I just came accross Seán Hanley’s blog, where there was a nice review of my PhD thesis (the manuscript is rewritten as we speak into a book) and my comments on Finnish politics here last spring. It’s actually a very nice blog, with stuff on Central Eastern Europe and beyond - mainly Czech and Slovak [...]
After the Hungarians lost their chains
‘…the state will wither away’
The Hungarian Socialists are true to their Marxist roots in one respect: contributing to the running down of the state. In the postcommunist condition, the liberation from the central power, decentralisation has been a popular goal. In government, the Hungarian Socialist party of Ferenc Gyurcsány, with [...]
Sibiu 2006. A removed saint.
Until now, much of my academic work has been on street names, statues and memorials, and the, mainly, postcommunist politics of memory mainly in the context of Budapest but also on London. In Sibiu (Hermannstadt in German, Nagyszeben in Hungarian) in Transylvania, Romania, I was fascinated by this statue, which [...]
The Hungarian PM Ferencs Gyurcsány admitted to the Socialist party crowds in May that he had been lying “day and night”. When the news broke out the fantasy of the democratic, economically viable Hungary was broken down. In Hungary, the response was turmoil. Political scandal and riots on the streets. The politicians had let down [...]
Slovak elections may appear a minor event in the world or European scale (from football World Cup to Catalonian steps towards more autonomy), but in the discussion over flat tax and neoliberalism it is a significant one. The centre left party of SMER and Róbert Fico won 29 percent of the vote against the 18 [...]
