Exaggerated Resistance to Mutual Recognition of National Standards May Kill TTIP
During the last fifty years, the United States and the EU countries have developed very high, though different, consumers protection standards. A free trade agreement based on the unification of standards will be unrealistic. Ideas of functional equivalents and/or mutual recognition of national standards is the best recipe.
Why Do I Care About How Poland Is Perceived Abroad?
Whether we like it or not, getting closer to Budapest means not only drifting away from Berlin and Brussels, but also from Washington. The political position of Poland in the world states its power in Europe. But a strong position in Europe shouldn’t be built in a way that the Law and Justice does it. In such way, you can only lose this position.
It Would Be Funny If It Wasn’t Really Happening
It would all be amusing, if it wasn’t really happening. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Republic of Poland acts as if he was a live advertisement of some tv program or a publishing house famous for Polish jokes. Because could there even be another, more rational explanation to that?
Germany, Keep Silent
The sphere of entitlement and privileges of authorities and the sphere of rights and freedoms of citizens form a relationship which is characterised by inevitable and perpetual tensions. Every political system – may it be liberalism or democracy – works the same way.
Safety Nets for Poland: Donald Tusk and European Commission
With the president who is not willing to perform his duties as the guardian of the Constitution, it seems that it is thanks to the EU membership that there is still a kind of a safety net for Poland. Joining the EU back in 2004 now, in the light of the government that has set out to question the basic principles of European democracy, may prove a real lifesaver.
Polish Lemmings Are Pissed Off
The mass scale of the social response to what Law and Justice is doing, the Committee for the Defence of Democracy, which within two days gathered over 30,000 supporters may be just a preview of a massive political force that shall defend the rule of law, its sense of belonging to Europe and liberal democracy which it deems indispensable, or even ‘holy’.
Assault on Polish Constitutinal Tribunal
Parliamentary sessions (both of the Sejm and the Senate) held at night. Extreme pace and we’ve got ourselves a new act on the Constitutional Tribunal – an act to which as a pretext served, unfortunately, the previous majority appointing five and not three Constitutional Tribunal judges.
.Modern Polish Political Polarization
Nowoczesna is a party of the responsibility for the public finances, of the sensible management of the resources – a party that promotes entrepreneurial spirit, creativity, innovativeness and free market. It is a clear antithesis of the vision of Law and Justice – which Civic Platform clearly is not.
Expensive Rule of Law and Justice
About PLN 60 billion in spending and (in the beast case scenario) PLN 10 billion in extra revenue. PLN 40 billion of deficit. It seems that Poland can go broke within the forthcoming year. The question is whether Law and Justice (PiS) intends to sink the country or maybe Beata Szydło’s cabinet is designed to withdraw from the promises and fail so that Jarosław Kaczyński may step in and save the day?
