Before the Olympic Games in Beijing around 70 doped athletes were barred from competition. Shortly before the Winter Games in Vancouver only 30 have been caught. The daily Die Presse doubts that the anti-doping authorities have the situation in hand. "554 doping tests have been carried out in Vancouver and the vicinity even before the Games have got under way. During the men's downhill training the anti-doping squad marched around like paratroopers. ... Is that the way you behave if you've got everything under control? The opposite is to be feared. Namely that in most cases the anti-doping authorities have lost their grip entirely. Arne Ljungqvist, head of the International Olympic Committee IOC's medical commission, patted himself on the back with the words 'the Olympic Games are becoming cleaner from venue to venue'. Sounds like he's just fooling himself. At least in this regard the anti-dopers are neck and neck with the dopers themselves." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Sport, » North America
All available articles from » Gerhard Hofer

With an eye to the opening of the Olympic Games in Vancouver the daily Turun Sanomat underlines the responsibilities of athletes at any major sports event: "The protagonists at the Olympic Games … are the 2,500 competing athletes, whose performances are covered by 10,000 media representatives from all over the world. Ultimately the credibility of the Olympic ideal depends on them. The World Anti-doping Agency has informed the International Olympic Committee that 30 athletes have been caught doping even before the games. Taking an optimistic view of things this means that the controls are working and rules are being observed. Therefore each case will serve to purify top league sport and promote the spirit of fair play. … The Finnish team comprises 85 athletes. Most of them could certainly be role models for young people in our country, even if only very few of them are likely to win a medal." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Sport, » Finland, » North America, » Global

The organisers of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver seriously underestimated the costs of the event, which according to conservative daily Dziennik Gazeta Prawna will no doubt ensure that future events are a lot less extravagant: "Vancouver pumped so much money into the games that they already know they will never be able to redeem their investment. Even the TV stations are making losses. The US broadcaster NBC estimates that losses will amount to around 200 million dollars. After the Canadians were chosen to host the games back in 2003 they estimated the costs at 660 million dollars. The current pessimistic yet realistic estimate is six billion dollars! This will no doubt be that last time we see such extravagant Olympic Games. Is Vancouver the end of the 86-year-long Olympic Games tradition? Surely not. But the next ones will doubtless be on a more modest scale." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Sport, » North America
All available articles from » Cezary Kowalski

With a clear majority the European Parliament has rejected the SWIFT Agreement which until now allowed the transfer of European bank data to the US. Despite annoying Washington the MEPs have done transatlantic relations a good turn in the long term, the left-liberal Süddeutsche Zeitung writes: "Washinton now knows where it stands: the terrorist threat can be fought together, but not at the expense of European civil rights. Experience shows that the US respects self-assured partners and knows how to react pragmatically to new political situations. What's more, the rejection also conceals an offer. MEPs from the far left to the right left no doubt that they also favour the tracking down of sources of terrorist funding. Negotiations on a new agreement can therefore begin immediately. So there has been no setback for the fight against terrorism. The Parliament simply ensured that freedom and civil rights are not sacrificed for the sake of security." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Europe, » U.S.
All available articles from » Martin Winter

The arrest of former secret service agent Alexei Petrov has caused a huge stir in Bulgaria. The former advisor to the State Agency for National Security (DANS) is accused of having ties to kidnapper bands. The daily Standart is struck by how politicians have been mincing their words in their statements on his arrest. "Fear is clearly widespread among the founders and key figures in DANS. Alexei Petrov's development brought him increasing influence as the years passed. In the past people always spoke about Petrov and the underworld with a sense of fear, because he was extremely well connected. Now however it must be asked why politicians are still afraid to talk about him. Because they're on close personal terms or because of the goods he has on them?" (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Bulgaria
All available articles from » Tihomir Bezlov

