Another nail in the EU coffin. Poland elects PIS

[abaris]

Xenophobic, nationalistic, religious fanatic, anti EU shitheads elected with absolute majority in Poland. In my book, it's no coincidence that the party name sounds like taking a piss.

Poland's Law and Justice party won the country's elections, hand the conservative electoral group a governing mandate after almost a decade out of power.

The Law and Justice (PiS) won 39.1 percent of the vote, according to exit polls, ousting the governing Civic Platform party. The government of Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz conceded defeat, ending nearly a decade of economic and political stability in the country.

http://www.cnbc.com/2015/10/25/poland-vo...o-win.html

[Homeless Nutter]

F*** me. That's bad news. Between this and the sh*t that's boiling up in Russia and Ukraine - I guess I'm never going back there... Better sort out my citizenship in UK, before nationalists here make it impossible...

And the stupid pope-bothering motherf***ers are wondering why young people are leaving Poland in droves...

[robvalue]

Fucking crap monkeys.

Poor old Norman... she's probably still trapped in that country. She disappeared from the forums a while ago now and I've not heard from her since.

[Fidel_Castronaut]

Everyday we edge toward the UK ref and I suspect there will be more inclined to vote for a Brexit than not.

I am still a firm advocate of closer EU integration, but I really do dislike the EU in its current set up. But reform needs to happen within, and outside.

I personally despise nationalism. There was a big war thing that happened in the 21st century which was in part informed by an aggressive and thoroughly unpleasant nationalism, the sort I now see growing around Europe again (eg. Scotland).

[abaris]

I am still a firm advocate of closer EU integration, but I really do dislike the EU in its current set up. But reform needs to happen within, and outside.

When we were called to vote on joining the EU, back in 94, it was presented as a political and social union. That's what I voted for. Getting rid of nationalistic bickering, open borders and social security and chances for everyone. It has degraded since then. Most of all because it welcomed countries that weren't ready for the big political step. The former communist countries needed more time to enjoy their new found freedoms and to overcome their nationalist pride. Now, nationalism is back with a vengeance. You can't marry the idea of a European community with nationalism. Unless you settle for an economical experiment.

[Fidel_Castronaut]

100% agree. Both economically and politically they were not ready, but then again it looks like even some of the larger states weren't either.

What I find scary is how quickly Europe can still descend into blaming the other when things go awry. The Greeks blame the germans, the Scots blame the English, the English blame the French and the Spanish, the Germans blame the Southern European states.

To me it only reinforces the need for a strong and workable EU, political and financial. But I don't know how to achieve that.

[abaris]

To me it only reinforces the need for a strong and workable EU, political and financial. But I don't know how to achieve that.

For me it helps to be a perfect mixture of our former monarchy. Part Hungarian, part Czech, part German, part Jewish. Nationalism never played a role in my upbringing, since my family spent their whole lives fighting it. Doesn't mean I don't love my country, but it does mean that I'm foremost European. And being proud of that, as far as anyone can be proud of the coincidence of birth.

[robvalue]

I'm not looking forward to our referendum. I'm sure Cameron isn't either, he only promised it to stop UKIP running away with things. I'm sure he knows it's a bad idea to even have the vote.

I don't think people will vote us out, I reckon enough people will have the sense to see what a royal mess that would cause. This setup is certainly far from perfect and needs a lot of work, but ripping the piece of metal out before getting the patient to the hospital is not a good idea.

[abaris]

I'm not looking forward to our referendum. I'm sure Cameron isn't either, he only promised it to stop UKIP running away with things. I'm sure he knows it's a bad idea to even have the vote.

But that's the thing. Trying to beat the populists at their own game usually doesn't work out. The populists don't have to run a state, so they can tighten the screw as much as they like. And people will always flock to them because of the easy solutions they promise. So the only chance lies in taking a stance against them and try to inform the people instead of feeding them your own dose of populism.

I wouldn't underestimate the people's simplicity either. There are political forces promising them all kinds of things if they only left the EU. Many of them don't think any further than that and don't have a grasp of the complicated nature of a global economy.