Czech elections

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Why is it that there is not any hysteria over the fact that the former communists won nearly 20% of the vote in the Czech Republic? Surely they are as vile as Le Pen or, actually, even more so as they seem unprepared to apologize for their past offenses.

― keith, Monday, 17 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

maybe because left-wingers love to get all up in arms about anything and everything, while right-wingers are hardly surprised that the commies are right around the corner and steadfastly refuse to kick up a fuss.

― Dave M., Monday, 17 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

not sure if you mean the past crimes of communists in general or just those of the Czech communists. it's probably because communists usually fail to get into power outside of a military coup, while there's a lot of precedent for fascists getting elected to office. plus fascists just seem like more menacing and hateful people than commies in general.

― Justyn Dillingham, Monday, 17 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

As long as the extremely obnoxious (and extremely corrupt) Vaclav Klaus didn't get in ... The Czechs aren't dumb, just because someone is "anti-Communist" doesn't mean that he's trustworthy.

Anyway, in Eastern Europe grumbling about "ex-Communists" is a bit out-of-place. Poland and Hungary have also elected into power "ex- Communists," and all hell hasn't broken loose. I imagine that the Czechs, like the Poles and Hungarians, are pragmatic about all this -- as long as the ex-Communist wasn't actively involved in any of the brutalities and corruptions of the pre-1989 Communist regimes, and pays at least lip service to democratic goals, they pass muster.

Besides, the really repulsive ex-Communists are either unelectable -- General Jaruzelski couldn't get elected to be Warsaw's dog catcher -- or have flirted with the far-right.

― Tadeusz Suchodolski, Tuesday, 18 June 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

ten years pass...

This looks great:

http://corrupttour.com/en/

It's a walking tour of Prague's political corruption, taking people to, for example, a building the city is renting from an unknown owner (based in a tax haven) for four times the price it could have bought it. Private Eye should do something similar.

― О боже, какой мужчина (ShariVari), Sunday, 16 June 2013 11:26 (thirteen years ago)

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