Unfortunately, today’s satirical review is not funny at all, as the news is quite bitter…

Losses, losses, losses… or the standard situation for miners when they hit a wall…

JSW’s results after the first quarter – sales revenue of PLN 2.49 billion and a net loss of PLN 1.36 billion – are the results of a company that mainly extracts coking coal. Among companies dealing in energy coal, Bogdanka is holding its own (sales of PLN 870 million, net profit of approx. 290, but with one-off events (on the plus side, compensation payments of PLN 150 million), no data available for PGG (why get upset, so we won’t mention it) – but there are no illusions here, preliminary results show a further decline in coal sales and certainly losses over PLN 1 billion. ARA index (global coal prices) – $100/ton, global coking coal market approx. $180/ton, mining costs (ARP report data for 2024) PLN 945/ton, now (Q1 2025) definitely over PLN 1,000. Data sufficient for an eighth-grader’s assignment – what a business crash looks like. The topic is so stale and repetitive that it’s no longer even amusing in satirical reviews, as no one laughs anymore. Over the last 10 years, three ministries have been established (Energy, State Assets, and the Ministry of Industry), with five deputy ministers in succession, including coal and now the Ministry of Industry. At least 700 zlotys in subsidies for mining from every Polish household (so a total of around 700+), which, if divided among children alone, would amount to 1,400+. And what solution is on the horizon? Of course – a new modernization of the government structure and a new ministry to oversee it.

Dynamic tariffs – an excellent solution for a non-functioning market….

Every Pole’s attitude towards energy prices – i.e., “electricity” – is that it is costly and should be cheap. Any connection with the structure of production (e.g., coal costs) is covered up by the narrative that it is all the fault of the ETS and the ominous Green Deal. And, of course, new solutions emerge from time to time. From July 2024, energy suppliers will be required to offer dynamic tariffs (different energy prices throughout the day, linked to wholesale prices on the exchange). Trading companies are complying with this obligation and presenting dynamic tariffs, which is already a satirical joke because, at the same time, according to government legislation, the price of electricity for individual consumers is “frozen” (at PLN 500/MWh). The freeze will soon be extended again and further improved by VAT reductions, the removal of excise duty, or some additional subsidy. Against this background, the dynamic tariff is akin to introducing high-speed trains that levitate on a magnetic cushion when the trains themselves are notoriously late or (there was such a ridiculous proposal) a gondola lift to connect Wilanów and Powsin in Warsaw (instead of a piece of road). In 2024, 135 households benefited from dynamic tariffs (volume: 117 MWh – approximately 0.00007% of energy consumption in Poland), while smart meters (remote reading, necessary for the tariff) accounted for approximately 35% of the total, and the CSIRE system (an extensive database for changing suppliers) was introduced a year later. That’s cool, but maybe we should be quieter about this coffin and focus on the market itself, starting to revive it (although we have no illusions). To draw an analogy that offers some hope, fortunately, a road has been built in Warsaw from Powsin to Wilanów, and you can drive without having to wait for a gondola.

The exploitation of women on road no. 50… and no one seems to mind.

Now, it’s not funny at all, but it’s hard to ignore. National Road 50 – the southern bypass of Warsaw for large trucks, cutting through the picturesque areas of the Mazowiecki Landscape Park. Poland, 30 minutes from the capital – a dynamically developing large country in the European Union, attached to its Christian roots. On the side of Road 50 (I don’t know how it is in other parts of the country), a sight that was common in the 1990s, young, heavily made-up women in skimpy clothes, standing by the road, offering sexual services on the side of the road, cars pass them by, and all the drivers and passengers don’t even pay attention, sometimes large trucks or even passenger vehicles stop for this unusual consumption. I thought we had already passed that period and that society and the authorities were aware of the issue of the exploitation of women (someone had brought them there and put them on that road) and that it had been resolved.

Meanwhile… No one seems to mind. Not the progressive left fighting for women’s rights, not the liberal circles with their slogans of freedom, nor the centrist parties attached to the land and tradition. Nor does it bother those who claim strong ties to Christianity and the Church, or circles that prefer the traditional role of women in relationships, or even those who fight for the role of the cross and against foreign influence. Everyone is indifferent – including the Church itself, non-governmental organizations, the police, and we – when we pass women prostituting themselves on the street. Of course, we deny that it is their business and that they may even gain some money from it – but let us consider whether we are proud of this: we, Poles of the 21st century, in a rapidly developing country of modern Europe with strong Christian roots.