Final Word from Wednesday, October 22, 2025

The student leaders and other young people who got caught up in the wind of change in 1989 were in retrospect betting on a sure thing, although it wasn't entirely clear at the time. If they stuck to the script they were handed and had some talent and connections, they often went on to fame or fortune, and sometimes both. Those of today's Gen Z (born in 1997-2012) are the new force in global politics, according to the Financial Times. They're demanding political change and in some cases having an effect on it, the FT said. Some of the under-30 politicians who made it into the Czech Parliament will be feted by the media, such as Pirate MP Ka­terina Demetrashvili, with the goal of using this new force to preserve the current direction and development of the country and Europe. This time, though, the script the young leaders are handed won't necessarily be such a sure-fire winner. The burden on their shoulders will therefore be much greater than it was in 1989, even if they don't yet realize it. [ Czech Republic Generation Velvet Revolution parliamentary elections ]