Victoria Fox's Blog, page 75

Vivo Y18i with Unisoc T612 SoC, 13-megapixel rear camera launched in India: Price, specifications

The Vivo Y18i was launched on Friday as an affordable smartphone priced under Rs 10,000 with 4G connectivity and a 5,000mAh battery. It is powered by the Unisoc T612 chipset and runs on Funtouch OS 14, which is based on Android 14. The Vivo Y18i sports a 6.56-inch LCD screen with a 90Hz refresh rate, along with a 13-megapixel rear camera. The handset is powered by a 5,000mAh battery and comes with an IP54 rating against dust and splashes.

Vivo Y18i Price in India, Availability

The Vivo Y18i price in India has been set at Rs 7,999 for the sole 4GB + 64GB RAM and storage configuration. The phone comes in Gem Green and Space Black colours and is already available for purchase from the company’s online store, Amazon, Flipkart, and retailers like Croma.

Vivo Y18i Specifications

The dual-SIM (Nano+Nano) Vivo Y18i runs on Funtouch OS 14 based on Android 14. It has a 6.56-inch HD+ (720×1612 pixels) LCD display with a refresh rate of 60Hz to 90Hz and a peak brightness of 528 nits. The phone is powered by a 12nm octa-core Unisoc T612 chipset that is paired with 4GB of LPDDR4X RAM.

Vivo has equipped the smartphone with a 13-megapixel main camera with an f/2.2 aperture, as well as a 0.08-megapixel secondary camera (f/3.0), which is likely to be used to capture depth information. On the front, there is a 5-megapixel camera (f/2.2) that can be used for selfies and video calls.

You get 64GB of eMMC 5.1 storage, which is expandable up to 1TB via a MicroSD card slot. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5. GPS, and a USB Type-C port. Onboard sensors include an accelerometer, proximity sensor, and an ambient light sensor.

The Vivo Y18i has a 5,000mAh battery that can be charged at 15W, according to the company. The phone is IP54 dust- and water-resistant. It also measures 163.63 x 75.58 x 8.39mm and weighs 185g.

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Microsoft to Host Cybersecurity Summit After CrowdStrike IT Outage

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Which party’s candidate will win the presidential election? We know what Poles think (SURVEY)

Presidential elections will be held in Poland in spring 2025. The current president, Andrzej Duda, will not be able to run for re-election, for whom the current term is his second and, according to the constitution, last term as president.

2025 Presidential Elections: Who will be each party’s candidate?

The Constitution of the Republic of Poland states that the president is directly elected for a five-year term. So far, the Third Polish Republic has had five presidents: Lech Wałęsa, Aleksander Kwaśniewski, Lech Kaczyński, Bronisław Komorowski and Andrzej Duda. Only Kwaśniewski and Duda served two terms.

So far, none of the groups with seats in the Sejm have nominated their candidate for president, although, for example, statements by the vice-president of the Sejm, Krzysztof Bosak, one of the leaders of the Confederation, indicate that his party’s candidate for president will be the leader of New Hope, Sławomir Mentzen.

The Civic Coalition’s presidential candidate will likely be Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski, who previously ran in the 2020 presidential election (losing to Andrzej Duda in the second round). Donald Tusk has repeatedly shut down speculation that he would be KO’s presidential candidate. Current Foreign Ministry chief Radosław Sikorski has also expressed presidential aspirations.

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Google is “very committed to Fitbit” despite the end of smartwatch reports

Google has said it is “very committed to Fitbit” despite reports this week that the company will not release another Fitbit-branded smartwatch.

Express.co.uk previously reported comments from a Google executive to tech site Engadget that the recently released Google Pixel Watch 3, which uses parts of the Fitbit software and requires the use of the Fitbit app, would be Google’s smartwatch focus from now on. on.

Sandeep Waraich, Google’s senior director of product management for Pixel Wearables, told Engadget that “Pixel Watches are our next iteration of the Fitbit smartwatch” and claimed that “trackers are where users clearly tell us they want something discreet” because of longer battery life and “simple experience”.

Google still sells the Fitbit Charge 6, Inspire 3 and Luxe, as well as the kids’ Ace 3, all of which have slim activity trackers.

A Google spokesperson told Express.co.uk: “We are deeply committed to Fitbit and, more importantly, to the customers who use and depend on these products and technology.

