From Solidarity to sellout : the restoration of capitalism in Poland

In the 1980s and 90s, renowned Polish economist Tadeusz Kowalik played a leading role in the Solidarity movement, struggling alongside workers for an alternative to "really-existing socialism" that was cooperative and controlled by the workers themselves. In the ensuing two decades, "really-existing" socialism has collapsed, capitalism has been restored, and Poland is now among the most unequal countries in the world. Kowalik asks, how could this happen in a country that once had the largest and most militant labor movement in Europe? This book takes readers inside the debates within Solidarity, academic and intellectual circles, and the Communist Party over the future of Poland and competing visions of society. Kowalik argues that the failures of the Communist Party, combined with the power of the Catholic Church and interference from the United States, subverted efforts to build a cooperative and democratic economic order in the 1990s. Instead, Poland was subjected to a harsh return to the market, resulting in the wildly unequal distribution of the nation's productive property—often in the hands of former political rulers, who, along with foreign owners, constitute the new capitalist class. Kowalik aptly terms the transformation from command to market economy an epigone bourgeois revolution, and asks if a new social transformation is still possible in Poland. Cover 1 Content 6 Acknowledgments 8 Introduction 10 PART ONE: SHOCK AS THERAPY 20 1. The Collapse of “Really Existing Socialism” 22 2. The Neoliberal About-Face 34 3. A Brief Compromise: The Round Table 56 4. From Gradualism to “Jump” 80 5. Great Systemic Choices 106 6. The Balcerowicz Plan in Practice 136 7. The Alternative after the Shock 150 PART TWO: ELITIST OWNERSHIP TRANSFORMATIONS 172 8. Ownership: From Taboo Topic to the Round Table Agreements 174 9. Open and Hidden Privatization Strategies 194 10. Ownership Transformations in Practice 204 11. More on Enfranchisement and Foreign Capital 234 PART THREE: LOOKING AHEAD 252 12. Ownership in Different Types of Capitalism 254 13. The New Order—A Civilization of Inequality? 276 14. Start a Debate on Poland and the European Union 310 Chronology 324 Bibliography 328 Notes 344 Index 356 MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict MuPDF error: syntax error: invalid key in dict Cover 1 Content 6 Acknowledgments 8 Introduction 10 PART ONE: SHOCK AS THERAPY 20 1. The Collapse of “Really Existing Socialism” 22 2. The Neoliberal About-Face 34 3. A Brief Compromise: The Round Table 56 4. From Gradualism to “Jump” 80 5. Great Systemic Choices 106 6. The Balcerowicz Plan in Practice 136 7. The Alternative after the Shock 150 PART TWO: ELITIST OWNERSHIP TRANSFORMATIONS 172 8. Ownership: From Taboo Topic to the Round Table Agreements 174 9. Open and Hidden Privatization Strategies 194 10. Ownership Transformations in Practice 204 11. More on Enfranchisement and Foreign Capital 234 PART THREE: LOOKING AHEAD 252 12. Ownership in Different Types of Capitalism 254 13. The New Order—A Civilization of Inequality? 276 14. Start a Debate on Poland and the European Union 310 Chronology 324 Bibliography 328 Notes 344 Index 356 A scathing critique of recent economic policy in Poland, by a well-known Polish political economist and public intellectual who was associated with the Solidarity movement. The author, Tadeusz Kowalik, is a socialist in a currently right-leaning Polish political climate. This book reframes the conversation about Poland's economy since the 1970s; instead of measuring indicators of market growth or international competitiveness, Kowalik argues for defining Polish economic health by measures of employment and quality of life for people in Poland. By these measures, the country has consistently done badly in recent years. The book's larger focus is on a basic question: the Polish people ended communism to create a democratic socialist state, and the country had one of the largest organized labor movements in the world. So how and why did Poland transition to a free-market system the author describes as "turbo-capitalism"? Kowalik is an important voice in public, academic, and policy conversations about Poland. Unfortunately, the book is very awkwardly translated from the Polish. Meaning is generally preserved, however, and economists in the former Soviet bloc have unique practical information on how economics and society change together. Kowalik's perspective will be important for academic and general readers with a strong interest in contemporary Polish politics, post-Soviet economies, or economics and society. Annotation ©2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) By Tadeusz Kowalik ; Translated By Eliza Lewandowska. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.