As any fule kno, Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski is married to Anne Applebaum, seriously distinguished writer/commentator/historian.

So when Radek failed to get selected as Citizens Platform candidate to run for Polish President later this year, what else could Anne do but write a short piece about what it’s like being a prominent politician-candidate’s spouse?

And it’s not easy:

Even in Poland, where the president is far less powerful than the prime minister, people have a deeper and more atavistic relationship with the person who is a serious contender to become head of state.

They want their national leader— the tribal chief—to look like them, to live like them, to reflect their values. They want his wife to do all of that too—especially if she is, like me, a foreigner. There is no neutral way to deal with this: If you say nothing you are "unhelpful," if you give no interviews (my initial instinct) it means you don’t really speak Polish, or perhaps you have something to hide.

Then came the tsunami of invented media stories about Radek ‘n’ Anne:

As a journalist, I know what it is like to incur the self-righteous wrath of people who denounce you for things you didn’t say or didn’t mean. When you add TV, the car radio, and the morning newspapers to the permanent fury of the blogosphere, the echo chamber effect can be overwhelming.

I’ve seen this happen to people from the outside, but never from the inside. And I can promise that it is very unnerving—almost spooky—to watch an utterly unrecognizable version of someone you know rather well emerge into the public sphere.

Result? Unexpected solidarity with … Hillary!

… although one ought to have expected that rapid shift in perceptions, and one should have been prepared for those negative emotions, somehow one didn’t and one wasn’t.

And perhaps one never is. Possibly for the first time ever, I find myself in solidarity with Hillary Clinton: "If you don’t like him, don’t vote for him." Just don’t tell me about it, OK?

Read the whole thing. And then run through the many comments, most (I suspect) from people with Polish backgrounds weighing in for or against Sikorski. Such as marek anonim:

Your husband’s formative years were spent in the other world: in the West, in Enlightement, in the conservative democracy, in the rule of self-dependence of the human being, in the world.  

The winner is what the Polish people are, in general: the East, the paternalism, the etatism, the submission, the dependence, the new-speak, the warmth, the tribe, the OURS.  

You have understood that perfectly. But how come your husband hasn’t?

Plus this smart one from irk uck describing why Mr Komorowski won the nomination:

… your husband is known from this being rather hot-blooded political animal and some of his statements are now in the golden collection of the political zoo. His opponent in turn has formidable qualities which people really appreciate after living in political turmoils aka "wars on the top".

He is speaker of the parliament, very soft, speaking nicely (with little meaning of course) to satisfy everybody, well rounded guy. His posture is stately, a shadow of a moustache makes him looking bit like a good uncle plus he is traditionalist with 5 kids

No unmoustached traditionalist with a mere two kids stood a chance against that.