The “why” in the title has been occupying my thoughts so much that I decided to share my reflections on the ongoing presidential campaign.
Why, despite a massive propaganda campaign of the kind: “I will vote for Komorowski,” “Why I say NO to Jarosław Kaczyński,” “Famous Bolesławiec residents support Komorowski,” to mention only our local reality, does the threat of Kaczyński being elected to the highest office continue to grow?
I find it difficult to resist the thesis that Poles are contrary by nature, and the more one tries to force something into their heads, the more willing they are to do the opposite. Instead of convincing us that someone is better than someone else because…, all I hear is that someone is bad! And this supposedly bad person is not foolish at all. Like a meek lamb, he merely rubs his hands and watches his support continue to grow!
Why is this campaign devoid of ideas? The only candidate about whom I could say that I know what to expect is the hopelessly unelectable Janusz Korwin-Mikke. The rest either are ashamed of their views (Komorowski on the commercialisation/privatisation of hospitals), or cannot or deliberately do not want to present them (Kaczyński – the idea of the Fourth Republic). We all know that “Poland is the most important” and that “Agreement builds.” None of this means anything at all.
Why do people associated, for example, with the left suddenly call for voting for Komorowski? To me, this is complete paranoia, showing only how easily people can be manipulated. I understand citizens bombarded from their television screens with warnings about the threat posed by choosing Kaczyński. We have survived one; we will probably survive the other too. But I cannot understand politicians who, at least in theory, should be attached to values. Nor can I understand how political parties—and, consequently, political views—can be changed depending on the current situation (pre-election polls) and in the name of personal gain. That is pure political schizophrenia. What surprises me even more, however, is that we continue to elect such people as our representatives (from local authorities to the Sejm).
Why am I being told that a vote cast, for example, for Napieralski or Jurek is a wasted vote? I am being pressured to abandon my values and convictions in the name of defending Poland against… democracy! We live, at least theoretically, in a free country—and not a wild one, as one of Komorowski’s colleagues claims—where everyone has the right to choose. Unlike many others, I would feel bad if I gave in to this pressure.
Why does someone keep telling me what is good and what is bad? This is good for Poland, that is tragic! We will never know what would have happened if, for example, Napoleon had defeated Russia. Would that have been good for Poland or bad? Usually, something is good for one person and precisely the opposite for another. For some, Kwaśniewski’s ten-year presidency was the greatest evil; for others, the best period in the history of democratic Poland. I know both kinds of people.
Why am I being told that the person who wants to extract shale gas using open-pit mining is better than the one who claims that no one will convince him that white is white and black is black? What difference does it make to the state whether the future head of state breeds cats or hunts wild boar, whether he is married or single, has five children or none, is tall or short?
I know what kind of Poland I want to live in. I know whom I will vote for both on Sunday and, perhaps, on 4 July. But I also know that there are people who will vote for Jarosław Kaczyński. Well, they too know what kind of Poland they want, and they have the right to that. I do not ask them “why?”
Jarosław Molenda