Final Word from Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Václav Klaus is a bit of a latecomer to the fringe group that regularly protests against world government. He's a longtime EU critic, of course, but he also escorted the country into a dozen or so international organizations as finance minister, PM or president. His privatization efforts also contributed to the takeover by multinationals of a majority of the Czech economy. What, then, was the purpose of his (valid) warning against global government during his National Day speech? One possible motive was to signal a return to the "Czech way" of doing business, for which his oligarch friends can be grateful. Another possibility is that the speech was an indirect attack against a presidential bid by the Europhile Karel Schwarzenberg. With Miloš Zeman's chances looking ever slimmer, Klaus must find a new horse to back. One who will protect the "national existence" of certain Czech political and business values.[Czech Republic Czechoslovak foreign]
Glossary of difficult words
latecomer - a person who arrives late; a recent arrival, participant or convert;
fringe - not part of the mainstream; unconventional, peripheral or extreme;
to escort - to accompany someone somewhere;
Europhile - a person who admires or loves European culture, society, history, etc.;
slim - very small;
national existence - Klaus's term from his speech.