I have taken a bit of a sabbatical from writing on this blog, largely because in the last few months I have been busy readjusting to the United States. I returned home in August, and since then have been re-adjusting to life in the United States and starting a PhD program at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). I do, however, want to finish up this blog in an orderly fashion, a desire I am reminded of by the end of the year, which one year ago was an occasion for me to take stock of how the start of the grant was going.
My reflections and memories of my time spent in Poland bring out mixed feelings, even after I have moved on in my life. The experience was both less and more than I had expected, but on balance I am glad I had a rare opportunity to spend a year abroad, something I think every American should do at some point in their lives.
Poland is a fascinating country because it is not sure what kind of country it wants to be. Extremely capitalist? Euro-socialist? Inclusive and open? Homogenous? Free-wheeling? Wedded to tradition? Religious? Irreligious? Statist? Libertarian? These are all questions that, in the U.S. at least, have kind-of default answers, and it's a matter of degree and political orientation. A Republican and a Democrat will have very different answers as to what kind of country they want America to be, but at least they have answers. In Poland, it wasn't so clear, at least to me, that anybody could tell you clearly what kind of Poland they wanted.
However, the consensus was that what the average Pole wants is different than the Poland of today, but is not sure how to accomplish it. The most frustrating part of Poland was this seeping and serious Polish fatalism: some things suck, but we can't do anything to change them, so why even bother. We can make some sardonic jokes, and while life may be miserable, but at least it's familiar. This attitude is understandable considering Poland's history: for the last 200-plus years, there wasn't a whole lot you could do to improve your situation aside from moving to Chicago. Poland's decisions were made for her in Vienna, Berlin, and especially Moscow. Under the Communists, displaying individual initiative to improve your own station made you an enemy of the state. The resulting attitude of stoic, learned helplessness is not something that can be extirpated by 20 years of freedom and self-determination, particularly when other aspects of the culture (a fearsome bureaucracy, respect for and deference to authority) are fundamentally opposed to change.
What needs to be changed? First, bureaucracy. It seems like you can't do anything without the approval of half a dozen people with overlapping authorities, all of them jealous of their own prerogatives and suspicious of other departments. Second, that deference to authority. I'm not arguing that The Man should have it stuck to him whenever and wherever possible, but there's a difference between a healthy respect for authority and blind obedience to it. There is a Polish saying: "the egg cannot be smarter than the chicken." If you are lower on the totem pole, it is assumed that you know less than your boss does, and should listen to his words of wisdom even when you know that your boss is wrong. I once disagreed with my boss on a point of chemistry, which led one of the other students to let out an audible gasp. This is in contrast to the approach I've seen so far at Caltech, where it is expected that you know more than your boss does about your particular project. In fact, if you don't know more than your boss does, that means you aren't doing your job.
I think, however, there is reason for optimism. Poland is increasingly in contact with the West, not only through television and the internet but also through travel, outsourcing of jobs to Poland, and study abroad. These last three hold the brightest hope: foreign firms bring foreign know-how and foreign attitudes. Most importantly, they bring jobs: as Poland becomes more prosperous, people may become more dissatisfied with the status quo. As more Poles have contact with the West, they will begin to realize that society can be different than the one to which they are accustomed. Finally, ever-more Poles will be exposed to these trends, while not having lived under Communism. And the young generation is composed of the biggest bunch of smartasses you ever did see.
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