“Hamlet” by William Shakespeare
Marcellus Let’s follow; ’tis not fit thus to obey him.
Horatio Have after. To what issue will this come?
Marcellus Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.
Horatio Heaven will direct it.
Something is rotten in the state of Denmark. – says Marcellus to Horatio in Act 1 Scene 4. This line is one of the most recognizable lines in all of Shakespeare’s works. The context is very clear.
Just before midnight, Hamlet meets Horatio on the walls of the castle. They wait together in the darkness. From below they hear the men inside the castle laughing and behaving madly; and the King is draining his “draughts of Rhenish down”. Hamlet expresses his dislike of such circumstances. To Hamlet, drunkenness has ruined his nation, which is known abroad as a land full of drunken swine.
Horatio spots the Ghost of Hamlet’s father approaching. Hamlet calls out to the Ghost and it beckons Hamlet to leave with it. Despite the pleadings of Horatio and Marcellus, who are afraid that the apparition might be an evil entity in disguise, Hamlet agrees to follow the Ghost and the two figures disappear into the dark.
Marcellus, shaken by the many recent disturbing events and no doubt angered (as is Hamlet) by Claudius’s mismanagement of the body politic, shrewdly notes that Denmark is festering with moral and political corruption. Horatio replies “Heaven will direct it”, meaning heaven will guide the state of Denmark to health and stability.
Many politicians and moralists use this phraseology to emphasize their discontent with the particular country’s events. This may be a theme of last months’ commentaries regarding Poland, and the USA. or the European Union?…
Militant EU apparatchiks say democracy in Poland is in danger. Is it, or our attention is torn apart, and away from the real issues?
Franciscus Cornelis Gerardus Maria „Frans” Timmermans says: Constitutional Court in Poland is “politicized”. Well, in his own Holland, monarchy does not allow for a constitutional court. The same applies in the case of former Belgian premier, Guy Maurice Marie Louise Verhofstadt. What do those EU “Hóng Wèibīngs” (EU Red Guards) want?
Also, German Martin Shultz and Luxemburg’s Jean-Claude Juncker know very well, that democracy in Poland is doing very well. The Constitutional Court in Poland is elected in a more democratic manner than the Supreme Court in the USA. A situation where women in Poland can retire earlier than men, most people would consider a privilege rather than discrimination…
What do those ultra-liberals want? Their EU parliamentary coalition party from Poland, Civic Platform (PO in Polish), is in complete disarray. Their marginal popularity caused by the politicians, like Radosław Sikorski, or Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz (great-grandson of Nobel Prize winner in literature), known for vulgar and obscene language in Poland, is putting the liberal coalition in EU Parliament into question. The Polish population overwhelmingly supports the present government party (PiS – Law & Justice). With two years before elections, PO is trying to create an image that Poland is isolated for “totalitarian and Nazi-like politics”.
The case of Poland
Facts. Polish economy is on the rise. Poland’s armed forces are strengthening their muscles under the command of the Minister of Defense, Antoni Macierewicz. Recently, on November 11 (which is Poland’s National Holiday of Independence) sixty thousand Poles celebrated on the streets of Warsaw their joy of freedom. We all remember, they overthrew communism first at home and later encouraged other Central European nations, including Germany. We all know how bravely they fought as our comrades-in-arms in Normandy, Italy, Africa, Norway, the Battle of England, to name a few. Winston Churchill once said to Poles “never was so much owed by so many to so few”. The crowds I saw were cheering with joy and happiness. They were also showing their determination to defend the country if in need. Very patriotic! If someone does not recognize the difference between “patriotism” and “nazism”, he/she is probably lost somewhere in their first grades of schooling, or is acting in bad faith.
