International Studies. Interdisciplinary Political and Cultural Journal

Wstęp

2022-07-20T09:43:40+02:00

Past – Present – Future (?) Between the Ape Ancestor and the Artificial Intelligence

2022-07-21T12:40:20+02:00

The article discusses the genesis of man, the human nature and the vision of the future of mankind. In a synthetic way it presents the main stages of the process of anthropogenesis. It describes the dual nature of modern man (biological and cultural nature). The article refers to the emergence of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) as a challenge for humanity.

Marcus Valerius Maximianus: the Hero of the Marcomannic Wars

2022-07-21T12:40:16+02:00

The article provides a reconstructed biography of an outstanding Roman, M. V. Maximianus who became famous for his many heroic deeds in the period of the so-called Marcomannic wars. The reconstruction is undertaken on the basis of two sources of major importance, both of them inscriptions. The first of them was discovered in today’s Slovak town of Trenčin, the other in Zana in Algieria. Significantly, their content is mutually enriching and complementary. A pretext for the discussion was the conversation with the Jubilarian on the authenticity of the character of Maximus created by Russel Crowe in the film “Gladiator”, contrasted in the article with the historical figure of Maximianus.

Jerzy Grobicki (1891–1972). From the Foreign Legion to the Polish Army General. A Cavalryman’s Biography

2022-07-21T12:40:13+02:00

The article discusses the figure of Jerzy Grobicki (1891–1972) who served as an officer of the imperial and royal army and became the Polish Army colonel in the Second Polish Republic. He participated in World Wars I and II and after the war migrated to Canada.

Polish-Romanian Cooperation in Nicolae Iorga’s Political and Adacemic Work

2022-07-21T12:40:10+02:00

Nicolae Iorga is a person of much significance in the history and culture of Romania. He very often spoke about Polish matters in a broad sense pertaining both to academic and political issues. Nicolae Iorga’s involvement with Poland is noticeable almost constantly during his scientific and political career. From the time of primary school to his tragic death, Poland and its affairs were present in his activities also through the influence of his teachers, professors or later political partners,. Thanks to his historical education, Iorga saw Poland as an important partner of Romania on the international stage; moreover, as a guarantee of political security; but also an important partner in the context of cultural development. The initiator of the Romanian language and culture courses at the Jagiellonian University, Nicolae Iorga was given a honorary doctorate by Wilno University in 1931 for his important role in strengthening relations between Poland and Romania.

Georges Sorel and the Naissance of the Fascist Political Myth

2022-07-21T12:41:18+02:00

Georges Sorel is a Franco-Italian thinker, famous as the creator of the theory of modern political mythology. In Poland Sorel is seen only as a Marxist thinker. In reality, Sorel was a nonorthodox Marxist, but in the last decades of his life he constructed a political mythology of revolution from the Left and the Right. Sorel can be seen in collaboration with communists and sindicalists in Italy and nationalists and monarchists in France. His mixture of communist and nationalist ideas is the ground for the fascist movement of Benito Mussolini.

The Repatriation of Polish Orphanages from USSR to Poland in 1946

2022-07-21T12:39:35+02:00

The Committee for Polish Children in the USSR operated in the years 1943–1946. It was established on June 30, 1943 in Moscow following a political left-wing initiative. The Committee was a care-giving institution, fully in line with the Soviet system ideals. One of the most important matters tackled by the Committee was the repatriation of the youngest Polish citizens to their homeland. It was the subject of meetings, discussions and many hours of talks with the Soviet authorities. This issue was one of the most difficult tasks carried out by the Committee employees. The repatriation of orphanages to Poland lasted from January to August 1946.

Sports Versatility of Polish Footballers, Participants of League Games in 1927–1939

2022-07-21T12:39:31+02:00

The players who played in the Polish football league in the interwar period were very versatile and talented, therefore they were also successful in other sports. The aim of the study was to assess the scale of this phenomenon. The mass development of football in Poland meant that there was a shortage of talented players in the struggle involving sports games, athletics or winter sports. The high level of physical fitness of the players predisposed them to participate in the competitions in sections of sports clubs other than football. The author presents detailed lists of footballers, participants in league competitions in the years 1927–1939, who became medallists of Polish championships in ice hockey, athletics, basketball, volleyball and handball. In addition, the biographies and achievements of the most versatile athletes are included.

The Polish Committee for Sports Events in Berlin on the Road to Normalisation of Polish-German Political Relations (1932–1934). The Political Background of the First-Ever Football Match between the Polish and German National Teams

2022-07-21T12:39:21+02:00

The article discusses a unique Polish-state institution functioning in the interwar period, the Polish Committee for Sports Events in Berlin (PKISB). Through sport, its representatives channelled the ambition to shape Poland’s favourable image in the German Reich which was hostile to the Second Polish Republic. In the long run, the Committee proved to be an instrument for improving general Polish-German relations. The article focuses on an initial phase of PKISB activity, when, after Adolf Hitler came to power, the future of political relations between the hitherto antagonised neighbours was at stake. The activities of this institution have been analysed mainly with reference to football as the most popular sport in Poland and Germany.