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced on Thursday that he will continue to upgrade his country's capacity for enriching uranium. At least he's finally put his cards on the table, writes the liberal daily Sme: "The media and politicians in the West can now shelve their cautious remarks on Iran's 'presumed' attempt to become a nuclear power. Tehran's latest allegation that it needs the uranium for medical purposes only goes to show just how dumb and powerless it thinks the West is. It's far cheaper to buy such uranium than to produce it at home. ... The tragic thing is that Iran only has an edge over its neighbours and the democratic world because Europe is weak and Russia and China continue to lend their support. It's a good thing that Obama is now losing his patience, but it remains unclear just what he means by that. ... He's manoeuvred himself into a trap, and the only way out is a military intervention - exactly what he's tried the hardest to avoid until now." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » U.S., » Middle East
All available articles from » Peter Morvay

Erika Steinbach, president of Germany's Federation of Expellees (BdV), has said she will not take a seat on the foundation board of the Centre against Expulsions, a museum dedicated to the victims of flight, displacements, forced resettlements and deportations. But in the eyes of Polish news magazine Polska, Poland, which opposes Steinbach, has not won a victory because the BdV has emerged stronger from the situation: "Polish politicians and journalists have made the mistake of letting it be understood that the dispute was above all about Steinbach. ... But what was much more important was that expellee associations in Germany are fighting for a stronger position and how they are influencing the Germans' historical consciousness. The fact that the previous German government allowed a museum documenting the expulsions to be founded in Berlin with public funding was already a major victory for Steinbach. Today the decision has been made that the exhibition will be even larger than originally planned. And the expellees' associations have strengthened their position within the bodies of this institution." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Remembrance culture, » Poland
All available articles from » Filip Gańczak

South Africa celebrated the 20th anniversary of Nelson Mandela's release from prison on Thursday. The liberal daily La Vanguardia pays tribute to the freedom fighter and former president: "At 91 and although he lives removed from political debates he remains South Africa's golden standard in morals. He is one of the few living historical figures who is respected and admired by people all over the world regardless of their political or religious convictions. ... The exemplary story of Tata Madiba - as Mandela is known among his people - paints a picture of outstanding courage in our times. The inner strength of this man who led the fight against Apartheid, and also his balanced sense of politics - a unique combination of rock-hard convictions and flexible pragmatism - represent a model of leadership that breaks with the usual stereotypes. The thousands of people who yesterday followed the same path Mandela walked when he left the Victor Verster Prison on February 11, 1990, demand that we heed the lessons taught us by this unbending man; lessons which some of his successors failed to take to heart." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Social movements, » History, » Gender equality, » South Africa

Reviewing a book by Korea expert Brian Reynolds Myers, US journalist Christopher Hitchens paints an electrifying picture of North Korea, published in Hungarian by Komment.hu: "The Kim Jong-il system [is] a phenomenon of the very extreme and pathological right. It is based on totalitarian 'military first' mobilization, is maintained by slave labor, and instills an ideology of the most unapologetic racism and xenophobia. ... All of us who scrutinize North Korean affairs are preoccupied with one question. Do these slaves really love their chains? ... [Those who] complain or offend are shunted off to camps. ... Race arrogance and nationalist hysteria are powerful cements for the most odious systems. ... Unlike previous racist dictatorships, the North Korean one has actually succeeded in producing a sort of new species. Starving and stunted dwarves, living in the dark, kept in perpetual ignorance and fear, brainwashed into the hatred of others, regimented and coerced and inculcated with a death cult." (10/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Asia
All available articles from » Christopher Hitchens

At its special summit on Thursday the European Union decided to help the Greek government get its debt crisis under control. But this could also meet with displeasure among the Greeks, writes the liberal daily Mladá Fronta Dnes: "Even in their precarious situation the Greeks are not sure whether state bankruptcy isn't better than a sort of protectorate. ... The long crisis is proving the euro-critics right. A common currency also requires a common budget policy, and yesterday's decision is a step in this direction. German taxpayers aren't ready to finance Greek teachers who prefer to sell gyros on the beaches during school hours. So what's the solution? National receivership with a German or French protector? What will the Greek teachers think of that?" (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Financial Markets, » Spain, » Greece, » Europe
All available articles from » Pavel Paral

