Dogma and Experience.
Notes on the Profile of Polish Democracy

Three fundamental ideas: civil society, the free market and solidarity lay at the root of the concept behind the changes defined as a democratic transformation. These ideas became the underpinning of the founding myth of Polish democracy, an underpinning which proved to be highly liable. Free market mechanisms and the political struggle for power were at the root of the erosion of values linked to the ideals of civil society and solidarity. The notions of mutual recognition and cooperation gave way to fierce competition. Disillusion and frustration plunged Polish democracy into a torrent of resentment. The idea itself of market selfregulation collapsed. Polish democracy found itself in a void, between the extremes of resentment and naïve accession-optimism, activated by the integration program. A deficit of symbolic capital thwarted the creation of a political communication model conducive to opening a genuine debate. Instead, an image-based politics emerged as a substitute of effective communication, representing a swing in activity away from debate and towards gestures and platitudes.

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