News / Gazeta Wyborcza of Poland losing readers [301]


That Gazeta Wyborcza and Rzeczpospolita reflect European trends in newspapers? :)

(heck, they reflect world trends - plenty of American newspapers are suffering too).

The funniest thing here is that Gazeta Wyborcza is still #1.

How many young people aged 18-30 actually buy it, as opposed to reading on gazeta.pl for instance?

Still, nice to see that the usual suspects are as obsessed with Gazeta Wyborcza as normal. And - that - is why PiS will never, ever regain power.

Incidentally, isn't the circulation of Agora's freesheet more than making up for the loss of readers from Gazeta Wyborcza?

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]

Polonius, did you actually read this article before posting it?

It certainly doesn't subscribe to your point of view and presents a positive image of Gross.

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]


Or maybe it simply wasn't worth publishing - there's an awful lot of politically-motivated dross in Polish that doesn't get translated.

News / Why is Poland developing so slowly or in the wrong direction? Who is responsible ? [317]


Indeed - Poland could have easily followed the German system, which seems to be working very well. They could even copy the French system to ensure that PKP Intercity would continue to dominate ala SNCF.

History / Lwów, Wilno ... kresy - Poland have lost enormoust part of our heritage... [389]


Without a doubt. I can imagine a coalition of the Baltic States, Finland, Poland, Romania, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia easily - and I suspect such a coalition would have enough force to warn off Russia and Germany. The problem would be in later years - we'd probably see a repeat of WW1 before long.

Study / Polish schools and Polish educational system level in your eyes [135]


Maybe - depends very much on the department, I think.

News / Upping the speed limit in Poland [92]


I don't recommend taking on Poland without being rested first - Polish drivers are much more unpredictable than their Western counterparts.


They're just as awful here, I'd say. At least in Germany, there's the threat of a decent punishment hanging over them if they get caught!

And oh yes, it's great fun to make them race off the lights - they just cannot help themselves. I remember one time, me and dnz were in his car - and some guy wanted a race. Fine and well, but he was in the car with his wife and small kids!

Study / Polish schools and Polish educational system level in your eyes [135]


Shouldn't be a problem - from what I know, they have some sort of system to convert your A level results into points - though it seems Polish universities will take *anyone* with A levels irrespective of results.

Having said that, it's a pretty simple decision -

Quality of studies? The UK, hands down.
Price of studies? Poland, hands down.

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]


A professor of history at one of the top 10 universities in the world isn't a historian?

Please. I know you suffer from the same old Polish delusional complex of "I DON'T AGREE WITH HIM THEREFORE HE IS NOTHING" - but come on, the guy is far more accomplished than 99% of Polish historians!

I notice that Gross was actually jailed at one point by the Communist authorities - just what is it with some Poles and their attempts at insulting and smearing anyone who was actually there?

News / Upping the speed limit in Poland [92]


What I think they should have done was to introduce 140km/h on tolled motorways, but left it at 130km/h on free sections. Looking at the A2 as an example - 140km/h is fine between Nowy Tomysl and Poznan, and between Poznan and Konin - but on the other sections, 130km/h is enough. Heck, 120km/h should probably be introduced on the Poznan bypass!

News / Why is Poland developing so slowly or in the wrong direction? Who is responsible ? [317]


Uh, the III RP is doing very well for itself - it's somehow managed to transform a country that was all about heavy industry and managed to almost totally reinvent itself as a place of light manufacturing and technology. The fact that it's now stealing R&D jobs from the UK says a hell of a lot for how far this country has came.

Compared to the nationalist, backwards II RP, it's a no brainer.


Poland is well on the way to reaching parity with Western countries - bearing in mind that people were working on construction sites for $100 a month about 16 years ago, it's a hell of an achievement. It's going to take a long time yet, and it will be painful on the way - but there is absolutely no reason why Poland can't be equal to Greece or Portugal within the next 15 years.

20% voting against EU membership - that means people voted 4:1 in favour of membership. I'd say in any democratic country, that's a clear mandate for membership.


I just don't think it's that much of a big deal to people to make it worth that much hassle. People talk about it a lot, but look at UKIP in the UK. They've delivered two rather excellent results in the European elections, yet they get hammered in the local and national elections.

