Glossary: Let’s rejoice in Fiala. And we are going to be disappointed
So that we don’t have to experience disappointment, a simple thing is enough: Don’t have high expectations.
The enthusiasm for the new Prime Minister Petr Fiala does not end. Voters are fascinated by the way the underestimated Brno professor managed to make his mark on the president.
First of all, because Miloš Zeman – his political rival, who did not succeed in his success – was good. Which really required endless patience and decency.
Just remember what the president was capable of, just so that Petr Fiala did not become prime minister.
First, before the election, Zeman announced that the electoral coalitions, including Fial’s group Together, are a scam. He also added that he would elect the YES movement. Finally, he declared that he did not appoint the winner of the election as prime minister, but the head of the strongest party, Babiš. All this was to make unsure the supporters of the opposition whether it made any sense to go to the polls.
After the election, the president even offered Babiš the prime minister twice, although the YES chief did not care about him, acknowledged the loss and announced his departure for the opposition. Petr Fiala managed to remain reticent even when Miloš Zeman told him in a robe from the hospital that he was vetoing one of the ministers and that he was not “going”.
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An explanation of how Fiala manages to survive in such a situation can be found in one of his books: “I see strength in decency and I am proud to support it. And even if there is sometimes a degree of hypocrisy, it is always better to control yourself and treat others with reasonable respect and courtesy. ”
The new prime minister also pleased with his intransigence, with which he insisted on the pirate candidate for foreign minister Jan Lipavský. More precisely, he did not fight for him, but for the principle that the prime minister shows the government according to himself and the president has nothing to say to him.
As President Zeman stepped up the pressure, Fiala countered dryly that she would file a jurisdictional lawsuit and that lawyers on his team were already drafting it. Zeman couldn’t stand the poker game, and as always in his political career, he refused to embark on a losing battle.
People are now excited about the visible change in politics, which was most noticeable in the finale: Petr Fiala did not take the dagger between his teeth and did not triumphantly dance on the back of a defeated sock, as we are used to in political conflicts. On the contrary, the president publicly praised the state step.
I also like such a change. Only here, as a veteran of political journalism, do I want to alleviate the euphoria and overwhelming expectations of Purple’s reign. As Cimrman already knew, the phase of expectation always alternates with the phase of disappointment. That is almost the definition of politics.
So that we don’t have to experience disappointment, a simple thing is enough: Don’t have high expectations. It is better to be pleasantly surprised than terribly disappointed. With the advent of Fial’s government, neither the covid nor the national debt will immediately disappear. Inflation will not fall, energy will not be cheap or flats.
On the contrary, we will be watching a number of government newcomers who, as soon as they look around in their ministries, are likely to be quite busy with topics other than solving these problems. Summits during the EU presidency, then municipal elections, then the campaign before the presidential…
All that remains is to wish the government that Petr Fiala will be as lucky as ever.