This blog is provided by the Common Sense Society of Budapest as an online, English-language platform for the publication and exchange of diverse and differing perspectives about Hungarian politics, economy, and culture. The views represented here are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of CSS. The Common Sense Society does not receive funding from any government entity or political party.
The majority is not necessarily right just because it is a legitimately elected majority.
An overview of the controversial Fourth Amendment to the Fundamental Law, recently passed by Parliament.
Freedom House this week released its yearly rankings on Freedom of the Press, in which Hungary was downgraded from “free” to “partly free”. While there is room for improvement in the current Hungarian media law, Freedom House’s published report on Hungary is factually incorrect on several counts…
János Áder was elected Hungary’s new President today. It promises to be a welcome change at Sándor Palota.
While all opposition parties agree that it takes a coalition of parties to unseat the Orbán government in the next parliamentary elections, they are much too divided to cooperate. Torn by internal conflicts, the opposition parties have not been able to present credible leaders and alternatives to the government’s policy.
The Hungarian Parliament voted last week to grant official recognition or “church status” to 18 religious denominations, in addition to the 14 already recognized churches as defined by the country’s new religion law. Now Hungary will have a greater number of state sponsored churches (32) than most European countries. At the same time, active religious [...]
In the April 2010 parliamentary elections, Fidesz won a two-thirds parliamentary majority, which marked the apex of the party’s transformation from a radical youth organization to a center-right, catch-all party which encompasses all social groups. As I argue in my new book, Fidesz and the Reinvention of the Hungarian Center Right, this development has been [...]
The present Hungarian right has only one common integrated feature and that is its anti-communism. This is becoming less and less powerful in a democratic political rivalry. As a result, conservatism has weak but slowly developing positions. The steps in…
Klub Radio, the by now infamous left-wing radio station in Hungary, has launched yet another desperate attempt this week in Brussels to convince international public opinion and policy makers that its fate is the sole measure of “freedom and pluralism” in Hungarian media. Klub Radio, which advertises itself as the only talk radio station with [...]
