problems in budapest ?

[JTK]

Usrin...? Are you safe? 

[BonzaiJoe]

I think it's incredible if the hungarian population really thought its politicians were telling the truth during the election campaign... Everyone probably lied, I don't see what a big difference it makes that one of them unwillingly admitted it.

[CTG]

Usrin: trapped in the closet?

[Usrin]

Usrin...? Are you safe? 

Yeah, I'm out. There were no policemen around the university, only the doorman was a bit angry when he had to stand up from his chair and open the door to let me out. (He was watching TV, believing that nobody would disturb him until next morning.)

[Ursin]

(Btw, is there any country on the world where promises of an electional campaign can be taken seriously?)

Vatican (where the cardinals elect), maybe?

Don't forget Slovakia! As index.hu wrote (after Slovak newspaper Sme):

Szlov?k politikus nem hazudik
Mi nem hazudunk - ?ll?tj?k a szlov?kiai politikai ?let szerepl?i, akiket a SME c?m? napilap a magyar minisztereln?k, Gyurcs?ny Ferenc esete ok?n k?rdezett. Szlov?ki?ban ilyesmi nem t?rt?nhet meg - ?rja a lap az MTI szerint. "?n soha nem hazudok" - mondta Milan Urb?ni, a Vladim?r Meciar vezette korm?nyer?, a N?pp?rt-HZDS aleln?ke. Milan Hort, a Mikul?s Dzurinda vezette SDK? aleln?ke sem eml?kszik arra, hogy valaha hazudott volna. Bug?r B?la, az Magyar Koal?ci? P?rtj?nak eln?ke ?gy nyilatkozott, hogy "a kereszt?ny ember soha nem hazudik" ?s legfeljebb azt tartotta megengedhet?nek, hogy a politikus "taktikai okokb?l" esetenk?nt valamit elhallgasson.

Original version:

Slovensk? politici: My neklameme
Ma?arsk?ho premi?ra zradila nahr?vka z politick?ho rokovania, na ktorej siln?mi slovami priznal, ?e voli?ov o situ?cii v krajine klamal.
Na Slovensku sa v?ak ?osi tak? asi sta? nem??e. Aj ke? sa politici navz?jom obvi?uj? zo l?i, o sebe tvrdia, ?e nikdy neklam?. Aspo? to vypl?va z reakci? politikov parlamentn?ch str?n, ktor?ch sme oslovili. "Ja nikdy neklamem," hovor? podpredseda HZDS Milan Urb?ni. Ani podpredseda SDK? Milan Hort si nespom?na na situ?ciu, ?e by klamal, aspo? nie verejne. "Nikdy som nemusel odvol?va? to, ?o som verejne povedal," hovor?. Kres?an neklame, hovor? l?der SMK B?la Bug?r. Za in? probl?m pova?uje, ?e niekedy nem??e ist? vec poveda?, lebo si to vy?aduje napr?klad politick? taktika.

Translation:

A Slovak politician never lies
We don't lie - clamed persons of Slovak political life asked by newspaper SME after the case of Hungarian Prime Minister, Ferenc Gyurcs?ny. Nothing like this could happen in Slovakia, the paper writes. "I never lie" - said Milan Urb?ni, vice president of People's Party-HZDS, governing party led by Vladim?r Meciar. Neither Milan Hort, vice president of SDKU led by Mikul?s Dzurinda remembers any case when he lied. B?la Bug?r, president of Party of Hungarian Coalition [party of Hungarians living in Slovakia] told that "Christian people never lie", he felt allowable only keeping back some informations because of "tactical reasons" for a politician.

[zaqrack]

Well, don't worry, I'm also fine, just spending the week at my girlfriend's place

These riots are just nonsense. As someone (I don'T remember the source) noted, Hungarian people live in happyness while they are being lied, knowing that the politicians lie, and at the moment someone is telling the truth they just can't stand it and turn violent. Incredible, really

During the daytime there is not much to fear from, the protests in front of the parliament have now turned calm (though I still don't get the point of it), but in the nights its quite unsafe to walk in the city, as the violent groups are starting to rampage each night, and always at a different place.

What will happen? Next sunday there are votes again - this time for the local district/city governments. I don't think things will calm down until then. But don't worry, we are fine.

Some intresting surveys and news:
57% of the population thinks that politicians lied and will lie anyway so this whole thing has no point.
32% thinks that the prime minister stating "we lied for years, day by day, night by night" will lead the country into a moral crisis.

It's very likely that the tape wasn't leaked but released by the government as a nice marketing trick. -I also agree, they reacted with statements and explanations almost immediately and perfectly, but:

The opposition now claims that the riots may be generated and organised by the government with the help of the secret service.  This is nonsense really.

[zaqrack]

btw, couldnt agree more:
http://www.pestiside.hu/archives/midweek_briefing_your_uprising_is_like_so_two_nights_ago002753.php

[CTG]

I feel ambivalent about protesting. I agree with the crowd, I also went to Kossuth square few weeks ago for a day. The prime minister must leave. But on the other hand I can't see why to destroying this beautiful city with those cruel battles against the police. It's useless and stupid. Why don't they throw stones and Molotov coctail on Gyurcs?ny's house instead of burning civile people's car and crashing the windows of shops.

[CTG]

Why don't they throw stones and Molotov coctail on Gyurcs?ny's house instead of burning civile people's car and crashing the windows of shops.

I agree with a single correction:

Why don't they throw stones and Molotov coctail on Ors?s Gipsy Viktor's house instead of burning civile people's car and crashing the windows of shops.

[CTG]

Not politican problems but a huge bomb (2 tons) was found in Budapest at a construction (the biggest bomb ever found here - it's an American one from WW2). More than 10,000 people are evacuated, deactivation is in progress. Bomb experts say it will be a damned hard exercise because it's in a bed of concrete and it also has more than one detonators.

[zaqrack]

yes, today I felt I am exactly at the right place ))

[BonzaiJoe]

Maybe they should just leave it there - If it made it through 63 years without exploding, it will probably never explode

[CTG]

Maybe they should just leave it there - If it made it through 63 years without exploding, it will probably never explode

Well I guess they crashed into the bomb during the constructions. When such a old bomb get a hit, it can explode suddenly (you can't cover it again, it has to be removed). On the other hand even if you don't touch it anymore, an earthquake can activate it (rare in Hungary but it happens sometimes).

[CTG]

Another kind of trouble: flood is coming on the Danube. Budapest will survive it easily, but my hometown won't...

[Usrin]

Another kind of trouble: flood is coming on the Danube. Budapest will survive it easily, but my hometown won't...

And there's again the typical bullshit in the Hungarian media: they are panicking about Budapest and asking people to help "protecting the city", and don't tell too much about other parts of the country, where help would be really needed. Don't they see that in Budapest the Danube flows in a deep trough, the riverside is higher even than the expected record flood, so there are no dams to be strengthened? (The only exception is a housing estate north of Zak's place, but it is also only ~1 m below flood level... In NW Hungary, there are large areas which could be easily flooded by 2-3 m of water.)