Final Word from Wednesday, October 12, 2011
There's nothing comparable in the CR to the Occupy WallStreet protests. Perhaps the closest this year was the transportationstrike in June, when signs were held up decryingthe cost of such things as the forced administration of IPB (Kč400bn), the Pandurs (Kč 14.4bn) and the Opencards (Kč 2.7bn).There have also been rather ineffective protests against hightelecoms rates and bank fees. Andrej Babiš's harsh criticism ofthe Tuscany boys who create no wealth but leech off taxpayersalso had some similarities. In the U.S., the issue is more whatto do about a system rigged in favor of the super rich (to usethe words of Paul Krugman). It's morally corrupt, but it's usuallylegal. The CR is still in the phase of institutionalizing thecorrupt behavior (by exempting ČEZ from the public-procurementlaw, for example) and of dividing up the market amongthe oligarchs. In this sense, an Occupy BB Centrum or OccupyPříkopy protest might make sense. The unions have until theirbig demonstration on Nov. 17 to refine their strategy.
Glossary of difficult words
BB Centrum, Příkopy - two areas of Prague where some of the largest banks, financial groups and industrial companies are (or were) headquartered;
to decry - to publicly denounce, criticize;
to leech - to habitually exploit or rely on;
to rig something - to manage or conduct something fraudulently so as to produce a desired result;
to refine - to improve something by making small changes.