tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24528000.post5455023647181038263..comments2023-10-28T12:01:47.929+00:00Comments on Edward Lucas: snap comment on Poland election newsEdward Lucashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11369936559712607693noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24528000.post-38837447107480518872007-10-30T10:00:00.000+00:002007-10-30T10:00:00.000+00:00Edward,You are dealing with two people who gave Go...Edward,<BR/><BR/>You are dealing with two people who gave Google the same first name: Robert (surnames are not displayed.) Their identities are separate, which can be seen by clicking on their names, or merely moving the mouse pointer over their names and looking at the URL which displays at the bottom of the browser window.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17225661716464015375noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24528000.post-35052491498770154722007-10-27T12:08:00.000+00:002007-10-27T12:08:00.000+00:00Dear RobertI am a bit puzzled by the way in which ...Dear Robert<BR/><BR/>I am a bit puzzled by the way in which you berate me so crossly in the first two posts and compliment me so nicely in the third one. But thanks for the feedback anyway<BR/><BR/>EdwardEdward Lucashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11369936559712607693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24528000.post-51549663859565954862007-10-23T18:14:00.000+00:002007-10-23T18:14:00.000+00:00Congrats on an excellent summary and analysis of t...Congrats on an excellent summary and analysis of the election results, Edward. My insight is that the young did come out to vote and also might have influenced their parents, who may have otherwise been more likely to vote for PiS or the other whacko fringe parties. It was that phenomenon that clearly made the difference (read an article in I think it was yesterday's IHT which reflected on this). I had the privilege of managing a group of ten young Poles in Warsaw back in 2005 (average age 25), and I was gratified to see that they carried none of the "Kaczynski baggage" of prior generations. They were the first ones that gave me true hope that Poland's future would be brighter. I am glad to see that impression of mine manifest itself in this way. Cheers.Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14241030021963302928noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24528000.post-73995453319309154272007-10-23T12:05:00.000+00:002007-10-23T12:05:00.000+00:00You wrote to me:“You are entitle(d) to your view t...You wrote to me:<BR/>“You are entitle(d) to your view that the election result was in fact a triumph for PiS.” This is rather unfair and unreasonable to come up with pretty ridiculous statement and attribute it to somebody else (in this case myself). It is noted as a pretty popular method amongst the British political crowd, but to the outside world it looks quite primitive and, well,… not entirely honest. (No offence really meant - but it is an immediately seen as illogical way of exchanging arguments that does not help anybody. It really puzzles the outside observers.)<BR/><BR/>To remind you, I wrote: “(…)PiS, after two years in power, is more popular than when they got to power is (…)”. On all objectively measurable counts. This is a statement of fact, not a matter of opinion. Full stop.<BR/><BR/>But to avoid any doubt:<BR/><BR/>- the last election in Poland was PO outright success or triumph. Full stop – no ifs or buts – although as always there are the reasons.<BR/><BR/>- PiS lost to PO; hence it is a nonsense to consider PiS as “triumphant” (hopefully you agree with this) – unless the word is used in facetious context. However PiS increased their popularity amongst the Poles (although not as much as PO). It would also be wrong to state that it was at the costs of Samoobrona and LPR: PiS got only 25% of Samoobrona last vote and 50% of LPR vote. (On personal note – not representative – two of my friends voted last time LPR this time round… PO. Nothing wrong with that: both very reasonable persons.)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09365475210553291601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24528000.post-76922552043078488022007-10-23T11:36:00.000+00:002007-10-23T11:36:00.000+00:00Hi RobertYou are entitle to your view that the ele...Hi Robert<BR/><BR/>You are entitle to your view that the election result was in fact a triumph for PiS. However you have misunderstood my opening paragraph. I am well aware that Lech stays on as President. That is why, directly after the sentence you criticise, I write <BR/>"His twin brother, Lech, will stay on as president, although with sharply diminished political clout"<BR/><BR/>The era of the "twins" is over because that era was a time when they each had one of the two highest offices of state. I am sure JK will have fun in opposition--it may suit him temperamentally better than govt<BR/><BR/>EdwardEdward Lucashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11369936559712607693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24528000.post-81599796703342329962007-10-23T11:15:00.000+00:002007-10-23T11:15:00.000+00:00You wrote:“WHATEVER the details of Poland's next g...You wrote:<BR/>“WHATEVER the details of Poland's next government, the perplexing and sometime troubling era of the "terrible twins" is over.” – this is factually wrong. Lech Kaczynski – the president - is not “over”. Current elections were only to parliament. And parliamentary elections are not linked to presidential ones in Poland. (Worth knowing this.) In 2005 it was a coincidence.<BR/><BR/>You will find it soon that the President in Poland has some executive powers. (Incidentally I look at this with some concerns. The President is the ultimate Commander-in-Chief of the army and is responsible for the Polish Foreign Policy, according to Constitution. This is a bit vague, but it immediately leads into potential conflict. I hope that PO will get their way and not get embroiled into conflicting politics with the President.)<BR/><BR/><BR/>You wrote:<BR/>“Many Poles agreed with Law and Justice’s diagnosis of the danger of pervasive corruption, but found the medicine worse than the disease.” What is the hard evidence of your statement? How many is “many”? As you know “many” Poles take bribes. Do you mean that these are the Poles who “found the medicine worse than the disease”? This would not surprise me. (It looks like you are mixing with the crowd of questionable reputation:-)<BR/><BR/>This is the first reflection that crosses one’s mind after reading that comment.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Incidentally, there is the hard evidence that “many Poles agreed with Law and Justice’s diagnosis of the danger of pervasive corruption” and found the medicine as very effective. Read some social research on the subject. Furthermore a lot of them were not PiS supporters and did not plan to vote PiS in the last elections. You should also reflect that although PiS lost to PO, they:<BR/>- increased their number of votes by 1.5 million<BR/>- increased their share of votes by 5% (from 27% to 32%)<BR/>- increased their seats in Sejm (from 155 to 166)<BR/>compared to the last elections.<BR/><BR/>In my view, the main reason why PiS, after two years in power, is more popular than when they got to power is because of their anticorruption stance. This is the feeling amongst ordinary Poles.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09365475210553291601noreply@blogger.com