Janez Janša | SLEEPING WITH PENGOVSKY

The Little Referendum That Couldn’t

Talk about a massive political screw-up. After working up a rare case of bipartisan policy support, and on energy at that (!), major political parties on Monday abruptly walked away from a referendum on the second nuclear powerplant in Krško (JEK2).

A picture of Krško nuclear powerplant with a referendum question blended in. — *There will be no referendum on JEK2 in the near future*

pengovsky should note this does not mean JEK2 is cancelled. On the larger scale of things, this clusterfuck probably will not even count as a noticeable delay. Politically however, this is – to borrow a phrase – a bitchslap heard around Muddy Hollows.

Anže Logar Bails On SDS And Janša

Anže Logar, former SDS wonderboy and long-time heir-presumptive to the Glorious Leader, quit The Party earlier today. He sent out a short email quoting John D. Rockefeller with “Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great“, wished Janez Janša all the best and told him he’s getting the fuck out of Dodge. Thus, after nearly two years of stubbornly sitting on the fence, Logar finally made his move. Sort of.

Anže Logar quit the SDS via email — *Anže Logar’s break-up note*

Realistically, there was no way Logar was going to remain a party member. Not after he formed his debate club and certainly not after he refused to sign a loyalty pledge. But, staying true to his political style, Logar quit SDS with all the flair of a wet tablecloth. There was no press conference, no gaggle of reporters, no grand exit. Just a low-key email, with a mis-attributed quote. If there exists a better metaphore for Logar’s politics, pengovsky can’t think of one.

Fuck Around And TEŠ 6

In a development that surprised a grand total of zero people, due to the TEŠ 6 project, the Šoštanj coal power plant is going bust. Bankrupt. Done for. Broke. Insolvent, even. The government announced yesterday that it will draft an emergency bailout legislation to safeguard the plant’s thermal energy production, vital for some 35,000 residents in the region.

Fuck around and find out meme featuring TEŠ 6 as its centrepiece. — TEŠ 6 entering the find out phase

Such is the inglorious end of one of the largest and most expensive infrastructure projects since the completion of the motorway network. That is not to say that TEŠ (and, specifically, the infamous Unit 6) will be shutting down tomorrow. But the site and the connected “coal” mine will now be on life support, indefinitely. Lest they drag down half of the Slovenian energy sector with them.

Notes On Slovenian Recognition of Palestine (Part 6, Finale)

After a day of tense politics, procedural manoeuvering in the parliament and dubious life choices in general, Slovenia last night recognised the State of Palestine.

Flag of Palestine was raised in front of the foreign ministry as Slovenia established formal diplomatic relations, despite Janez Janša doing everything to stop the vote in the parliament. — Palestinian flag was raised in front of the foreign ministry

Predictably, however, the more the debate dragged on, the less it was about Palestine and the more it was becoming about domestic politics, electoral soundbites and pure brinkmanship.

Notes On Slovenian Recognition of Palestine (Part 5)

In an inexplicable bout of na¨ivete, pengovsky really did expect Slovenian recognition of Palestine to actually happen this time around. Well, not so fast, said Janez Janša.

Slovenian recognition of Palestine is once again bogged down in parliamentary procedure. — *Recognition of Palestine is once again bogged down in parliamentary procedure*

The recognition will still likely happen, but probably not before the EU/referendums vote on Sunday. And oddly enough, there is a non-zero chance this somehow ends up helping Robert Golob.