“It’s also worth noting that many of the health and fitness features we launched on Pixel Watch 3 were inspired by Fitbit’s innovations and pioneering fitness developments. We also just launched Fitbit Ace LTE, and you’ll continue to see new products and innovations from Fitbit.”

Notably, the spokesperson didn’t directly answer our question about whether the Versa 4 and Sense 2 would be the last Fitbit-branded smartwatches, nor did they confirm how long existing Fitbit devices will receive software support, despite insisting on a commitment to customers.

But the fact that Fitbit is releasing “new products” suggests that Google isn’t completely decommissioning Fitbit hardware.

Google acquired Fitbit in 2021 and released the Fitbit Versa 4 and Sense 2 smartwatches in 2022, although these products were criticized for removing features from older versions. That same year, the original Google Pixel Watch was released and required users to use the Fitbit app to track health and fitness metrics.

The same goes for the Pixel Watch 2 and the recently announced Pixel Watch 3, which runs Google’s Wear OS and has more functionality than Fitbit smartwatches that run a custom OS.

The advantage recent Fitbit smartwatches have over the Pixel Watch lineup is battery life. The Versa 4 and Sense 2 can last four to seven days on a single charge, while the Pixel Watch models need a charge every 24 hours or so. The Pixel Watch line can run Android apps, while the Fitbit watches can’t, although Google recently added Google Wallet and Maps support to the latest Fitbits.

The Fitbit Sense 2 also has the exact same sensors as the Pixel Watch 2, with optical heart rate, SpO2, ECG, continuous EDA and skin temperature sensors.

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The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has revealed the names of the new ambassadors, including: to Germany and Ukraine

​Paweł Wroński, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, announced that Jan Tombiński has become the new ambassador to Germany. Next week, the Polish missions in Bratislava and Rome will be taken over by Piotr Samerek and Ryszard Schnepf, said Paweł Wroński, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Piotr Łukasiewicz will take up his post in Kyiv on September 1.

Jan Tombinski

/ WOJCIECH OLKUSNIK /EastNews

The premises in Berlin have now been taken over by Mr. Jan Tombiński, which took place in a very pleasant atmosphere. On August 26, the Bratislava and Rome offices are taken over by Messrs. Piotr Samerek and Ryszard Schnepf. We are ready for September 1st assumed by the director Małgorzata Kosiura-Kaźmierska from the installation in Oslo – said Paweł Wroński, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

According to him too On September 1, the post in Kiev will be filled. It will be managed by Piotr Łukasiewicz.

Wroński noted that most of the changes in diplomatic missions are expected to be carried out by the end of September.

Jan Tombinski is a German scholar, historian and diplomat. In 1996-1998 he was Ambassador to Slovenia, in 2001-2006 to France, in 2007-2012 – Permanent Representative of the Republic of Poland to the European Union, and then EU Ambassador to Ukraine (2012-2016) and to the Holy See (2016-2020). He is fluent in English, German, French, Slovenian, Czech and Ukrainian.

Ryszard Schnepf is a diplomat, historian, Iberian scholar, lecturer and government official. In 2005-2006 he was Secretary of State in the Chancellery of the Prime Minister and, in 2007-2008, Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He has also been Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to Uruguay (accredited to Paraguay), Costa Rica (accredited to other Central American countries), Spain (accredited to Andorra) and the United States (accredited to the Commonwealth of the Bahamas).

On the other hand Piotr Leszek Lukasiewicz is a political scientist, diplomat, colonel in the reserves of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland and, in 2012-2014, Polish Ambassador to Afghanistan. In the years 1995-2006, he dealt with issues related to state security and the fight against terrorism. He served in stabilisation missions in Iraq (2004-2005). In 2006, he was deputy military attaché in Islamabad and, in January 2007, he became colonel and military attaché in Afghanistan – a position he held for three years. In October 2009, he became plenipotentiary of the Ministry of National Defence for Afghanistan. In this position, he co-created, among others, the Polish Strategy of Military Presence in Afghanistan.

In 2012, he joined the reserves as a colonel and later became ambassador to Afghanistan. He completed his mission on December 31, 2014. After returning, he became involved in journalism, teaching and forensic activities.

Małgorzata Kosiura-Kaźmierska is the former director of the Eastern Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Piotr Samerek is also associated with the Ministry of Diplomacy and has worked, among others, in embassies in the Netherlands and the Vatican.

