Travel / Białowieża National Park in Poland [461]

Given that they turned up in court to defend themselves, that would indicate that the government accepts that the EU has some jurisdiction in this matter.

Driving round Poland on the last few months I am appalled by the amount of deforestation that I have seen both swathes of woodland and trees next to the road being cut down. Anybody Have some reliable info about how many trees have been affected in this way?

Off-Topic / What is a good way to end yourself? [18]

Dude - you do not need to do that. You are a good person. Go to sleep and then fix up a meeting with a psychologist

News / Officials in Poland are hailing an upcoming visit by Donald Trump [720]

Yeah right - what politician could possibly care about an ethnic group concentrated in small electorally unimportant states like Pennsylvania, Ohio or Michigan. It's to as if those places have mattered much in recent years.

George W made a point of taking Kwasniewski out to those places. Trump also dropped in on the Popes during his run and promised visa free access among other things.

Real Estate / Real Estate Lawyer costs in Poland [18]

Given that its Milanowek i would make triple sure there are no restitution claims from pre war - it was the playground of Warsaws rich in those days so precisely the kind of town affected. You only need to google the number of ambulance chasers involved in this business now to see its still a live issue.

If you are British then also consider your property rights after Brexit - no deal done yet and a worst case but very possible scenario is that Brits end up lumped with all othet non EU foreigners needing permission to own land (if its just a flat then no problem)

Real Estate / Real Estate Lawyer costs in Poland [18]

Ok fair enough, prices for those guys start around 300 zloty an hour so ot depends on your budget- but you are unlikeky to get an english language opinion from a local lawyer.

As well as ownership really check the easements on an old property - these are often in a chaotic state in Poland at the monent and can cause years of grief

Real Estate / Real Estate Lawyer costs in Poland [18]

chambersandpartners.com/guide/europe/7

A guide to help you find a lawyer in different fields.

Real Estate / Real Estate Lawyer costs in Poland [18]

Best to just use Chambers.
What are you buying ? A big deal or a single house ?

Unfortunately with Warsaw lawyers its supply and demand and english speakers might give you a high quote for small jobs because they have plenty of other stuff on.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

You are allowed penknives if you want to open a box. You are not permitted to carry bigger ones unless you have a good reason. Good reason is decided by a judge.

All fairly simple to understand though it does not make for racy headlines.

My guess is that Muslims are proportionately less likely to be involved in these stabbings, many of which are in bars and in arguments about girls. Much of the current wave of violence is among Jamaican and Africans.

News / "It's too late for Germany" (but not for Poland) [1798]

It is natural but an uncomfortable fact for people like you is that those who are more open to other cultures and races become better educated, richer and provide more opportunities for their kids.

Law / Poland's Inheritance Law Without Will [21]

The simple way is for you to buy it from your Grandad. He can then leave the resulting cash to his kids and your aunties debts could be paid off. Also this way you would probably save tax though depends on the details.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

Dunno - certainly the
individuals and their parents have a lot to answer for. Not sure I agree that they don't have any life chances - they get a free education, live in one of the richest cities in the world, it's low unemployment at the moment and has been for quite a long time, there is unrivalled culture on their doorsteps. It's certainly more than your average kid in Poland has.

Law / Investment advice - my options in Poland? [50]

I'm not talking about landscaping - just basic stuff like clearing weeds, building decking, making a plot clear for a garden etc. Whenever I want that kind of service it takes a week to find anyone and another 2 weeks for them to arrive. Home ownership is increasing and many Poles are having gardens for the first time.

If I want a kebab or an ice cream or a coffee shop I can think of at least 10 options for each within 20 minutes drive. So you would need to give a reason to visit your place and not the others.

Gardening is just an example - there are probably many other manual trades which are in high demand right now. As I said all you really need is a second hand Navarra and a few tools and a laptop and phone plus a few workers. Fitting out a food place will cost you at least 1000 zloty per sqm and probably more if you do it properly.

News / Thousands of Polish women attend Czarny Piątek rally in Warsaw [780]

You doing your bit Rudy ? Did you find a nice girl yet to bear you six kids ? Its Sunday so why arent you either out in the park with your kids or in bed with your wife working on number 7 ?

Law / Investment advice - my options in Poland? [50]

Honest opinion - for that money buy some kind of truck, a bunch of gardening tools, learn something about gardens or driveways or decking and do that. There is more and more demand for this, less and less people on the market, and if it does not work out you can easily sell the truck on the tools and try something else.

All The other businesses that you have suggested have high fixed costs, quite high competition, a lot of tax and regulation, and very seasonal..

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

The people of Britain can vote for that if they think it is a good idea. Honestly I do not think you would find a single British MP, police officer for any mayor or local officiial who would support that view.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

Wulkan the maths is clear - in CBOS poll only 11 percent of Polish citizen supported liberalisation of the gun laws.

