Final Word from Monday, February 4, 2013
ODS is waiting for the Superman who swoops down to save the damsel in distress, who just happens in this case to be ODS itself. Its approval rating is hovering around 13%, and its outlook for the next elections is bleak. ODS First Vice Chair Martin Kuba told Právo that anyone who might say that ODS is in good shape would be just plain lying. He added that he supported Petr Nečas as party chairman under the condition that Nečas accept that ODS must change. "My willingness to defend things that I can't influence will end at some point," Kuba said. Is he is throwing down the gauntlet to Nečas? Ac- cording to Parlamentní listy, a plan is being hatched to replace Nečas as ODS chairman but to keep him as PM. But where is ODS's Superman? The default choice to replace Nečas is Kuba himself, and he represents everything that voters dislike about the party. Anyone who might say that it's a good idea to choose a savior for ODS who (according to STEM) is even less popular than Nečas himself would be just plain lying.[Czech Republic opinion survey poll]
Glossary of difficult words
Waiting for Superman - the name of a documentary film about waiting for someone to fix the U.S. educational system;
to swoop (down) - to move rapidly downward through the air;
damsel in distress - a young woman in trouble who needs to be rescued by a prince;
to hover - to remain at or near a particular level; to be suspended in the air;
bleak - unfavorable; dark;
to throw down the gauntlet - to issue a challenge;
default - a preselected option when no alternative is specified.