In March of this year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Minister Radosław Sikorski decided that more than 50 ambassadors would complete the missionand several candidates submitted for approval by the previous ministry management will be withdrawn. At the same time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed hope for harmonious cooperation between the country’s top authorities in this matter.

According to the law, the ambassador is appointed and dismissed by the president. The head of the president’s office, Marcin Mastalerek, said that Andrzej Duda does not agree with the mass recall of ambassadors without specific reasons or grounds.

In early June, in an interview with Telewizja Republika, the president stated that the recruitment of staff in diplomatic missions “is carried out using methods coming directly from the most well-known services – this is what is being done to many Polish diplomats today and has been done for a long time.”

He also announced that while he holds office he will not sign, among other things, the appointment of Bogdan Klich as ambassador to the United States. He stressed that there would be no signature on the appointment of Ryszard Schnepf or other members of the Conference of Ambassadors of the Republic of Poland..

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Harris does not back down from Biden’s focus on democracy. But he takes things at his own pace

CHICAGO (AP) — Before President Joe Biden abandoned his re-election bid, he framed the voter’s choice in November in a dark and ominous way, painting Republican nominee Donald Trump as a threat to American democracy and questioning whether the country would survive if he won.

The Democratic Party’s new nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, is not shying away from this message, warning in her Thursday night acceptance speech of the “very serious” consequences of Trump’s return to the White House.

But Harris is putting his own spin on what has been a central Democratic communications strategy. Instead of focusing on the existential threat that a second Trump term could pose to the country’s basic institutions and traditions, he’s broadening the Democrats’ definition of what’s at stake in this election: It’s about preserving personal liberties.

The fresh frame was on display this week at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, where attendees wrote their own definitions of freedom on handmade posters and Beyoncé’s anthem “Freedom” blared over loudspeakers. The convention devoted the day’s theme to “the fight for our freedoms,” and special guest Oprah Winfrey suggested that those working to protect reproductive rights are the “new freedom fighters.”

Harris drove the point home time and time again as he summarized his promises to American voters.

“Freedom lives in safety from gun violence in our schools, communities and places of worship,” Harris said Thursday. “Freedom to love who you love openly and proudly. Freedom to breathe clean air, drink clean water, and live without the pollution that fuels the climate crisis. And the freedom that unlocks all others: the freedom to vote.”

Experts say the Democrats’ more positive, more personal appeal is a sign that the party is trying to boost morale and reclaim such ​​​​​​​​​​​​terms as freedom and liberty — ideas that Republicans have spent years branding their own.

“I think everyone on the Democratic Progressive Party side is hungry and just ready for that positive vision,” said Lauren Groh-Wargo, executive director of the national voting rights organization Fair Fight Action.

A word like liberty is “abstract enough” that people can project onto it their own aspirations for the best version of American society, said Matthew Delmont, a Dartmouth College history professor. He said it’s a smart strategy for Democrats to use phrases that Republicans have long used, though that doesn’t stop Republicans from defining the term in their own way.

Democrats at the convention said they understood why Biden was focused on threatening democracy. After all, it was his presidency that was jeopardized by Trump’s lies about the 2020 election, which led to a violent attack on the US Capitol to stop the transfer of power.

“But Kamala is about the future, and she can do it,” said Holly Sargent, a 68-year-old representative from York, Maine. “He can accept that he was a warrior that got us to where we are and now we have to focus on the future.”

Biden, who dropped out of the race last month after urgent calls from within his party, appeared to accept his duty as the messenger of the campaign’s new theme. In his convention speech on Monday, he said the results of these elections will determine whether “democracy and freedom prevail.”

While newly reinvigorated Democrats lean on personal freedom as a pillar of their campaign, Trump’s camp is unwilling to give up on that word, freedom or other patriotic themes.

“It’s always great to see Americans express love for our nation,” Trump adviser Brian Hughes said. “But a party that has opened our borders to drugs and crime, undermined our status as a promoter of global peace, and made it harder for Americans to afford the basics of life seems to be the exact opposite of patriotism.”

Shortly after Harris’ acceptance speech, Trump tried to poke holes in the idea that he could offer positive changes to the country. He claimed that if he had wanted a change, he could have already achieved it in his current role as vice president.

“Why didn’t he do the things he complains about?” He told Fox News shortly after his acceptance speech, “He could have done that tonight by leaving the auditorium and closing the border.”

