Final Word from Thursday, March 24, 2011
Miroslav Kalousek is close to forcing Alexandr Vondra out as defense minister, and the implications for Czech politics and business would be far-reaching. Petr Nečas would lose his chief ally; Kalousek would consolidate his position as the "shadow" prime minister and find it easier to push through his sweeping tax and pension reforms; Václav Klaus would gain more influence over Nečas and ODS itself; the eco-tender would lose one of its biggest detractors; Martin Barták would be able to return from unpaid leave; and the beneficial owners of Promopro would be able to rest easy again. Without Vondra in the cabinet, the drive to eliminate middlemen in defense procurement would likely hit a wall, and new roadblocks might be erected in the effort to repair other public procurement laws. The chips must fall where they may, but sometimes they cause considerable collateral damage as they tumble down.
Glossary of difficult words
implication - a likely consequence of something;
sweeping - wide in range or effect;
detractor - a person who finds fault with someone or something;
leave - (in this sense) a time when one has permission to be absent from work or from duty in the military;
beneficial owner - the true, ultimate owner of a security;
to rest easy - to be untroubled by worries;
roadblock - a hindrance, obstacle;
to let the chips fall where they may - to allow something to happen no matter the consequences.