Still a ship building nation

Gone are the days of the Lenin Shipyard where Lech Wałęsa lead Solidarność to overcome communist control of Poland and eventually lead other Eastern Block nations to democracy.

Since that time Poland has joined the EU and one of the concessions it had to make was closing down shipyards in Gdańsk and Szczecin.

But, Poland is still in the ship building business. Not only has it become the yacht manufacturing capital of Europe, it also continues to build large craft for commercial use.

Polish built ferry

B.C. Ferries out of British Columbia, Canada  has ordered three new ferries to add to their fleet, which are being built in Poland. Three new ships will be named the Salish Orca, Eagle and Raven and each will display an individual traditional First Nations design inside and out.

“These names honor the Coast Salish people and truly reflect both the west coast travel experience and the culture of B.C.,” B.C. Ferries president and chief executive officer Mike Corrigan said Tuesday morning.

Salish is the class name, which applies to all three of the intermediate-class vessels. The other names are descriptive.

Poland is also building automobiles that rival Italian luxury sports car Lamborghini at half the price.

Boy have things changed since the fall of socialism in Poland. And, people here are rallying for Bernie Sanders? Given the history of the Eastern Block and now Venezuela - Good luck finding a roll of toilet paper under the socialist banner. Bernie, you can wipe my dupa.