Articles

In this episode of the Liberal Europe Podcast, Leszek Jażdżewski (Fundacja Liberté!) talks about Polish upcoming parliamentary elections, EU funds and the rule of law, and how to deal with populists.

The December issue of the 4liberty.eu Newsletter provides an overview of the articles published on the 4liberty.eu website, serving as a starting point for further exploration.

For millennia humans have been fighting for all this against the randomness of tyranny, the dominance of strengths, privilege, and discretion over common rules and freedoms, defended by just laws. They have always wanted to live in such a way that it is clear what belongs to them and what belongs to others, contracts are not broken, what is borrowed is later returned, and the ruler is punished if he steals, lies or mistreats.

In 2004 the Institute for Market Economics (IME) presented its first Alternative Budget. Each year since that we have suggested an annual budgetary frame with lower taxes, more effective spending, bold reforms, and lower state interference. At the beginning of 2023, Bulgaria will not have a state budget drafted by a regular government and voted on by a parliamentary majority.

Once again, it has become clear that Bulgaria shall not be joining the Schengen agreement for some time, mostly due to the distrust in the work of our institutions and their ability to effectively guard the outer border of the visa-free area. Apart from the deeper European integration and the further inclusion to the \"rich country club,\" the accession to the Schengen Area could provide a couple of specific benefits to the Bulgarian economy.

On November 8 the US elected all congressmen, 1/3 of senators, 36 governors and hundreds of officia;s at the state and local level. However, one of the main roles in the entire campaign was played by past and present presidents. Joe Biden, along with Barack Obama, encouraged people to vote for the Democratic Party, while Donald Trump waged battles within the Republican Party.

The next COP27 Climate Summit was held in Egypt. The very choice of Egypt as a country of the COP27 Presidency was strongly criticised by the communities involved in human rights activities. The consequences of the climate crisis are increasingly being felt around the world; droughts, violent weather events, food security threats, and climate migration pose new challenges to an old unresolved problematic and ineffective world strategy.

We pay too little global attention to what is happening in China. The Communist Party persistently continues the policy of a restrictive lockdown in response to COVID for over 2.5 years. Funnily enough, this policy is probably an ideal dream for many opinion leaders in Poland, given their position just a few months ago. But seriously, in the Chinese authoritarian system, this sanitary regime is more violent than anywhere else in the democratic world.

The term \"wage\" and its size are very important in national discussions about labor markets, taxes and insurance payments, but also part of international comparisons for investors deciding to build a factory or to place investments in a specific country. A lot of confusion has been created by the introduction of gross wage with arbitrary distinction between \"employee paid\" and \"employer paid\" taxes and contributions.

In this episode, we talk about experiencing the first days of the Russian invasion in Ukraine as a journalist, changing social moods, resilience of the Ukrainian fighters, possible scenarios for the end of the war, and about why it is crucial for the West to support the Ukrainian cause.