Final Word from Monday, December 12, 2011
Everybody's waiting for the counterattack by the Prague politicians and byznysmeniwho were shunted aside by Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda's quick partner swap at city hall.Some of the victims of the unexpected maneuver are putting on a brave face in publicwhile discussing in private the possibility of "physically removing" Svoboda, accordingto Jaroslav Plesl of HN. Václav Klaus was one of the few who openly criticized theshakeup immediately, saying that it was planned in advanced by Karel Schwarzenbergand Petr Nečas. And then on Fri., Klaus said that the Nečas cabinet is weakerthan he had expected given the election outcome. What isn't yet clear is whetherKlaus is merely sulking over the changes at Prague city hall, or whether these are thefirst steps in a protracted, meticulous attack against the Nečas government. One thatculminates about the time he leaves the Castle and returns to partisan politics.
Glossary of difficult words
to sulk - to be in a bad mood, to be grumpy;
to scheme - to make plans, esp. in a devious way;
to shunt - to push or shove;
to put a brave face on something - to act as if something unpleasant or upsetting is not as bad as it really is;
shakeup - a radical reorganization;
protracted - lasting for a long time;
meticulous - very careful and precise.