Final Word from Monday, September 3, 2007
Does anyone really care if MP Vlastimil Tlustý of ODS had an affair with a female journalist? Tlustý's alleged fling isn't on the front pages, unlike in the cases of the Topolánek and Paroubek love triangles, in part because hardly anyone has ever even seen thin Mrs. Tlustá. Likewise, Marek Dalík's alleged dealings before and after becoming Topolánek's buddy didn't make a big splash when reported by Czech TV, because there wasn't much substance to the insinuations. True, Dalík and Tlustý are at each other's throats and, yes, it's calling unwanted attention to possible dirty dealings at the finance ministry (ČEZ stock sale) and agriculture ministry (Budvar), but so far the damage is minimal. Only if the two threw caution to the wind and revealed some of the real dirt on each other would it have the kind of lasting effect on ODS that Paroubek is hoping for. Topolánek's brain (Dalík) and Topolánek's thorn (Tlustý) are probably too politically astute to let this happen.[Czech Republic Television Pavla Topolánková Zuzana Paroubková flotation float 7%]