Harris, in particular, has leaned on abortion and reproductive issues as a major talking point since he launched his campaign last month. Democrats see a focus on people’s freedom to make their own health care decisions as a winning bet in the election cycle as they target Trump’s praise for appointing three Supreme Court justices who helped overturn the constitutional right to abortion two years ago.

The “freedom” story has also allowed Democrats to craft a broader campaign message that includes an issue they’ve often struggled with nationally — gun control.

In a solemn moment at the convention Thursday, five people whose lives have been touched by gun violence — including a teacher and a parent who spoke about the Sandy Hook and Uvalde school massacres — stood together on stage and shared their stories. Behind them, the words “FREEDOM FROM GUN VIOLENCE” stood out on the conference center’s main screen.

“In pushing for freedom from gun violence, Vice President Harris illustrates how dramatically the calculus has changed on this issue. What used to be a political third rail has now been framed as an inalienable right, said John Feinblatt, director of Everytown for Gun Safety, a national organization that fights gun violence.

Of course, the Democratic National Convention did not represent a complete reversal of their warning that American democracy is on the line in November. Several speakers, including former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and former Republican Representative Adam Kinzinger, emphasized the need to protect Americans and distinctly democratic institutions. They also recalled the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot, where Trump supporters stormed the Capitol, attacked police officers, and attempted to stop the approval of the 2020 election.

The busy congress hall shared a rare moment of silence as video footage of the attack was shown on the screen.

Still, mentions of freedom outnumbered mentions of threats to democracy, and “freedom” signs often filled the area where thousands of delegates had gathered. Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, never used the word “democracy” in his speech to delegates Wednesday, while he used “freedom” eight times.

As the race enters its final months, Democratic pollster Cornell Belcher said Republicans are likely to focus on “darkness and danger and we’re going to be attacked at the border and you can’t afford groceries.”

Harris, for his part, wants voters to see the election’s stake “in terms of the future and freedoms and not backwards,” he said, adding that it taps into American ideals of optimism that often influence elections.

Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO and a representative of the Democratic caucus, said Harris has been able to outline the contributions of voters in November while maintaining hope and optimism.

“This is not some esoteric democracy,” Shuler said. “It brings it down to earth and shows people how it relates to them and they see themselves in it.”

___

Swenson reports from New York and Fields from Washington. Associated Press writer Chris Megerian in Washington contributed to this report.

___

The Associated Press receives support from several private foundations to improve its coverage of elections and democracy. See more about AP’s democracy initiative here. AP is solely responsible for all content.

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In one year, the size of the Wagner Group decreased by 90%.

“Over the past year, the Russian Mercenary Group Wagner has been severely fragmented, with many of its commanders leaving for other formations, taking their staff with them, resulting in its numbers falling by approximately 90 percent,” the British Ministry of Defense announced on Friday.

The latest intelligence update reminded that Friday marks one year since several key people at the Wagner Group, including its owner Yevgeny Prigozhin and founder Dmitry “Wagner” Utkin, died in a plane crash, almost certainly caused by an explosion on board.

Main representatives of the Wagner Group

Examples of prominent Wagner Group members who have since left the group were cited. Its former chief of staff, Andrei “Sedoi” Troshev, joined the Russian Defense Ministry, probably the private military formation Redut created by the ministry, and was entrusted with the task of creating a Volunteer Corps to fight in Ukraine. Aleksandr “Ratibor” Kuznetsov, former commander of the 1st Assault Detachment, joined the Chechen special forces unit Akhmat. Borys “Zombi” Nizhevenok, former commander of the 3rd Assault Unit, took command of the Vostok-V volunteer unit in May this year.

Many veterans of the Wagner Group followed these and other former Wagner commanders in leaving the group. Compared to the peak personnel number in 2023, which was approximately 50,000 fighters, the Wagner Group now probably has a total of around 5,000 fighters deployed in Belarus and Africa.

– it was written.

READ MORE: London arson attacks inspired by Russia? Two more people charged. Clues lead to Wagner Group

NT/PAP

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Redmi 14C leaked from premature retailer list, here it is in all three colors

The Redmi 13C launched in November last year, followed by the Redmi 13C 5G in December. The latter’s successor, the Redmi 14C 5G, first appeared in June. Now, the non-5G Redmi 14C is in the spotlight, thanks to an early listing from a retailer in Vietnam that’s since been taken down. The internet is forever, though, so naturally some enterprising souls have gotten their hands on all the details, as well as the official images, which you can see below.

