Lech Kaczynski, Poland's president, his wife and several other high-ranking government officials were also aboard the aged Tupolev Tu-154, that crashed, about 2km (1.3miles) from the airport in Smolensk, in Russia.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and both men visited the crash scene.
The president's role may have been symbolic but, he can veto government legislation. The speaker of the lower house of parliament, Bronislaw Komorowski, has been named acting president, under polish constitutional law until an emergency presidential election will take place. Normally, elections are held in October but have been pushed up to two months from now.
What's the big deal, you might ask? Why does this affect Americans?
Along with the president, the central bank governor, the chief of Poland's military and Deputy Foreign Minister all were on board the same plane, there were no survivors.
Analysts told Reuter's reporter's that Polish markets would not be severely affected. Additional quote by Goldman Sachs is in the article.
I found a very interesting article that helps to explain some of my concern with a country that I view as being 'olitically and financially vulnerable.
I'm not sure how many times I can say that Poland is extremely conservative.
Your point. If poland is extremely conservative, then all he is doing is following the trend, and being a conservative on social issues.
He was a huge supporter of trade unions, social security, and expanding health care.
Those are all economic policies, not social ones. Indeed, pretty far from classically liberal economic thought.
No, he didn't support gay marriage. One issue doesn't mean your are not liberal.
A fundamental part of liberalism is a belief in tolerance and diversity. It seems pretty irreconcilable to deny minority rights and still claim to be liberal, wherever you live in the world.
And again, I don't know how else to say it, but show me some proof that he or his party is linked to anti-semitism!!! SHOW ME! Please, for the love of God, show me. You have not provided one link or quote on it, yet you keep saying it. It's getting old. Prove it or stop calling his party anti-semitic.
How about this paragraph, you seem to have consistently ignored:
''Where did i say this? I said he had holocaust deniers in his government, like his minister for education. His party is also a part of the European Conservatives and Reformists whose leader has been described as ''"It is clear that Mr KamiÃ...�ski was a member of the NOP, a group that is openly far-right and neo-Nazi." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_C ⦠i-semitism The leader, Kaminski also denied the Jedwabne pogrom, in which polish gentiles took part. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jedwabne_pogrom
I never said he was personally a holocaust denier. However the fact that he is willing to ally himself to such a group in the eu (itd be like the tories allying with the bnp) shows he either had closet sympathies, or was very willing to compromise his moral principles for political gain. Either way, not the actions youd expect from someone who you purport to be a friend to the state of israel.''