Myth of A-Politicality in the Context of the International Olympic Committee’s Functioning

2022-07-21T12:39:17+02:00

The article discusses the issue of the non-political character of sport. The research aims to trace the position of the International Olympic Committee towards the politicization of sport and to confront it with IOC’s actual activities that can be described as political.

The research led to the conclusion that the apolitical character of sport is only a myth. The mass popularity of sport led many states to try to use it for political purposes, forcing the IOC to assume a political position and transferring political disputes to their forum.

The Myth of the Winter Olympics in Sarajevo in Bosnian Collective Memory

2022-07-21T12:39:10+02:00

The 14th Winter Olympics, held from February 8 to 19, 1984, still evoke nostalgic memories of the inhabitants of Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially its capital. Although it was Yugoslavia’s declining moment, the communist authorities put much effort into promoting the atmosphere of “brotherhood and unity.” However, soon after, the war broke out, and the post-war shape of the Bosnian state lead to the permanent political, social and economic crisis. As a result, Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks cannot agree about shared history and common heroes. One of the few crossing points is the myth of the 14th Winter Olympic Games: possibly these days sport idols (Jure Franko, Katarina Witt, Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean) can fill the gaps in almost empty Bosnian symbolic apparatus.

Geopolitics of Central European Solidarity Poles and Hungarians between History, Stereotype and Spatial and Political Issues

2022-07-21T12:39:07+02:00

The Polish-Hungarian relationship remains something extraordinary on a European scale. Although the consciousness of the societies of both nations is dominated by a positive perception of mutual relations, it was not a constant phenomenon in history. It was most intense when both countries resisted the domination of the Germanic element. Hungary was the first to lose its independence, succumbing to the Eastern factor. Also Poland shared the fate of Hungary, succumbing to pressure from both the east and the west. Historical experience of both countries showed the necessity to cooperate against threats coming from both directions. However, the conditions after 1886 were not conducive to the implementation of this assumption, although in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries Poles and Hungarians had geopolitical visions defining the scale of possible transformations in Central Europe. The change came after the end of World War II. Regardless of the naturally existing discrepancies in the perception of one’s surroundings, in the 21st century it is difficult to indicate any Polish geopolitical concept that does not take into account the regional role of Hungary, or the Hungarian one that ignores the Republic of Poland.

The Global Peace Philosophy. The Right to Intervene – a Case Study

2022-07-21T12:39:04+02:00

The issue of the right to intervene is of a difficult, often controversial nature. Especially when it comes to showing that in many cases – if not entirely at least essentially – this right should be abandoned. This situation takes already place in some sense in international law; even more, it is sometimes acknowledged that within it it is justified to speak about the validity of ius contra bellum (laws against war). Practice is still far from such an ideal. The main goal of this article is to analyze from a normative angle the issue of the right to intervene as one of the most important threads of the global peace philosophy. The article has problematized (counter) arguments used for the right to intervene. Two considered key are, firstly, an argument from the so-called alleged barbarism and secondly, the (counter) argument of the complexity and uniqueness of each case. The article is written mainly from a philosophical and ethical perspective. However, the author also refers to empirical material, mainly in the field of political science, but also to threads in the field of international law, trying to create an interdisciplinary perspective. The selected key issue is also an opportunity to develop the global peace philosophy within the Polish academia. This paper is written with deep conviction that global peace is probably the highest, i.e. a fundamental ideal for humanity, a kind of Summum Bonum.

The Difference between the Western European and German Ideas of Nationalism

2022-07-21T12:39:02+02:00

Scientific research leaves no doubt that criminal National Socialism is not an archetype of nationalism or a national doctrine. It is a common view that the nationalist ideology was born in revolutionary France and the United States of America. For political reasons, the truth about the diametrically different nature of Western nationalism – primarily French and Anglocentric – on the one hand, and German on the other, is blurred. In the era of the spread of globalist cosmopolitanism ideology, national ideas are treated as the greatest danger to the progress of humanity.

A Single Currency as a Remedy in the Eurozone’ Preparedness for the Economic Crisis and the Smooth Functioning of the Euro Area?

2022-07-21T12:38:59+02:00

The aim of this article is to present the situation and the financial condition of the euro area and to orientate itself towards the future. The eurozone crisis is the greatest challenge for the entire euro area but also for the European Union as such. Its bad financial situation and the related stagnation force us to reflect and take corrective measures. Failure to draw conclusions generates further problems and disintegrates the entire euro area.