Following the defeat of the right-populist PiS government in Poland, analysts have debated the prospects of the liberal government. Among several interesting commentaries, the famous political scientist Adam Przeworski notes that democratic backsliding encourages further backsliding. If a liberal government also packs democratic institutions with supporters, it entails backsliding. If it does not, it may harm its future electoral prospects.
PiS wasn't as illiberal as the media have made out. The new government will be fragile, ludicrously keen on breaking down Polish sovereignty, and not really any more effective. Capitalist Poland has a history of alternate governments each promising much, stealing much and achieving little. When the economic growth is viewed through a lens of emigration and recovery from communism then the governments quickly lose credit for the main thing that they look to have achieved.
All civil services are. Publicly agreeing with various PC agendas is used as a screening tool in many western countries to ensure that only a certain sort of person gets into the state apparatus.
Democratic Backsliding....an interesting phrase. I have only a sketchy knowledge of Polish politics but if its recent entry into the major-league of Eurpoean nations continues apace....the Polish centre-right may need to watch out. I have lived through a 50 year long period in England where - seduced by an illusion of Left/Right electoral pluralism - every public and private part of the culture has been permanently captured by the Left. This has happened via the agency of 50+ years of a 'Progressive' academia sheep dip which, until recently, advanced without much MSM attention. So much so that Britain now effectively is a leftist political monoculture. I believe this has been a story repeated - albeit in varying degrees - right across the West. https://grahamcunningham.substack.com/p/invasion-of-the-virtue-signallers
I've heard the idea that the Polish experience through the late 80s and early 90s was what cause the term "deep state" to be coined. Whilst not a left/right split (almost all major political parties fall more on the right in Poland), they've never managed to clear out the hold overs, remnants and power brokers of the old regime. It's one reason why the issue with judges became important to PiS.
The fact remains though, that Poles will generally vote for where they feel prosperity and security will be. That will mean following the west more often than not. The relative absence of "woke" phenomena in Poland is not really because of any inbuilt conservatism or resistance, it's just a few years behind on the timeline and will head where Germany leads.
It's hard to map Polish politics onto the Anglosphere world.
PO are centre right in the pro-business, small state, lower taxes, economically liberal sense.
PiS are right wing in the sense of being nationalists, with a Catholic influenced conservative social policy. They tend to be very much on the left economically (many of the leading lights were in the trade unions) and distrustful of all but the largest private enterprises.
Everyone is anti-Russian and pro-NATO, and to a large extent pro EU (or at least EU funds)
One reason for the relative absence of the left in Polish politics is that it's a position associated with anti-clericalism, which is still a relatively unpopular stance.
There's also an interesting gender split amongst younger voters, where men vote very much on the right (Confederation are a kind of weird nationalist/libertarian hodge-podge) and women vote for the left (believed to be motivated by a desire for liberalising access to abortion).
> In liberal democracies, public administrators must aspire to neutrality
Is this true? The USA uses a system in which senior civil servants are all political appointees, and it's clearly a liberal democracy.
Yes, there are important caveats, of course. In the US, do politically appointed civil servants have to pledge to be neutral?
Not that I'm aware of (except I guess judges?). The incoming administration is expected to replace them anyway so what'd be the point.
PiS wasn't as illiberal as the media have made out. The new government will be fragile, ludicrously keen on breaking down Polish sovereignty, and not really any more effective. Capitalist Poland has a history of alternate governments each promising much, stealing much and achieving little. When the economic growth is viewed through a lens of emigration and recovery from communism then the governments quickly lose credit for the main thing that they look to have achieved.
Agree there are serious problems with policy continuity! Indeed, CEE civil services have long been subject to political interference.
All civil services are. Publicly agreeing with various PC agendas is used as a screening tool in many western countries to ensure that only a certain sort of person gets into the state apparatus.
Democratic Backsliding....an interesting phrase. I have only a sketchy knowledge of Polish politics but if its recent entry into the major-league of Eurpoean nations continues apace....the Polish centre-right may need to watch out. I have lived through a 50 year long period in England where - seduced by an illusion of Left/Right electoral pluralism - every public and private part of the culture has been permanently captured by the Left. This has happened via the agency of 50+ years of a 'Progressive' academia sheep dip which, until recently, advanced without much MSM attention. So much so that Britain now effectively is a leftist political monoculture. I believe this has been a story repeated - albeit in varying degrees - right across the West. https://grahamcunningham.substack.com/p/invasion-of-the-virtue-signallers
Agree that left-liberals dominate Western sociocultural sectors, including universities. Poland is a bit different, though there are similar trends.
I've heard the idea that the Polish experience through the late 80s and early 90s was what cause the term "deep state" to be coined. Whilst not a left/right split (almost all major political parties fall more on the right in Poland), they've never managed to clear out the hold overs, remnants and power brokers of the old regime. It's one reason why the issue with judges became important to PiS.
The fact remains though, that Poles will generally vote for where they feel prosperity and security will be. That will mean following the west more often than not. The relative absence of "woke" phenomena in Poland is not really because of any inbuilt conservatism or resistance, it's just a few years behind on the timeline and will head where Germany leads.
I spent some time doing research at Solidarnosc and someone went on and on about this film... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKCJP5fX-8I
As you can imagine, it's not my cup of tea, but it provides insight into an influential mindset.
Thanks for this info..... I guess this means my 'watch out' is valid.
It's hard to map Polish politics onto the Anglosphere world.
PO are centre right in the pro-business, small state, lower taxes, economically liberal sense.
PiS are right wing in the sense of being nationalists, with a Catholic influenced conservative social policy. They tend to be very much on the left economically (many of the leading lights were in the trade unions) and distrustful of all but the largest private enterprises.
Everyone is anti-Russian and pro-NATO, and to a large extent pro EU (or at least EU funds)
One reason for the relative absence of the left in Polish politics is that it's a position associated with anti-clericalism, which is still a relatively unpopular stance.
There's also an interesting gender split amongst younger voters, where men vote very much on the right (Confederation are a kind of weird nationalist/libertarian hodge-podge) and women vote for the left (believed to be motivated by a desire for liberalising access to abortion).