Final Word from Friday, September 10, 2010
Something very good could come from France's decision to deport Roma who have failed to integrate into society. If the French can get away with targeting a single group of (alleged) troublemakers, perhaps the Czechs could do it too. Now, now, we're not talking about expelling any Czech Roma. No, we're talking about a much more insidious group - politicians, and the entrenched bureaucrats who put crazy ideas into their heads. Many of them simply aren't integrating into Czech society. Most Czechs are prepared to make some sacrifices in these difficult times, but they want to see those at the top set an example. Instead, these people are making deals with the devil, passing a budget that preaches austerity but oozes pork, fixing one bad tax by imposing another bad tax, and requiring school children to get Opencards. Of course each deportation would have to be judged individually, but many of the vagabonds in charge could justifiably be sent back to Romania, Bulgaria or wherever their morality came from.[Czech Republic Gypsy]
Glossary of difficult words
to send someone packing - to dismiss or make someone leave in an abrupt way;
insidious - treacherous; crafty;
entrenched - firmly established, in a way that is difficult to change;
austerity - extreme measures to reduce a budget deficit, esp. by reducing public expenditure;
to ooze - to slowly exude or discharge a thick fluid;
pork - short for "pork barrel"; government money used to win votes (but we mean it here more in the general sense of wasteful spending);
vagabond - (in this sense) a rascal or rogue; a person who wanders from place to place without a home or job (somewhat like the "traveling folk" Roma in France).