Greece won't go bankrupt, writes Giorgos Delastik in the left-liberal daily To Ethnos commenting on the debate about the country's huge debts: "Uninformed public opinion is being led astray by focusing the whole debate on the extent of the public deficit. Does a country go bankrupt because it has had a budget deficit for years? Yes, is what they are trying to tell us. But No is the right answer. ... Six countries in the Eurozone, among them the Netherlands and Belgium, have larger (public and private) debts than Greece. For ten years Japan had a much higher public debt than Greece. At the same time the country had on average a higher budget deficit than Greece. The per capita foreign debt in Ireland is de facto eight times as high as in Greece. The fact that there is no talk of any of these countries going bankrupt ... but only talk about Greece going bankrupt is proof that our country is being attacked politically." (11/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Greece, » Europe
All available articles from » Giorgos Delastik

The Russian bear's hide is not so thin, writes Leonidas Donskis in his blog on news portal Delfi. He considers it a mistake to handle Moscow with kid gloves out of fear of insulting it: "Allow me to ask by whom, when and how Russia is supposed to have been humiliated? By the freedom it and its colonised people have regained? Is that supposed to be the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century? Such nonsensical claims show how easily and skilfully Russia has won the propaganda war by imposing its terminology and interpretation of political concepts on the Western press. The West wants to participate in the modernisation of Russia but it forgets that each of Russia's phases of modernisation was preceded by a lost war: Even Peter the Great, Tsar of Russia, began his reforms only after being defeated by Sweden at the Battle of Narva." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Media policy, » History, » Press freedom, » Lithuania, » Russia
All available articles from » Leonidas Donskis

The continual drop in the number of newspaper subscribers and the uncertain future of the press mean the death of critical society, writes the daily Večer: "Some people console themselves with the idea that thousands of new blogs and Internet portals will simply replace the 'old media'. That is a huge mistake. Good journalism is never cheap. ... Above all investigative journalism costs a lot of money. Blogs will never be able to close these gaps. Reading supposedly 'free' articles on the Internet also has its price. Just as there's no such thing as a 'free lunch' or a free car repair, the journalist's work simply can't be had for free. Free access to articles means less income, and that in turn means fewer journalists, more superficial articles and fewer important disclosures. And as the newspapers disappear, society's critical voices will also die, while the number of false perceptions increases. For serious journalism with a professional approach, print media are irreplaceable." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Print media, » Global
All available articles from » Igor Mekina

The prosecutor's office in the city of Florence has filed a corruption suit against Guido Bertolaso, head of Italy's Office for Civil Protection and close acquaintance of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. Gad Lerner looks in his blog at the role of sex presents in the affair: "They cost relatively little and do much to create bonds of solidarity. More than any other form of bribery they can ensure the secrecy of one's accomplices. Sex presents grease the wheels of business right up to the seat of parliament. And in the process even civil protection becomes uncivil. Such presents work exactly because they corrupt. ... Now we know that the harmony between B & B [Berlusconi and Bertolaso] has been cemented by the conventions of complicitous elderly men. ... The spirit of inventiveness of these whoremongers has cooked up a new business idea: giving women as presents, living bribes so to speak, to get into circles that really count." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Italy

The Romanian Orthodox Church is planning to build a new cathedral in Bucharest, which will be one of the largest Orthodox cathedrals in Europe. The daily Gândul would rather see the massive expenditures spent elsewhere: "Since many good deeds are expensive, the costs initially estimated at 200 million euros [for the bare structure] will presumably rise to a billion. Think of how many orphanages, homes for the elderly and soup kitchens could be built for such a sum! But the Romanian Orthodox Church isn't short of cash. It will get the money together with time, from the goverment and donations. The national lottery planned to raise money for the project will certainly be a success. From rich anonymous donors to impoverished pensioners, everyone will be jostling to get a ticket. They believe if they can finance one brick they'll be absolved of their sins." (12/02/2010)

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More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Romania
All available articles from » Rodica Ciobanu