Monday, August 25, 2008

A view from Poland

Ignacy Nowopolski, editor of Polska Panorama, sent a comment the other day asking me to publish one of his essays here.

Now, as a general rule, I don't run "guest essays." I do post translations if I think they are relevant to the Anglophone audience, and I do on occasion quote other authors, sometimes extensively. But I publish things that reflect my own views and understanding of the world, and when I quote something it's either to criticize it ruthlessly or express my agreement.

I've read Mr. Nowopolski's piece, and it doesn't quite fit either category. But it is thought-provoking, and it comes from an interesting angle: He argues for a "Centroslavia" as a way to thwart both Russian, German/EU and American hegemony (not to mention safeguard the people of these countries from Islamic conquest).

Read it, and make up your own mind. Either way, I thank Mr. Nowopolski for reaching out. The internet is truly a wonderful thing.

5 comments:

R_M said...

Well, the author does not explain in any depth what `Centroslavia` would entail. A cynic could say it sounds awful lot like Polish hegemony over Central Europe. Though that is not me. I do belive Mr. Nowpolski is sincere.

I think the most valuable point he makes is the part about "genuine national elites". Post-transition societies are indeed immense intelectual wastelands with no confidence or vision to move into a direction that would be trully their own.

And which could be said is at the root of most every problem befalling them.

Oleg Nevestin said...

Pearls of wisdom in a sea of nonsense.
However, if even one of the US' staunchest vassals feels that insecure, then maybe America is all but doomed.
All in all, this rubbish reflects typical Polish desire for regional dominance.
I'm pretty sure that looming Polish-Czech juggernaut will be a real ass-kicker.
Scary stuff. We Russians are shaking in our boots.
Thanks for publishing. I needed a good laugh today.

Ignacy Nowopolski said...

Thank you Mr. Malic for publishing my link.

“Centroslavia” is my name for a loose concept of regional cooperation that might prevent anyone’s domination of Central Europe, especially by German and Russian barbarians.

Unknown said...

Frankly, I appreciate the fact that Mr. Nowopolski is so honest about the destruction of Serbis, the Serbs and Yugoslavia. Of course, a kind of Centroslavia isn't impossible unless it's just some for of cooperation. I can recall that the Radical Party in Serbia, since it can't get to power sadly, has called more than once for some form of federation between 3 countries. Serbia, Russia, Belarus. That's the kind of concept I think Mr. Nowopolski is advocating. I don't know how it could shield countries all the way from Poland to Macedonia from the West's desire to destroy them, the Islamic conquest and immigration but also the Russian desire both to control them and enslave them from an energy standpoint. I also agree of his assessment of how messy Poland has become, since I paid my first visit to the country last December. Thought-provoking work, for sure. But at least as far as the Serbs are concerned, a truly big change is needed right away to save Serbia and all the Serbian lands from being eaten up by the West. With the leaderships they have today, countries in the region (Poland and Hungary aren't useful, the Cezch Republic is very divided, only Slovakia has people strongly against the government's recognition of Kosovo and Metohija)

Interesting work but if there is no government change in Serbia and elsewhere in Eastern Europe out of the Serbian lands, I'm afraid it will be difficult to see concrete improvements in the near future.

Egregious Extremist said...

While such a change in unlikely now, the idea is at least worth exploring. Considering other options at least helps one weigh the potential of various paths to take.

I have decided to explore the concept in more detail on my own blog and feedback would help.