We, Americans are very patriotic. Our children learn since kindergarten to say the Pledge of Allegiance. And it is a great way to start! We should welcome the same approach in other countries as well. The ideology of Patriotism does not allow any room for chauvinism. The fact is that many foreigners sought freedom for their beliefs (both religious and political) in Poland. These were Jews, Gypsies, Germans, English, Scottish, French, Russians, and others. These days Poland has almost two million Ukrainians. They escaped from their war-torn country. Greek-Orthodox and Orthodox people find refuge, freedom and jobs in Poland. Ukrainian Yura told me he would like to stay in Poland forever. The computer programmer is seeking employment. He wants his mother Vala, his father Zenek to join him. His brother Sasha, escaped conscription and is working on the farm in southern Poland. They come from Volhynia, once torn by the genocide of Poles by the infamous collaborators (UPA) of Germany during WWII.
The Present government of Poland works hard to be the trusted and worthy ally of the USA. Previous diplomatic leaders of Poland directed by the scandalous Sikorski, Schetyna, and Tusk didn’t consider an alliance with the US as a valuable one. Now, with Morawiecki as the Prime Minister, the situation is reversed. Macierewicz, trusted ally since Reagan times, works very closely with our defense, while Polish foreign affairs minister cooperates with our State Department.
All attributes of freedom are present in Poland. Political, religious, and economic views together with freedom to express and demonstrate political, religious, and economic convictions. One must say, the private media are often manipulative and inaccurate in their propaganda. Fake news are not sole American dispensation.
Almost two million Ukrainian war refugees are in Poland. EU does not want to consider them as refugees. Poles are sustaining Christian communities in Syria and Iraq by providing funds for rebuilding their communities, houses, businesses and churches. Together with other Intermarium countries (the EU members) they raised funds to help Libyan police to better control their territory.
The case of the United States
Trump administration remains under furious attack with the same approach as the government of Poland. One able to read Polish papers would be surprised with the similarity of argumentation and phraseology used by the press. Soon we are going to hear his team is responsible for natural disasters, the snow storms, or the hurricanes.
Ordinary people see Trump as a successful man, who does what he promised. The longer he “remains” in office, the more is the electorate convinced he was a wise choice!
For the first time foreign and domestic policies are combined into one policy: America First! We need to remind him, what he promised us during the election campaign. He won in swing states thanks to the change of mood within Polish-Americans. Before, they usually supported the Dems, but now they switched for a republican candidate. So far he did not confirm he would heed Polish-Americans’ voices. One would expect a cabinet position for the organizer of Polish community for Trump, dr. Lucja Canon. She is not part of the team now. This disappoints our people. Maybe, Trump still has meaningful plans for her? On the other hand, Polish Americans are happy with the way Trump is handling the bilateral relationship with Poland, the most trusted ally of USA.
President Trump also impressed many people in the Intermariumi. This project would end the existence of Russo-German grip over the area. These ambitious nations desire the ability to be the masters of their own destiny. The Intermarium would become an important issue for the United States from economic, military and political point of view. Our government should embrace this project as the most strategic issue from the stand of national security policy requirement.
What is good for the USA in Europe/EU? Intermarium, if strengthened by us, would keep the Russian Federation and Germany quiet. Should the situation in the Far East deteriorate, this would free our hands from calming Russia. Combined EU military strength is like 2:1 against Russia, unless we allow the Russo-German grip to crush the Intermarium. The Intermarium should also become a taming force for the Middle East in alliance with Israel, which seems to be a natural choice.
Russian Federation officials criticized our President’s America First National Security Policy definitions delivered in a brilliant Trump speech. Particularly, they challenged the references he made to Russia, as the adversary of US. They (conveniently) forgot their own War Doctrine, where they identified the United States and the NATO Alliance as the Russia’s main enemy. It is a very good reason to consider Russia as the enemy of our country.
i Area between Adriatic, Baltic and Black Seas. These countries are Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Czechs, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Serbia, Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, Herzegovina, Macedonia, Greece.
The case of Germany
All our observers of German politics concur that Angela Merkel seems to be very, very tired with politics, domestic and foreign. She no longer controls the development of the events of her own country. The economy is suffering. The migrants are out of control and police does not know what is going on. Censorship of German media upsets the electorate to the point of no return. She found herself in a dead-end alley, in the place of no return.