Food / Cooking Polish kiszka [99]

I struggle to understand how a "Polish" market can sell something with the wrong name...

News / Why is Poland developing so slowly or in the wrong direction? Who is responsible ? [317]


What utter nonsense. Poland has more or less over the years (except since 2007) elected socialist governments - even going back to the time of the II RP, socialism has been the dominant theme of Polish politics.

But tell me - what system was imposed on Poland? Who made the Polish people pass the referendum on EU membership? Indeed - who made the Polish people vote Solidarity in 1989 and not the Communists?

The fact that they elected the PIS/LPR/Samobroona coalition in 2005 says that no-one was interfering with Poland's system. And don't forget - Kaczynski SIGNED LISBON.


What could you possibly know, being a traitor? I mean, it's not me that pledged allegiance to a foreign power!


We could go back to 1991, if you want? Poland needed visas to cross the German border, the country was an economic basketcase (one report I've read suggests that you could buy a Polka for 5USD in Słubice) and the economy was in a horrible state. Those "westerners" actually made life much easier for Poland - especially as Germany more or less strongarmed the rest of the EU into accepting Poland as a member in 2004 when the country wasn't ready.

Next time you insult the "West", just think about who paid to secure the Eastern border.


Indeed, except local and European elections. I wonder, did our proud Polish patriot (who doesn't even posess a Polish ID card, despite allegedly visiting every year or two - so therefore breaking the law of Poland like the traitor that he is) vote in the Presidential election?

Then again BB, he calls Lech Kaczynski a martyr ;)

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]


No doubt the people you're sending money to are laughing their heads off - especially those farmer relatives who are pleading poverty. Next time you see them, ask them why they pay a tiny amount in social contributions yet get much larger pensions than they've paid in for?

The fact that they convinced you that they got nothing from the EU tells me all I need to know - that they see you as just another guillible yank.

News / Why is Poland developing so slowly or in the wrong direction? Who is responsible ? [317]


No, they joined the EU because they thought that they deserved a place at the table. They were (along with Slovenia) one of the leading lights of the Eastern non-EU bloc, and they were the ones who implemented the painful reforms first.

Money didn't even come into it, apart from possibly in the eyes of greedy farmers eyeing up CAP funds.


Really? Why did so many Poles leave Poland then? I don't call leaving "building Poland".


You know someone is certainly Plastic when he doesn't know about any of this!

I suspect that in time, the II RP would have been a well off country, what with the vast agricultural lands and huge industrial potential - but it certainly wasn't in the period that it existed.


Well, there was the government between 2005-2007 and the presidency of Lech Kaczynski. The PiS lead government had the opportunity to withdraw Poland from the EU, and Lech Kaczynski could have refused to sign Lisbon. Neither of them did - why not? Clearly - Poland supports the EU.

I suspect that the Polonia let their own political thinking get in the way - usually because they don't understand what the EU even is.

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]


I imagine I'd probably be quite upset. Hence the appeal of this book.


Given the utter desperation in Poland in those times, I ask you - what's particularly horrific or shocking about it?

They did what they had to do to survive. It's not pretty, pleasant - in fact, it's pretty damn awful - but do you think they would have done it if they had the choice not to?

Travel / A business trip from Warsaw to Bialystok - transportation? [26]


Yes, nothing at all wrong with TLK trains. First class has the ability to make an optional reservation too - the only issue is that they need to make sure to get a non-smoking coach. But in general, I've noticed that TLK trains are increasingly being made up of old "ekpress" carriages - so there's really no difference.

Love / I was raised in Poland. My Family hates my wife because she's American ... [69]


I thought you said "slag".

Ahem.

USA, Canada / What should I bring back from the U.S. to Poland? [46]


....

Come on Fuzzy, you eat that crap? :P


I'd say that advice is good for living in any European country, not just Poland. When it was $2 to 1 pound, New York was rammed full of Brits!

History / Lwów, Wilno ... kresy - Poland have lost enormoust part of our heritage... [389]


Terribly useful. It's my opinion that if Poland and Czechoslovakia had concentrated on building an alliance of all the countries which wanted to stay independent, it would have been a different story. If you look at it, it's no surprise that so many countries fell so quickly - they were in the middle of fighting with each other, so they more or less invited the Soviet Union and Russia to walk in.

