“Time of Chaos” is another book by Andrzej Krzystyniak after “Wrapping up Poland”, “The Puzzles of the Silesian Soul” and “Demons of the German Soul”. In the following essay, the author tries to connect the past with the present, analyzing selected events from the history of Poland and at the same time asking whether the fate of our country could have turned out differently, or what happened to us. us through the ages was not a defeat for us, but simply perseverance in the face of independent influences?
Although most Germans may not have been fervent supporters of Nazi ideology, they supported conquest and plunder without blaming themselves. But why should the Germans feel remorse? Poland’s allies, especially Britain, were no longer interested in Poland’s existence when the Soviet Union joined the war. Poland on the other side of the Iron Curtain: this fact assured that the Poles would finally stop causing problems.
The British did not foresee anything in their pragmatic vision, namely that the Soviets, realizing that the Third World War had to break out sooner or later, saw the potential of Poland, which they wanted to base on solid borders. The country they subdued, that is, Poland, would receive the first impetus from the attack of Western forces in the future war with the West. The Americans who occupied the area of West Germany had no intention of accepting Poland’s western border. The game for it would continue long after the war.
Poland had already been lost and doomed to defeat a few years before the outbreak of war. Repairing the divisions and creating a strong state in the center of Europe was a challenge for the European powers, which they intended to remove. This has not been possible so far, despite efforts. Poland is always lucky. Despite everything, it is necessary, but not in the way that Poles themselves would want to live in a truly independent country. Another thing is that the number of people who think this way has decreased significantly recently.
After 1989, a moment proudly called the regaining of sovereignty or even independence, Poland was forced to serve the interests of Western powers. While remaining in the Soviet Union’s sphere of influence, most people dreamed of a Western lifestyle, freedom and unlimited consumption. The leap in civilization that took place in Poland after 1989 was also a leap into the abyss. Poles, deprived of elites, led by a strange mix of venal party and secret service officials formed by the communist apparatus, willingly allowed their homeland to be pushed into the unknown. Of course, communist Poland was alien to Polish culture and character, and the level of demoralization was enormous. However, the transfer of Poland to the Western sphere of influence took place without much thought and unconditionally. Those who warned against it were in the vast minority, pushed to an even deeper margin, where they were stuck anyway. The dismantling of communism turned out not so much to be a battle against a system hostile to humanity, but a battle against the Poles. The Soviets, having given up on communism, decided to give the West a free hand in Poland, and they immediately made it clear that there would be no strong Poland. Our new allies do not need the industry and economy that the Poles have built up in the Polish People’s Republic. It needs to be dismantled and possibly sold for next to nothing. The Western Territories they were most interested in are still Germany; they must be cut off from Poland economically as quickly as possible, also culturally (or perhaps especially). And ‘Solidarity’, this dangerous precedent for the powerful of the world, must be reduced to the level of a real trade union as soon as possible. Let ordinary people forget that they can ever determine their own destiny and influence reality.
Poland fell out of communist slavery and fell into the illusion of freedom, the desired western lifestyle, which destroyed Polish customs and traditions much more effectively than the communists. Poland could not count on development in the sphere of the Western powers, but it began to pose competition, especially for Germany. Germany has no intention of helping Poland to develop, apart from meeting its own needs, of course. Poland should be their market for products and technologies. A strong Poland is in no one’s interest: neither Germany nor Russia. None of the neighboring countries will admit that they want to get rid of Poland once and for all. However, pragmatism dictates that Poland must continue to exist, if only because it is of course a fairly large sales market for Germany.
Source: wPolityce
Emma Matthew is a political analyst for “Social Bites”. With a keen understanding of the inner workings of government and a passion for politics, she provides insightful and informative coverage of the latest political developments.