One German political scholar told me Merkel might retire prior to her term.
Her control grip over the German press is tiresome and they may soon find the ways to escape. The censored journalists still try to find the “guilties” “outside”. Now, they attack Polish government. They claim Polish leaders want to pull Poland out of EU. (They were always the advocates of EU!) Anybody could see the difficulties Merkel had with forming a meaningful coalition for the federal government. Her own party CDU is in open rebellion stage, while the union with Bavarian CSU seems to be very shaky.
The case of EU
There are two trends among the EU politicians, liberals and traditionalists.
One group wants to create a European Union of Socialist Republics (EUSR). They want Brussels to decide about everything. Politics, law, economy, everything must be controlled by the European Commission (EC). This group is led by the German-Franco alliance. The key players are Merkel (nee Kaźmierczyk-Kasner) and Macron. Others, like Juncker, Timmermans, Verhofstadt, or Shultz are the second rank apparatchiks fulfilling the orders coming from above. Tusk, Sikorski and others are just the lieutenants of the leaders. All of them see the sovereignty of the individual stats as an obstacle to their ideas. These “western” politicians mostly come from the countries that drained their colonies in Africa and Asia, leaving poverty and misery beyond any decency. Now the migrants from Africa and Asia come and want to have a good life in the metropolis.
The traditionalists want EU to be the union of sovereign states. They come from smaller countries, like Poland, Hungary, Romania, Baltic States, Czechoslovakia, Croatia, Austria…
The states that were formerly controlled by the Soviet Union don’t want to lose the long-sought independence and sovereignty. Remaining inside Russo-German grip is very uncomfortable for them. This is why they launched the project called Intermarium, or three-sea sphere.
European Union wants Poland and Hungary to be flooded by migrants from Africa and Middle East. Polish and Hungarian governments refuse, as they want to help on the spot, in Africa, in the Middle East. Arrogant Germany and arrogant France want Poles to bow to their expectations. One listening to the Belgian, Dutch, French, or Danish bureaucrats in Brussels criticizing Polish authorities should remember how their nations behaved during WWII. Almost 500,000 volunteers served in infamous Waffen SS divisions, forming their own national units. One should ask: where were their parents and grandparents when Poles were fighting against Nazi Germany and communist Soviets? Instructing Poles about democracy, when their own conscience is not very clear, sounds like a double standard. The French should be grateful to Poles since they were the liberators of France, giving away their young lives for France’s independence. French Messieurs Macron should better remember who died on the fields of Normandy, Falaise and other places in France. The same applies to the Belgians and the Dutch. There is a museum in Montormel dedicated to “those brave Poles”, who were instrumental in winning the battle and liberating Normandy. Messieurs Macron should better visit the museum. The same applies to Italy.
With poor economic factors, flood of migrants and ambitions of politicians the European Union is in trouble. The present leaders have no glimmer of idea how to lead the continent. All modern crisis’ keep them deeply in disarray and hysteria. The time comes for Poland, as our President, Donald Trump has emphasized in his prophetic speech enthusiastically received by the millions of Poles around the world, and particularly in Warsaw on July 6, 2017.
Wakeup of EU is only possible, if Brussels follows Polish lead. German and French ideas are fully exhausted. European Union must return to a pre-Nice Conference situation. Only then EU can reach the new (old) economic dynamics. Maybe then United Kingdom would reconsider returning to the bargaining table as prodigal, but cautious son.
Where do we go?
We Americans must remember, where are our alliances, our friends and our enemies. We need to start taking lessons from our history. Betrayals, like we did during WWII in Teheran and Yalta would backfire at us for sure. Like in business, in politics the friendship is a two-way street, not one-way. The relationship must satisfy both sides, us and our partners.
It is in our best interest to strongly support the Intermarium project, and make sure it is going to happen.