Given that the same organisation often publishes polls that show support for the ruling party at between 40 and 50% that means that at least 75% of PiS voters support gun control - And that's no surprise, they are conservative people who like to look after their families and live in a safe place.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

Correct but we must put off the other 90 percent of criminals as effectively as possible. In Poland even if you are determined then it is very hard to get a firearm illegally - you would need to have a good contact in organised crime.

The numbers of mass shootings in the USA do compare to Islamic terror - in fact they are far higher, in Europe then 56 innocent people were killed by terrorists in 2017, in the US then 58 in Las Vegas alone, just for attending a concert In 2018 so far then 5 in Terror attacks and 17 in the US school shootings. Small samples but just as relevant as comparing New York to London for a sinngle month. Killings are going down in Europe due to better police intelligence and the fact that lots of militants were killed in Syria.

The YouTube shooter would not get a gun in Poland. Background checks and the psych exam would quickly pick up her eccentric YouTube behaviour and the concerns her family had about her. Polish background checks are now extending to social media and checking affiliation to extremist organisations. It is clear that whatever checks are done in the US are meaningless box ticking exercise - no surprise as a proper background check would absorb huge resources when it is millions of people applying for a gun.

This is not a left / right issue - if any of you gun nuts ever visited a Polish small town and stopped 100 PiS voters outside church then they would overwhelmingly be opposed to relaxing the gun laws.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

Hardly a riddle - she had a legally acquired semi automatic, took it to a shooting range to practice and then trued to kill a few innocent people at a company who had created some mild inconvenience for her

Thankfully that kind of thing never happens in Poland as they would do thorough backgtound checks and that kind of weapon or ammo would not be available.

Plenty of stabbings are prevented by thr fact that carrying knives is very risky.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

Most knives are already banned in the U.K. with stiff penalties, including prison, for carrying an offensive weapon.

News / Officials in Poland are hailing an upcoming visit by Donald Trump [720]

I think the Russian stuff is true but Trump did not know what his campaign staff were doing.

Its the fault of the Republican party - they should have had a good moderate candidate in the primaries and stopped him then

Love / How to read the signals from this Polish Guy? [19]

Oh sorry to hear that - at least you won't go on wondering :) plenty more fish in the sea

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

Dolno - So in answer to your question yes it does seem that certain groups do think it's hip or manly to be seen with a gun, that this will validate them as a person, make them glamorous and deserving of respect and help them to get women.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

And fortunately the shooting and hunting clubs are extremely picky about who is let in and also have to notify the police and have psychological tests and no criminal records. So all in all far more difficult than the US. And that is just for owning a rifle or hunting weapon - not for owning an A,which is basically impossible unless you are in the Presidents guard.

As for the rest of your post well for me it's job done in the reproduction department. Unfortunately raising your kids well requires a lot more difficulty than being able to squeeze a trigger and take out a squirrel or a prairie hen. You will find that out one day

Not sure what drive a stick means - I will need to google it. If you mean drive a stick shift then that is what almost every Polish driver does, including women god forbid.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

Well That's democracy in the US. But in Poland if you want to own a gun, then you are not allowed. That's also democracy - because that's what the democratically elected government of Poland wants.

You think owning a gun makes you a man?

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

But several posts above Dolno has corrected me - Switzerland with the highest firearms ownership in Europe also has a higher rate of shootings. Czech does not have loose firearms laws and it does not have a low rate of gun crime compared to the US. That has been explained many times before with statistics - and it is the reason why no country in Europe wants to relax gun laws.

All of these countries have far lower rates than the US. You can buy guns in Walmart and I don't know what checks are done but probably not enough in 3 days. There should be one check " do you want an AK or an Uzi in your house, near your kids?". If the answer is yes then you should not be allowed one.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

He he fair enough :) every days a school day !

Work / Poland's Work Permit Document Apostille [7]

Really you should ask 3m to sort it out for you and pay the relevant costs - it's a big company and you will not be the first expat who needed a work permit.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

Of course not - it'needs good police, fair courts and above all citizens that understand their duties and not just harp on about their rights. It does not have to be a homogenous society - Switzerland with 3 major groups has hardly any gun crime, ditto Australia, Canada, Belgium.

Law / Weapons laws in Poland. Carrying a concealed handgun? [918]

It is a problem in London for sure but those are freak months - last year New York had 290 murders, London 130.

It would be more in London if there were guns.

As for the mayor well people voted for him and they can vote him out too.

History / What should Russia and Poland do to become if not friends, then at least not enemies? [939]

But like the NRA (who also don't often go to college) this guy is merely exercising his right to free speech for something he believes in. That is something he could not do in China or Russia, where the way to influence politics is either via coercion or corruption. Without some level of freedom then the potential of those big countries will always be limited and living standards for the masses will be below the West.