The Redmi 14C has a 6.88-inch screen, a 50 MP main rear camera, and a 5160 mAh battery with support for 18W wired charging. Its screen and battery are therefore larger than its predecessor.

The phone will be offered in gradient blue, black, and green colors with a faux leather finish on the back. It is rumored to have an HD+ resolution and a 90Hz refresh rate, a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, a MediaTek Helio G91 SoC at the forefront, 4/8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage.

By

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Justin Bieber and wife Hailey welcome first child, reveal baby’s name

New Delhi:

Justin Bieber and wife Hailey just welcomed their first child on Saturday morning. The singer announced the arrival of the little one on Instagram by sharing a photo of the baby’s feet. Justin Bieber captioned the message, “Welcome home. Jack Blues Bieber.” In the comments section of the post, Hailey’s best friend Kylie Jenner commented, “I can’t stand this little leg, Jack Blues Bieber.” Khloe Kardashian wrote: “Jack blues! Congrats! I love this little leg so much.” Actor Chris Pratt added: “Congrats guys! Love the name.” Justin Bieber and Hailey got married in an intimate ceremony in South Carolina in 2018.

Check out Justin Bieber’s message here:

Hailey Bieber announced her pregnancy in May of this year. She shared baby pictures. No caption needed.

Hailey had been actively sharing photos and videos of her pregnancy diaries.

A few months ago, in an interaction with W magazine, Hailey Bieber also talked about how she managed to hide her pregnancy for six months. She said: “I was honestly able to keep it quiet because I stayed small for a long time… I didn’t really have a belly until I was six months pregnant when I announced it. I was able to wear big jackets and stuff.”

Hailey, a supermodel, is a daughter The usual suspects actor Stephen Baldwin and graphic designer Kennya Deodato. He has walked the runways of many top designers. He has been part of New York Fashion Week, Paris Fashion Week and Milan Fashion Week.

Justin Bieber’s discography includes many hits such as Baby, boyfriend, sorry, let me love you and I don’t care. In a career spanning more than a decade, the Canadian singer has received numerous awards and accolades, including a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording.

August 24, 1989. Never before has a Polish government been established with such a majority.

His speech also included the later famous words: “We have marked the past with a thick line. We will only be responsible for what we have done to bring Poland out of its present state of collapse.” It is clear that Mazowiecki wanted to distance himself from the era of communist rule and to emphasise the fact that a new period in Polish history had begun. However, the subsequent failure of his government to make a radical break with the legacy of the Polish People’s Republic meant that critics of Mazowiecki’s policy credited him with formulating the principle of a so-called thick line, meaning far-reaching tolerance towards post-communist forces. This was not in line with the thinking expressed by Mazowiecki in his August speech, but it was justified in relation to the domestic policy implemented by his cabinet in 1990. Interestingly, Mazowiecki was warned by his own son about the risk of reading this phrase differently than intended, but in response he heard the evangelical formula: “What I have written, I have written.”

Mazowiecki considered that the most important goal was to overcome the economic crisis by “returning to a market economy and a role for the state similar to that of economically developed countries”. Waldemar Kuczyński, the author of the economic part of this speech, recalls that Mazowiecki removed from the quoted sentence the phrase about the Polish economy striving to reach the “ownership structure” of highly developed countries, which would be tantamount to announcing privatization. This seemingly minor correction reveals the essence of the policy that Mazowiecki tried to pursue in the following months; a policy whose basic principle was to avoid general conflicts with the Polish United Workers’ Party and its heirs. “Putting the PZPR in strict opposition and strict denial would be a trap for us and for the country,” he had said a few days earlier at the OKP meeting. “There is no opposition in the world that has an army and a security service – and it remains an opposition.”

***

Of the 24 members of Tadeusz Mazowiecki’s government, 12 came from Solidarity, 4 from ZSL and PZPR, 3 from SD and 1 was described as “independent”, which should be considered a kind of camouflage. An expert in international law, Prof. Krzysztof Skubiszewski, because that is who he is, in the 1980s was a member of the Social Council of the Primate and the Advisory Council of the President of the State Council. For this last reason, as Mazowiecki later explained, he predicted that “President Jaruzelski, who had a say in this matter, would not question this candidacy”.

“I want the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to be in our hands with the consent of General Jaruzelski, and you are the right candidate,” Skubiszewski heard from Mazowiecki on September 4, completely surprised by the proposal that had been made to him.

