sex and politics

I’ll probably get sued for this by Hofer (or its parent company Aldi), but what you are about to see popped into my mailbox - as does so much other sick shit that any real man would (and indeed does) drool over

EDIT: 24. april 2008 - After a phone call by an Aldi representative I’ve removed the pictures. They claim the pictures constitute copyright infringement. Can’t say I agree, but I do see their point. I just want to reiterate that the pics are still floating around on the web. I just posted them, and - upon request - also removed them.

You just gotta love me for this

It’s been nearly four months sice “vrtički” were the top issue in Ljubljana… As you might remember from this post, the little plots of land near Žale cemetary were demolished at the time, mostly by their owners. But it was said then that it was just the beginning…

Area of “vrtički” on the bank of the river Sava. You can actually see illegal buildings by zooming in

Obviously this is not the only case of illegal or semi-legal plots of land in Ljubljana. Perhaps even more explosive is a situation at the banks of the river Sava in the north of Ljubljana, where hundreds of illegally built cottages have been erected over the years and decades. The Mayor has woved to chase them away, but they refuse to go, filing lawsuits and being rather successful. Namely, they have just recevied a decision by a court that notices of removal of illegal bulidings, which the City Administration has issued carry no legal weight.

Thus they have called the mayor’s bluff who wanted to employ the same tactics as in the case of Žale, where a mere threat of destruction was enough. Not this time, though. It looks as if Zoki will have to use brute force if he really wants to clean a rather was area of Ljubljana of illegal buildings. Because that’s what they are - buildings, cottages, homes away from home. “Vrtički” are suppose to sport little huts to keep tools in, but in this case the building are - well - visible from space. Just zoom in on this map

So the point is that Mayor Janković will probably face an angry mob once again… Not a good thing for a mayor who rides the wave of populism…

Contrary to what Slovene Tourist Board would have you believe, Slovenia is not a neat and tidy country where everyone recycles, doesn’t swear and vacates his/her seat on the bus so that the little old lady can sit dowm. No, sir-ee!

Slovenia is also where white-collar crime was perfected into an art form, mostly because the criminals were people like your next door neighbour, the kind that you’d let your kids go to the seaside with, or invite to your lawn party. Like a former State Secretary (under-minister) for Economic Affairs Boris Šuštar, who was charged with demanding and taking bribes on numerous occasions in exchange for rigging results of various government tenders. In one particular case he was accussed of giving a government grant of 21 million tolars (nearly € 100.000) to a certain company, of which he took a 30 percent cut. Remember, this was done more than seven years ago. Eventually, Šuštar was arrested, caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Just like in the movies he was picked up while receiving some 70.000 deutschmarks (€ 35.000) in bribes in one of Ljubljana’s pubs. But it is here where the plot thickens…

A photo-job of Šuštar, circling the net shortly after his arrest. (source)

Namely… Our legendary justice system almost grinded to a halt on this one. People were unwilling to testify, evidence was lacking and Šuštar’s lawyers did their best to stall the proceedings and/or have a mistrial declared. But defence attorneys are paid to do that, so no problem there.

Why was evidence lacking? Because both crim-police and the prosecution were (and still are) ill equipped for bringing white-collar criminals to justice. I mean - how do you prove that the tender was rigged? Or that particular sum of € 200.000 at the defendants Cayman bank account was to get laundered? Well, you need experts. But if the people at the Attorney General’s office have no financial background, then you get to see bizzare scenes where the defendant is actually explaining the intricacies of financial world to the court, rather than explaining himself/herself.

And why people didn’t want to testify? Not because Šuštar would have some big mafia organisation covering his back and getting rid of witnesses… It’s just that some level of corruption is embedded into Slovene soul. Ripping the state off, making money on the side, not paying any more tax than absolutely necesary, getting better medical care by giving a bottle of whiskey to your doctor, making sure your kid makes it to the next grade by bribing the teacher… All you need is a shotgun and a pair of horses and you’ve got yourself a redneck Christmas!

And on top of that (or maybe precisely because of that), Slovene judiciary failed to revoke Šuštar’s traveling documents, enabling him to flee to…. you’ve guessed it… to Canada

It’s not just that Les Canadiens are awfully nice people whom you generaly like to be around. As far as Šuštar is concerned, there was the small matter of Slovenia and Canada not having an extradition treaty - unlike Slovenia and the USA where Davorin Sadar, another “transition-criminal” took refuge, but a smartass at the ministry of interior dug up an ancient treaty between the USA and Kingdom od Serbia, which was (by quirks of history) inherited by Slovenia as Yugoslavia broke up.

So, if you gotta run, run to Canada!