas but all turning out OK.

Work / 13000 zloty salary enough to save 9000 zloty with normal living in Poland? [37]

He doesn't necessarily mean a tourist hostel, probably more a workers' hostel. There are several in Warsaw however they are usually booked solid months in advance by semi-permanent residents and those that have rooms free are expensive; their prices are based on a company putting up builders or whatever there. And they aren't usually very nice.

A room or small flat would be better.

News / An article: NATO is the American occupation of Poland and Europe, by Mateusz Piskorski [233]

We know you hold extreme views about politics, however that takes the biscuit - especially since the situation in Poland has deteriorated dramatically since those parties you mention went temporarily out of office.

Remember Po, moderation triumphs over authoritarianism and fascism. Always and without exception.

News / An article: NATO is the American occupation of Poland and Europe, by Mateusz Piskorski [233]


I agree with their sentiments, however the security of Europe is no more a matter for people in the USA than their arguments with various Central American states have to do with us Europeans.

Unfortunately the appalling government we currently have here in Poland is determined to pour oil on troubled waters.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


Well JohhnyReb, let's look at the facts:

- they had to be bussed in for free
- they were almost certainly 'incentives' for agreeing to be bussed in
- they all sloped off to the shopping mall rather that actually attend the demonstration

So yes, it was a PiS 'stooge' demonstration. And even that was a failure, like everything else PiS try.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


Indeed, the Polish pro-democracy rallies have a fair cross-section of people, all ages, all backgrounds. A huge contrast to the PiS government's stooge 'counter-rally' where they had to bus people in (& probably pay them too) and in fact they all sloped off to the shopping malls instead.

History / Poles the biggest hypocrites in the world [35]


This isn't unusual - most places have history and plenty of countries have good relations with their neighbours despite traditional, perhaps justified, unease.


Most people here aren't haters and Islam is unfamiliar to most people; it is something new that most people hear about (the bull **** , internet or otherwise at least as much as the truth) but don't really experience first hand unless they travel.

News / Poland, still corrupt, but not as bad as Czech/Hungary & Italy [36]


Any one of several individuals within the PiS local organisations.

Travel / Taxis from Gdansk airport? [65]

Another advert. Must be getting desperate since Gdansk got not only Uber (much better value than the old-style taxis and honest too) as well as a new fast (and very cheap) rail shuttle direct from the airport.

News / Demonstrations in Poland in defence of democracy. [2554]


This is key; the effect of EU membership (and the EU is popular in Poland) has been huge.

Those here who rather stupidly suggest that there is some sort of issue with lack of freedom should ask themselves this question; what has the EU ever stopped them doing?

Work / 13000 zloty salary enough to save 9000 zloty with normal living in Poland? [37]


This means the net amount that you will receive after tax and social/health contributions is more or less 9000 zl and this will decrease slightly towards the end of the year as you pass the various tax thresholds.

money.pl/podatki/kalkulatory/plac
You will be able to send home 5 or 6 thousand zl maximum.

News / Poland may take the EU to court if they step up pressure -- Kaczyński [89]


You're still not getting the point. Here's another question to think about: what does the value of the stock market reflect?

News / Poland may take the EU to court if they step up pressure -- Kaczyński [89]


Worth repeating a different way, since you obviously can't grasp the basics (or don't want to - something common among PiS supporters) - from where does a government obtain its revenues?


Would it? That (especially the risible "instantly influence wages" gem) would come as a surprise to many.

News / Poland may take the EU to court if they step up pressure -- Kaczyński [89]


Of course they do - where do you think the tax revenue (including personal income tax) comes from? What about tax on goods and services?


Not an economist, are you.

News / Poland may take the EU to court if they step up pressure -- Kaczyński [89]


They are in act very much a vital source of income, including in the short term. Since it looks like you disagree with the importance of a healthy economy, you might reflect on:

- jobs and labour; this is highly susceptible to changes in a country's markets - and so far under PiS this has been a disaster

- trust and confidence in a country's economy; this affects the level of inward investment and the ability of Polish companies to fund their activities and of course is linked to the markets - trust (and inward investment) have fallen massively since PiS took office.

- the value of investments held by Polish citizens and others; even minor fluctuations hit investors hard; and people lost a lot of their savings/large investers a lot of their assets when PiS caused the Polish markets to plummet

- the tax revenues which fall very quickly when companies that are listed on a given market lose value on that market
- the ability of companies to pay a good price for imported raw materials and to get a good price for exported finished goods. This is directly affected by the company's value and capitalisation.

Every one of these factors directly affects revenue to the state - company expansion provides direct tax revenue, in fact any economic activity provides revenue and this as show above is directly (and quickly) affected by the values of companies listed on a market. Falls in the market (which affect income, jobs, savings) happen quickly and are something of a vicious circle. Rises in the market typically take longer to have an effect.

And the current PiS 'government' have messed the whole thing up.

The EU does have a role inb maintaining safe markets.

Work / 13000 zloty salary enough to save 9000 zloty with normal living in Poland? [37]


Yes, it is a good wage in Poland.


This is the important thing. If you are used to being careful and are living in modest accommodation 8,000 zl is possible, 9,000 just about possible if you spend little. Many people, even in cities, live on 4,000 zl or less. Including some expats.

Is the amount your employer quoted before or after tax? This makes a big difference.

News / Poland directly threatened by ISIS. Do Islamists planning terrorist attacks in Poland? [390]

Russia and their organised criminals/politiicians (the same people in much of Russia) is a bigger danger due to leaky borders, the sort of corruption that is ripe for any terrorist whether IS or not to exploit and yes, false documents.

Travel / Refusal of service and "black lists" in Warsaw, Poland [5]


It would also be potentially illegal in Poland to retain such data without your consent.


The 'black list' is still being used by someone? Who is using it?


Expensive and ultimately probably fruitless, unless you've got a copy of said blacklist.

UK, Ireland / THE BIGGEST POLISH COMMUNITY IN U.K? [40]


That or they couldn't recruit people for those jobs; not unlike the post-2004 Polish deluge. Nobody was stopping the original population from doing those jobs and some of the largest or highest density Polish populations, Slough, Boston, etc, are in areas with high unemployment.

News / Poland directly threatened by ISIS. Do Islamists planning terrorist attacks in Poland? [390]


Exactly, however Poland is largely peaceful; the only terrorism so far has been homegrown from 'nationalists' who would identify as Christian, even though they are not (parallels with Da'esh here).

News / Poland may take the EU to court if they step up pressure -- Kaczyński [89]


Most didn't. Don't worry though - at the next election there will be even bigger change - we can expect quite a backlash against the current shower, as last time.

News / Poland may take the EU to court if they step up pressure -- Kaczyński [89]


They, like Poland and Hungary, need some help, due to unfortunate instability; something in Poland caused entirely by the present 'government'.

Another day, another scandal...