Compact archive August 8, 2008

After a long year, when the right-wing politicians led by Vaclav Klaus looked for a slight chance to definitely kill the winning design of the new Czech National Library, they can finally celebrate – the new ‘Blob’ library was found ajar the law by the European Commission. That impugns the international contest, and gives the ODS a tool to finally get rid of the post-modern architect Kaplicky.

The battle of Blob have never been, and will never be, a battle for better Prague, it was a political battle from the very beginning. The Blob library is a modern project which won world contest, and Klaus as a skeptic chosen this building as a means for drawing medial attention to himself. The following merry-go-round turns until now, the opposition leader Jiri Paroubek made Kaplicky his cultural advisor, just to make it clear the thing is political matter indeed.

What is going to be the output of the matter? There are three possible scenarios. 1St – the ODS wins elections – Blob will be build in Brno. 2Nd – the CSSD wins the elections – the Blob will be build as it won the international contest. 3rd Kaplicky gets frustrated and builds it somewhere they want is, e.g. in Edinburgh.

Czech National Bank (CNB) used a whole arsenal against the strong currency. As the first came the announcement CNB decided to, first time in three years, lower the interest by a 0,25% to 3,5%. Immediately, the rate of exchange jumped up to 24,10 czk from 23,90czk/€.

Another punch to the Czech crown was delivered yesterday, when CNB announced there many be another lowering of interest until the end of the year, bringing further currency weakening.

The reason is exporters wouldn’t be able to export anything, if the crown continued strengthening. When the CZK got in July even under 23 czk/€, with the perspective of slowed state economics this was a logical solution.

Franz Kafka is for many the symbol of an anxious Centre-European genius and also an evergreen means of advertising, which portraits him like an out-of-this-world persona. There have been many studies written on him, however the one called Excavating Kafka is not going to disappear easily.

The scholar and an author of comedies James Hawes (1960) writes there about the extensive Kafka’s pornographic collection, hidden in the house of his parents. “Those are no beach postcards” Hawes states for British Times. “It as regular pornography, some shoots are hard, even not very nice” The German list Spiegel talks about lesbians and animals.

The author, who teaches creative writing on Oxford underlines, his book is not supposed to dishonour Franz Kafka, the author of Process or Metamorphosis, he just wants to present a more humane picture of him, without the imaginative aura of a saint, which has been created after his death.

The Olympic Games in Peking start today. The games are controversial especially because human rights abuse in communist China.

It is not merely a question of Tibet or do not allowing freedom of speech. Peking has problems with living environment, the sportsmen are afraid of smog, suffocating the city. The organizers of course claim there won’t be any serious flaw.

Some claimed the OG could change China, now it seems it will be the opposite. China wants to demonstrate its power to the world, using the OG. The ceremony is going to be a massive event by itself – the famous China director Yimou Zhang (Hero) spend by preparations of the ceremony three years, 15 thousand participants should appear on the stage.

There is going to be the traditional defile of all the groups, the Czech one is going to be the 162th in line. The Czech Republic sends 73 sportsmen as Representatives, the flag is carried by the kayakist Stepanka Hilgertova. The ceremony is sold out, it is going to be watched by audience of 90 thousands. CT2 broadcasts the ceremony live at 14:00, from the record in 21:00.

For Prague citizens or visitors of the city, who are often going home after midnight, there is a good news from Prague Public Transport company – since 31st August 2008 there is planned a notable increase in the frequency of buses.

Also those who live in more distant parts of Prague and don’t nave any night buses at all, should get their night stations, and so the possibility of travelling without taxi.

To forget about necessity of night walks or paying for over-prized taxis will be newly possible in those city parts: Strahov, Nove Vysocany, Hrdlorezy, Zahradni Mesto, Skalka and Kosik. There is also new 50 stations, where the night buses are going to stop.