This is exactly the kind of person Mazowiecki was looking for. However, Skubiszewski believed from the beginning that Poland should reduce the scope of its dependence on the Kremlin and that new people should appear in its diplomatic service. As the international situation changed exceptionally rapidly between 1989 and 1993, his position became increasingly pro-Western. The effectiveness with which he carried out his mission, as well as his good relations, first with Prime Minister Mazowiecki, and later with President Wałęsa, made him the only minister to serve continuously in four consecutive Solidarity governments.

***

Jacek Ambroziak took over as head of the Cabinet of the Council of Ministers, which was then responsible for the entire administration of the local government. The fact that both Skubiszewski and especially Ambroziak were trusted by the Episcopal Secretary, Archbishop Bronisław Dąbrowski, is of course no coincidence. The leadership of the Polish Church, which was deeply involved in the entire process of political change initiated by the Round Table talks, was determined to provide the new government with very clear support. Mazowiecki was fully aware of this, and his decision to go to a meeting with Pope John Paul II during his first trip abroad as head of government turned out to be an exceptionally good move. The Catholic Church, which then held enormous social authority, provided the new government, which was initiating painful economic changes, with the necessary cover.

Ambroziak, together with economist Waldemar Kuczyński, historian Aleksander Hall (who was appointed minister without portfolio responsible for “cooperation with political organizations and associations”) and lawyer Jerzy Ciemniewski (who became secretary of the Council of Ministers), formed the prime minister’s closest circle. “We debated in the prime minister’s recreation room,” Kuczyński recalls. “There was a small low table and a sofa where Mazowiecki used to sit, and sometimes lie down. Over a bottle of cognac, usually bad, Albanian, which was supposed to brighten our tired minds in the early hours, we discussed other candidates.

***

Mazowiecki influenced personnel changes, but also decided to leave many people inherited from his predecessors in his immediate circle. A symbolic figure in this group was Ryszard Wojtkowski, who served as Director of the Prime Minister’s Office. He held this position during the government of Zbigniew Messner, outlived Mieczysław Rakowski and, to his own surprise, served in this position under both Mazowiecki and Jan Krzysztof Bielecki. As Director of the Office, he apparently played only a technical role, but at the same time participated in many conversations – including those at the highest level – and took notes on them. When asked why he was not fired, he admitted that initially he was supposed to stay only for a transitional period of several weeks, but in the end he managed to convince the Prime Minister with his organizational skills and… fluent knowledge of English, which, as he emphasizes, the Prime Minister was not very familiar with generally. According to his report, the breakthrough was a joint visit to the Vatican and a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. Peter, during which – unlike most BOR officers and diplomats from the Polish People’s Republic embassy in Rome – he did not show that he was Catholic. “Mazowiecki realized that I was not pretending to be someone I was not and he obviously liked that, but he certainly also tested me in a certain way,” Wojtkowski adds.

Mazowiecki, however, must have been aware of the impression made on many people in the former Solidarity opposition by the information that the head of his cabinet was the same man who had served in this role for both Rakowski and Messner. However, for hundreds of civil servants employed in the URM, it was a clear signal that personnel changes at lower levels would be very limited. A signal that confirms the statement also made openly at the exhibition: “The government does not intend to carry out a mass change of state employees.”60

The following opinion of Hall seems significant in this matter:

“I came to the government with the attitude that bad things could be expected from the state apparatus, and I was in favor of introducing as many new people as possible. Later, however, I realized that the attitudes of the old officials were somehow, so to speak, pluralizing. There were also those who somehow sympathized with us; others just wanted to show off and finally feel free to breathe. I didn’t show it, so I didn’t feel that they were functioning as a bloc, that they formed a faction, an impenetrable force.

***

[…] One of the main problems turned out to be finding a suitable candidate for Minister of Finance. […] There was no shortage of economists in the Solidarity community, but the most famous ones at the time (such as professors Witold Trzeciakowski and Cezary Józefiak) refused despite negotiations with them, while others – such as Ryszard Bugaj – were not introduced to the proposal, because, as Kuczyński clearly explained later, it was “the question of the dispute and choice between liberal and social-democratic policies.