Of course, given that the 20's and 30's were a time of great nationalism - it's unrealistic to expect such a broad coalition. But why Poland (especially Poland!) didn't say "hang on...we're sandwiched between two great powers, one of which has already attacked us" is a mystery to me.

Law / What information is in the Schengen Information System? [10]


Indeed - but given the somewhat odd nature of Polish justice, it wouldn't surprise me if the police here wanted to have a chat with him.

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]

And yet, the worst part of all is that they refuse to recognise him as one of their own - despite - being Polish born!

Amusing none the less - just how many Ivy League professors does Poland have, anyway?

Australia / HOW DO I MOVE FROM AUSTRALIA TO POLAND PERMANENTLY? PARENTS BOTH FROM POLAND [26]


Or do it the easier way and move to Poland and get the dowod osobisty without going to all the hassle of trying to get Polish citizenship in Australia.

Law / What information is in the Schengen Information System? [10]


Depends on the country. I'm not sure what Poland is doing exactly (some countries, like France, use SISone4ALL as their national system too), but if you're known to the police, it's likely to come up.


Maybe, maybe not. If the police were interested enough in the case to put it on the system, then yes, you're likely to trigger a "hit" on SIS.


It's not only SIS that you want to worry about, but the fact that if she made a complaint to the police - this will come up during any future residency applications.

I'd suggest getting hold of your Polish police record and finding out if they want to talk to you about it before trying to cross a Schengen border.

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]


He's Polish born, so he probably feels some connection there.


Two groups. One, the ones who purchase "holocaust pûrnography" - the ones who want to be shocked by what else happened to Jews. Two - Poles. Despite claiming to be disgusted and so on, they'll still buy the book.

Not hard to figure out that there's a huge market right there for a book that details how Poles were digging up Treblinka to find jewels.

Law / Got Polish citizenship, now I need a Pesel and passport [26]


That's because the Urzad Miasta (or whatever it's called in Warsaw) will issue it if you're registered in Poland. You'll get your dowód osobisty in the same place. As a Polish citizen, why didn't you just go to the same place that every other Polish citizen goes to deal with citizenship matters?

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]


They were Polish citizens - where were they supposed to go?

You should get out of the mentality of saying "Jewish" and say "Polish" instead, because that's what they were.


It's an odd article - it seems to praise Michnik, then it criticises him for his stance on Iraq, then starts ranting about the Balcerowicz plan. It also has quite a few factual inaccuracies, mixing up privatisation with the ending of subsidies to failing businesses. Interesting, though - Michnik's personal support for the Iraq War is certainly at odds with Gazeta Wyborca's readership. But then again - perhaps he just feels the same way as many Poles, that they should help America now in exchange for support in the future?


It's much easier to do the research in Poland though. Really, it's nothing more than that - Poland is an easy place to write books, Russia is not. Russians also don't tend to care much about what someone says about them, whereas Poles do - so it makes even more sense to write a book that appalls Jews and offends Poles?


amazon.co.uk/Hernani-Jew-Story-Russian-Oppression/dp/0548506272

Took two seconds to find that. There are plenty more books out there.

History / Lwów, Wilno ... kresy - Poland have lost enormoust part of our heritage... [389]


This is my personal opinion - that they massively overestimated just what the Polish Army was capable of. In all fairness, people talk about Russia invading Poland and this is what broke Poland - but Poland was already staring defeat in the face by Germany alone by September 17th. I don't think it takes a genius to work out that Stalin waited until Poland was there for the taking before invading - heck, he repeated that performance with the Warsaw Uprising!

This map is quite interesting - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dywizje_wrzesien_1.png

One thing that strikes me is just how indefensible the border with Germany actually was.

History / Lwów, Wilno ... kresy - Poland have lost enormoust part of our heritage... [389]


Any idea if it's known who the Polish leaders considered to be the worse enemy - Germany or Russia?

News / Pole-basher Gross up to old tricks [284]


Ah, the anti-semite villager in you comes out again!


Actually, they saved thousands of their fellow citizens. Nothing more, nothing less. Incidentally, he's not blaming you for anything - have you read the book? No? Didn't think so.


I think you need to brush up on your history - they most certainly weren't too liked in the II RP!