Final Word from Friday, December 3, 2010
After Jaroslav Kopřiva was burned earlier this year in an eavesdropping sting, he was sacked as deputy defense minister and quickly vanished. Sociologist Pavol Frič told Literární noviny that the System of Corruption could afford to give Kopřiva up, because his party (KDU-ČSL) was no longer important. Different rules apply, it seems, to ex-Defense Minister Martin Barták, who has ties to TOP 09 and ODS. Politicians and arms dealers have been tripping all over themselves to defend Barták from the bribery charge by ex-U.S. Amb. William Cabaniss. In a bizarre twist with bilateral implications, then-Amb. to the U.S. Petr Kolář confided to Česká pozice that then-PM Mirek Topolánek told him recently that he (Topolánek) was at the Barták-Cabaniss encounter and that no bribe was proposed. Imagine how much must be at stake for the System of Corruption if the diplomatic corps is enlisted to defend it.[Czech Republic Czech Position United States of America Moscow Russia]
Glossary of difficult words
to be/get burned - to be caught, get blamed, get into trouble;
sting - a carefully planned operation, typically one involving deception;
Literární noviny - see the Sept. 6, 2010, issue (it is not on the internet);
to give someone up - to part with someone; to deliver a wanted person to the authorities;
tripping all over themselves - trying to outmaneuver each other for attention;
twist - an unexpected development of events;
to confide - to trust someone enough to tell him or her about a secret or private matter;
corps (rhymes with score) - a body of people engaged in a particular activity.