Look at the Czech government today. Some of them fear a police state. The others are fighting off a coup from the colonels. In an exemplary way. They want to stop the independence of an investigation which arose from the combination of two factors. The effort of the former Minister of Justice and the mistrust among the coalition partners. Especially towards the party which scooped the Ministry of the Interior. This very independence did not acquit itself well. There were some moments, of course. In the case of the corrupt opposition MP Rath, for example. But also trouble, as with the former Defence Minister Parkanová, a pro-government MP.

However, the more serious problem is that Czech politicians obviously do not understand the concept of independence itself. They only understand it as superiority. If the investigators are to be independent, then it should probably mean that they would be more than the MP´s. Hence politics independent of the state apparatus means that the politicians have the power to influence the administration at all levels.
What is even worse is the hesitation with which „independence“ has to be supported. Or, who has to depend on whom. One day an armed police corpse operates (Jakub – what does this mean?) on the Parliament floor. Just incidentally denying the constitutional sovereignity of Parliament.

The other day the government had to show them who gives the orders here, by chastening the Police President. It is a sad state of affairs when someone starts a Quixotic fight against a fictitious coup, full of a sad clown´s resolve. It is like giving the choice between clowning and despotism. One has to admit that giving such a choice to the people does not seem to be especially wise. It seems rather like some governmental Saturnalia aiming at the restoration of the iron grip of order after the final decapitation of the most clownlik`e of our fools.