Poland invokes Nazi occupation to bolster EU case

[muriel_volestrangler]

Source: Guardian

Poland, meanwhile, raised old grievances about Germany from the second world war to try to bolster its case for a "fairer" voting system in running the EU.
...
Under current arrangements dating from 2000, Germany has 29 votes to Poland's 27 in EU councils, the ministerial level meetings of member states.

The new system is based on population sizes, and gives Germany more than double the Polish vote. The Poles are incensed and are demanding a new way of calculating votes that would diminish German "hegemony".

"If Poland had not had to live through the years of 1939-45, Poland would be today looking at the demographics of a country of 66 million," Mr Kaczynski said.

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/eu/story/0,,2108497,00.html

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Well, it's a novel argument ...

[MrPrax]

1. It was Jaroslaw...

...not to be confused with Lech, the President.

:eyes:

[DavidDvorkin]

2. Germany would have a larger population, too

As would most of the rest of Europe.

It's a silly argument.

[Hardrada]

3. If WWI had been avoided

there wouldn't even be a Poland!

[Paulie]

8. Ouch!

Though of the empires would have left the Polish-Lithuanian Republic internal affairs alone, she wouldn't have been partitioned in the first place, or was that third place? :)

[Hardrada]

12. Polonia divisa est in partes tres.

zwischen Russland, Preussen und Das Heiliges Roemisches Reich.

[DavidDvorkin]

4. The Thirty Years War!

Why without that ...

No, wait, the Roman Empire!

[Hardrada]

5. Adam and Eve!!

God!!!

[DavidDvorkin]

7. The Big Bang!

I think we've covered it all now.

[Hardrada]

11. In the Beginning was the Word!

[Odin2005]

6. Poland seems to be degenerating into reactionary BS.

Their Religious Right makes ours look puny by comparison.

[fshrink]

9. No degeneration here.

There are reasons why the main concentration camps were put in Poland. Very Rovian of them to blame Germany.

[cigsandcoffee]

10. There certainly were reasons.

Germany invaded Poland with an overwhelming force, leveled their capitol city, installed a brutal German dictatorship and slaughtered a quarter of the population.

Your post appears to imply that the Polish citizens were complicit in that. I hope I've misinterpreted.

[Rage for Order]

15. Indeed

It's the equivalent of saying it's very "Rovian" of a rape victim to blame the rapist.

[Igel]

14. Poland and Germany are in a bit of a political tussle.

This is just another salvo in the battle.

They may be reactionary in many respects, but not everything has to be squeezed into that particular pigeonhole.

By pointing out that Germany has dealt dirty with Poland before, trampling their rights, they're highlighting the current argument: That by changing the voting rules, Germany's again trampling their rights.

[BestCenter]

16. First Russia and Estonia, then this

Europe's getting flashbacks of WWII!

[entanglement]

13. One word to the Poles before they get all self-righteous - Jedwabne

n/t