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In Central Europe, and especially in Hungary, the political notions of “right” and “left” have lost their original meanings. Now, the right wing is made up of populists united only by their hatred of the left. The left has little more to offer.
To answer this lighter question for the spring holidays, I ought to have taken some holiday time to watch more Hungarian television. But I can state confidently that the winner here is Barátok közt (“Among Friends”), a sitcom created by an Australian company about a group of people who do not speak Hungarian and do not live here at all.
The question is truly interesting if we modify it a bit: Who could possibly abolish the monarchy in Britain (or anywhere else)? My first bet would be the Queen herself. But I do not see why she would take such a dramatic step. As far as I know, Englishmen are totally satisfied with their Queen and Kingdom as the traditional foundation of their state.
In my opinion and experience, the only people who talk about the backlash of a wave of immigrants are the politicians who like any issue that can be considered as dangerous. Where there is danger, a clever president or prime minister can pretend that he’ll defend the country and the people against it.
Star activists are doing what they do the best: selling themselves, together with the issue in question. Since they are famous, their limelight is shared with the issue they advocate. That’s a fair business.
The question sounds astonishing to me -- take into consideration the fact that I am a novelist. Why would anyone want to learn or escape when he or she decides to read? I am not talking about the books that promise to teach you HOW to lose weight, or HOW to travel cheap in Europe, or HOW to fix things in your house. When you say the word BOOK to me, I think of fiction. Especially when we are deliberating about what books we would enjoy reading during our vacation.
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