Final Word from Monday, July 9, 2012

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People can't always answer every phone call, so despite the proliferation of mobile telephones, phone tag remains an annoying reality. Occasionally the exchange of missed calls goes on for so long that the caller forgets why he or she called in the first place, but rarely does it happen that the parties involved forget who initiated the exchange. When news first broke 10 days ago that Miroslav Kalousek called the investigator in the CASA case, Kalousek readily admitted that he placed the call but denied that he exerted any pressure or made any threats. Over the long weekend Kalousek starting singing a different tune. The investigator called him, he insisted. According to Respekt, the investigator was merely returning Kalousek's call. As Kalousek himself has pointed out, it would be a criminal act for him to threaten the investigator. But if the investigator called him, getting a little hot under the collar would be much more understandable.... Sorry dude, that's not how phone tag works. You initiated the call, Mr. Kalousek, so you're the caller.[Czech Republic Jiří Mazánek Vlasta Parkanová]