The Romans had a proverb that past is simply a teacher of life. It does not seem to apply in Poland. On the contrary, both the ruling politicians and the majority of the public prove that this proverb does not work here. I am not going to compete with Alexander Bocheński and compose a follow-up on “Today's Stupidity in Poland”, I will only deal with 1 case.
On May 8, 1945, planet War II ended in Europe. Poland was in a group of victorious states, although by decision of the powers it was in the sphere of influence of the USSR. The triumph cost us very dearly, life was lost to about 17.22% of the Polish population – 6 million Polish citizens: 2 million cultural Poles (1 million in the GG, 250,000 in the lands incorporated into the Reich, 500,000 in the Kresach – during the russian business and at the hands of Lithuanian and Ukrainian nationalists), about 2.9 million Jews and 1 million another national minorities. Poland's financial losses were the largest among the countries participating in the war, at 38% of the property before 1939. So many statistic 1).
These 6 million, however, are the deaths of individuals, in combat, in wounds, in prisons, concentration camps and camps, frequently tortured, burned alive. It's the pain and despair of families and orphans after the dead and the tortured. This can only be remembered by people who were only a fewer years old in 1939, now 90+. tv images from Ukraine can only approximate these feelings, but you request imagination for that – they are viewed in a comfortable chair, safe, like horror films. They're expected to be scary, but it's safe in front of the TV, it's just a picture...
It is worth mentioning the memories of Krzysztof Ziemec2) after treating the burns he suffered in the fire: “I would besides like to die a heroic death on the barricade. Only the fire verified my dreams of heroic deeds and romanticist death. I didn't realize that before you died, you hurt so much. That even heroic death is frequently days of suffering. Only after the accident [burning 40% of the body – KG] did I realize that in the uprising fewer people died on the barricade with a song on their lips. The insurgents died in torment, dying in burning cellars, dying in smoke."
I think it can be explained that 25% of the Poles surveyed want to send Polish troops to the Ukrainian war, and most support sending Polish tanks, cannons, tiny arms and ammunition. But only 12% want to join the army! It's easy to talk about death in trenches if it's going to be others dying. War to the last Ukrainian! The continuation of war results in a desire for revenge and revenge, as Prof. Bieren3 points out, “governments lose their ability to break the bloodbath—on the contrary, they make an effort to keep the zeal of war alive. There is simply a paradoxical momentum to the abyss. The powerful of this planet are watching the theatre of disgraceful war at the expense of innocent people”...
As Onet4 reported, the beginning of the formation of the first Polish peculiar unit under the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine was announced in Kiev; it will carry out exploratory and diversionary actions. The Polish Sejm passed an amendment to the Military Service Act: Polish citizens were not allowed to service in troops of another states, now they can service in the Ukrainian army.
Napoleon cleared the treasure of the Duchy of Warsaw in 1812 “to the iment” and inactive indebted for “the Bajoran Sums”. Helping Ukraine, especially refugees, is an work of the Polish State. However, aid must not exceed the limits of reason, indebted to generations – the interests of Poland have priority. An example is the issue of excessive import of Ukrainian grain, causing its inability to buy it from Polish farmers and at the same time reducing wheat prices by PLN 500 per tonne. This situation was described by Grzegorz Kolodko5): “At a time erstwhile the endurance of generations requires shifting financial resources to combat climate warming, they are wasted on unproductive reinforcements, At a time erstwhile wealth depends on spending on human capital, abroad states are turned on by buying costly weapons from them.
At a time erstwhile the competitiveness of plants depends on the investment in infrastructure and science, more and more public money sinks into military spending." A military balance must be pursued at the lowest level, not constantly increasing! Reagan and Gorbachev did it. May I? You can! Pope Francis said that the state's devoting 2% of GDP to arms this madness. In our country he found himself considered a lefty6. Poland now spends up to 3.5% of GDP 7)!
It seems that talking about the serfdom mentality of contemporary Poles is an illusion of publicists. Poles, as you can see, inherited from their ancestors not sober peasant rationalism, but romanticist noble tromtadration, failure to account for reality or national interest. all war is worse than the most "damaged" compromise! From the room! past is simply a teacher of life, but it must have capable students who know the facts of the past and can draw rational conclusions from them. Unfortunately, present there are neither politicians of different groups nor most of society.
Krzysztof Gutorski
1) Friday, Review, 2/8.05.2022; 2) K. Ziemec: “Everything is for something”, Kraków, 2022; 3) St. Bielen, Przemyśl Poland, 9-10, 2022; 4) Onet, 16.02.2022; 5) G. Kolodko: “War and Peace, PWN, 2022; 6) It is advanced time, 24.03.2022; 7) M. Morawiecki, Washington, 1.04,2023.
