Milos Zeman, bold *ex-Communist* is elected new Czech president

Agence France Passe/ Hurriyet Daily ^

[GoldenState_Rose]

Zeman joined the Communist Party during the 1968 Prague Spring reforms. The short-lived period of greater freedom was brutally crushed by a Soviet invasion.

Two years later he was purged from the party.

Zeman joined the left-leaning Social Democratic party after communism fell, taking its helm in 1993.

Five years later, he formed a minority government largely responsible for talks in the run-up to Czech EU accession in 2004.

His failed attempt to replace Havel as president in 2003 -- in a vote won by Klaus -- led him to reconsider his priorities and retreat to a countryside house far from Prague "to embrace trees," as he once said.

But he never managed to stay away from politics, offering advice and criticism to both the left and right.

Zeman re-launched his political career in 2010, when he founded the left-wing Citizens' Rights Party (SPOZ).

He has been skewered for his friendship with former Communist apparatchik Miroslav Slouf, allegedly close to the Czech mafia and Russian corporations, including energy giant Lukoil.

[GoldenState_Rose]

Biography summary written in 2013, when he won his first term.

[D_Idaho]

I can think of other careers for ex-Czech, communists that don’t involve politics. Maybe he should look into say, food service or retail perhaps, but not politics.

[dfwgator]

He’s better than the alternative, pro-EU that wants to flood Czechia with Muslims.

[cpdiii]

Once seen with beer and the Czech herbal liqueur called Becherovka, Zeman recently said he has switched to wine and plum brandy, confessing to the Blesk tabloid that his daily diet includes six glasses of the former and three shots of the latter.

Worst hangover in my live came out of a bottle of slivovich plum brandy.

[GoldenState_Rose]

dfwgator: that's what people said about France and Macron and look at how well he gets along with Trump and how strict he's been with terrorism et al. First White House State Dinner is coming up...and Macron's the guest!

By contrast I think Le Pen would have been a nightmare. She could barely hold her own party together. (And her talented niece didn't get along with her either.)

I don't know much about Drahos, except:

Under communism, Drahoš said, he remained an “ordinary scientist” as he refused to join the party or collaborate with the secret police. - Siegfried Murkowitz

[GoldenState_Rose]

Agreed. Shame there can’t be a populist leader without all that baggage.

[henkster]

Best friend’s wife is Serbian. Her uncle looks just like Joseph Stalin and he makes some mean slivovitz from the old family recipe. No hangover, just get kind of slow the next day.

[Nextrush]

I think Zeman is a good man when compared to the pro-EU Globalist whom he defeated in the election run off today.

[GoldenState_Rose]

LoL! Hmm haven’t tried Plum Brandy. You are reminding me of drinking Cherry Nalewka with Polish friend.

[Simon Foxx]

Despite my being from “over there”, I have never gotten used to “Sljivovica” (aka “Rakija”). Had the village brewed Serbian variety and the Croatian variety too. Its all the same - smooth with a sense of warmth going down the gullet, followed immediately by a feeling of LIVING FIRE rising up from the stomach.

Not my “cup of tea”. I make no bones about that. Never been much of a drinker. While taking a shot while visiting a friend or family member’s home is a customary must, I wouldn’t be caught dead drinking that stuff on my own.

Now Croatian “March Beer” (Ozujsko Pivo) is another story ... the second smoothest brew in the world (after Sapporo), and a close second, at that ... the advertising campaign for it, translated literally is “Zuja is The Law”...and you gotta obey “The Law” when you’re over there ... *chuckle*

[GoldenState_Rose]

Zeman was a communist and Drahos was not during crucial “Prague Spring” era. Doesn’t mean Drahos is the answer but it says a lot.

At this point I find Poland to be the most trustworthy ally in Europe: they are pro-sovereignty, pro-America, but anti-Kremlin.

Hungary/Czech Republic is motivated equally by communist nostalgia as they are by anti-migrant sentiments. Probably because propaganda is targeted in such a way so as to suggest: “remember when the USSR was in charge? No migrants?”

Sick deceptive propaganda at its finest. Poles wouldn’t fall for that crap.

[dfwgator]

So you would have held it against Reagan that he was once a Democrat?

[GoldenState_Rose]

Here is 1946 letter he wrote warning about communist infiltration in Hollywood. Probably one of the turning points in his journey toward conservativism.

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/mar/20/newly-discovered-1946-letter-ronald-reagan-warning/

[GoldenState_Rose]

Believe me I don’t want to be a ‘Red Baiter’ or go on a ‘witch hunt’ but if the liberal cause is to win in the fight against native Fascism it must first stand up and be counted as opposed to communism,” Reagan wrote. “Some of you who feel as you do might raise the issue in your organization and see what is the strength of the communists — they’ll reveal themselves. One thing to watch however is that any resolution must be directed against communism and not communists, otherwise they’ll charge you with favoring restrictions on individual political thinking.” - Ronald Reagan, 1946

[HiTech RedNeck]

I’d guess a high sugar and/or fiber content in the liqueur makes it easy to swallow.

Prune juice and vodka anybody? (It might have similar properties.)

[HiTech RedNeck]

Democrats weren’t as cerebral as Reagan had hoped. There wasn’t a “pure liberal” cause to be had among them.