Final Word from Wednesday, December 16, 2009
They say that sex was great under Communism, because there wasn't much else to do. What was missing were the prenuptial agreements for keeping the passion in perspective. Never say "I do" without one, is Donald Trump's advice to men with ambition, but many a Czech politician or businessman has paid the price for not having one of these capitalist tools in place. Jiří Paroubek handled the transition from starter wife to trophy wife fairly well without a prenup by buying off poor Suzana with some nice land holdings. Worse off is Mirek Topolánek, whose future ex just won't let go. According to Blesk, Pavla is seeking Kč 15m to sign on the dotted line. Where would he possibly get so much money (wink, wink)? A worse-case scenario is that they agree on a division of official and unofficial assets but that she then changes her mind and leaks the incriminating list. Call it the revenge of the starter wife.[Czech Republic Paroubková Topolánková]
Glossary of difficult words
starter wife - the first wife of a successful man; she helps him succeed but is later dumped for a trophy wife;
prenuptial agreement/prenup - an agreement made by a couple before marriage concerning the ownership of assets should the marriage fail;
trophy wife - a wife who is an attractive young woman; seldom is she the first wife of a successful older man;
to buy someone off - to secure the loyalty and support of someone by payment or bribery;
future ex - future ex-wife;
to let go - to relinquish one's grip on someone (and to get on with one's life);
wink, wink - used to imply that the previous statement is misleading (in this case, it means that it is clear where he might get so much money);
incriminating - making someone appear guilty of a crime or wrongdoing.