A liberal, and as time has shown, an orthodox, was Leszek Balcerowicz, then 42, an economist at the Warsaw School of Planning and Statistics. In the past, he was a member of the Polish United Workers’ Party (he left it after the introduction of martial law) and even worked for several years at the Institute for Fundamental Problems of Marxism-Leninism, but his views were already quite far from Marxism. Like other talented Polish economists of the younger generation, in the 1970s he took the opportunity to complete his training in the USA and since then he had no doubts about which socio-economic model was the most effective. Already at the end of the Gierek decade, he organized a team of scientists who prepared a project for a far-reaching transformation of the economic system, published in 1980 by the Polish Economic Society. At the time it was completely unrealistic, but nine years later, after short-term hesitations, Balcerowicz decided to accept Mazowiecki’s offer.

***

[…] Adam Michnik was not entirely satisfied with the new prime minister, although Mazowiecki implemented his own political project. Therefore, in his first comment after Mazowiecki’s appointment as prime minister, he did not fail to remind readers of the main theses of the article Hurry Slowly and concluded: “I must admit that so far none of my opponents has publicly admitted their mistake in such a short time and in such a gentlemanly manner.” Then, after being informed that one of the new prime minister’s favorite heroes is the Russian commander of the Napoleonic Wars, Mikhail Kutuzov, who, like Mazowiecki, was characterized by the ability to “wait long and patiently,” he asked the following question: “But are these qualities enough for the prime minister of this government to function in this reality? [podkreślenie w oryginale – A.D.] I think that the Prime Minister of this government must have dynamism and a sense of risk. He must have the courage to make decisions quickly”68.

A few months later, when the call for war was on the mountain, Michnik completely sided with Mazowiecki, but at the end of August 1989 he very accurately assessed the personality of the new head of government.

Among the 24 members of the Masovian government, there were 8 deputies and 2 senators, and the average age of the ministers was 51.6 years. The youngest of them was Aleksander Hall (36 years old), and the oldest was Florian Siwicki (64 years old)77. Enough of dry statistics. Jerzy Morawski wrote about the geographical origin of the ministers in “Przegląd Tygodniowy” shortly after the government was announced: “Warsaw took 12 portfolios, Kraków 4, Poznań 3, one each – Rzeszów, Gdańsk, Łódź and the island of Wolin (farmer Artur Balazs). After “For the first time in a long time, there is no representative of Katowice in the government, and this has more than a symbolic meaning. to support the heavy and mining industry.”

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415 MPs took part in the vote to appoint the government on 12 September, of which 402 voted in favour and 13 abstained. There were no votes against. Never before has a Polish government been appointed by such an overwhelming majority.

Fragment of the book “From Mazowiecki to Suchocka. The First Rules of Free Poland” published by Znak Horyzont. Title, lead and abbreviations by the editorial staff of “Newsweek”

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EU iPhone users will be able to change default apps and remove App Store

Apple announced on Thursday that it will soon give iPhone and iPad users in the European Union (EU) region more options to change default apps, remove first-party apps, and more. The move comes in line with the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which prohibits tech companies from engaging in anti-competitive policies. The Cupertino-based tech giant has already allowed third-party apps and app marketplaces on its devices in the region, and has also allowed users to change their default browser. The company is expected to integrate a more open ecosystem with the upcoming update.

Apple to allow iPhone and iPad users in EU to change default apps

In a newsroom article on its developer website, Apple announced that it will make changes to three aspects of its operating system for iPhone and iPad users in the EU. This will allow users to see more information on the browser selection screen, change more default apps and allow users to remove more first-party apps.

Most of these changes will be implemented with a new update by the end of this year, the company says. The tech giant is also continuing its dialogue with the European Commission on compliance with the DMA requirement in these areas.

iPhone Browser Selection Screen
Photo source: Apple

While Apple already allows iPhone and iPad users in the EU to change their default browser from Safari to another, it is now making the process of switching browsers easier for users. Once the update arrives, users in the EU region who still use Safari as their default browser will see the entire list of default browsers on a new screen where they can make their selections.

This selection screen will also show the browser’s App Store signature. In addition, users will have access to more information about the performance of the selection screen.

Apple will also increase the list of default apps that can be changed in the upcoming update. It will also include a new Default Apps section in Settings which will display all the built-in apps available to users. The company said it will add options to change default apps for calling, messaging, keyboards, password managers, and more.

Next year, users will also be able to change default apps for text translation, navigation, spam call filtering, and more.

Finally, Apple will allow users to remove more first-party apps in the EU region. These will include the App Store, News, Photos, Camera, and Safari. It is worth noting that the tech giant has never previously allowed users to remove its first-party apps.

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