“Aether:

“Poland is not a “done deal.” The Treaty still has to be ratified by both Governments. That’s why the Russian is still threatening.”

And those Threats will push the Poles in which direction ?
Aug 15, 2008 – 11:42 am”

Wasn’t it the Poles they tell this joke about:

– You have a gun and two bullets. There is a German and a Russian. Who do you shoot first?

– The German. Business before pleasure.

Poland and Russia go waaaaay back. Long before Hitler and the Katyn Forest. Poland wants only two things when dealing with Russia: a hammer and a stake.

Now Poland has been known for massively dysfunctional and corrupt governments (viz., the medieval Sejm required total unanimity on a vote; one member alone could veto any measure) in the past, and I don’t know how it is now – I have heard people (I forget who) call the Kaczynski brothers madmen; so maybe government could somehow be subverted;

but the PEOPLE? No, they have old-fashioned senses of patriotism, and they also don’t have a society where they have to say that ironically. Poland is pleasantly mad-dog in this way.

Remember that not only are they an ally now, in WWII they not only formed an exile government, they also preserved armed formations which were present at such little historical backwaters as the Battle of Britain and D-Day. Bletchley Park also owes a debt to Polish mathematicians.

Oh and then there’s King Sobieski at Vienna…

No, they’re not big on laying down and dying…

Like I said, if you wanted to sweeten the deal any more for them, offer ‘em nukes and an army corps. As it is I hope the arrangements being made are sufficient. Could the Polish army have kept the Russians out of Georgia? Can it keep ‘em out of Poland? (What do they need to help with that? They certainly have the right aircraft, viz., ours.)

This also sends a useful signal to Ukraine.

…

I would be more worried about the Democratic Congress, or heaven help us an Obambi administration, fouling up the deal. Maybe saying all their tanks had to be solar powered hybrids or some such crap.

Worry about Czechoslovakia, oops, I mean Chechia, right? Now THEIR populace seems to be a little wobbly about the radar. Maybe everybody with balls was murdered in ’68, or back in the forties, but who knows, maybe they just like Russia better. I hear a surprising amount of bear-licking from Slovenians actually, but that’s a different story…

But I think Poland is on board with the rockets. Now all they have to do is find oil.