Hey, hey, kids! It’s officially Spring 2006 in Romania.

According to legend, if Braşov Bula doesn’t see his shadow while cowering in the cold rain, there will be six more days of winterlike weather. However, if Bula does not see his shadow because he is happily snoozing in the sun as birds chirp and bees start hunting for flowers, then it is clearly Spring.

Local tradition states that when Braşov Bula takes his world famous prediction nap, it is customary for all Romania’s fetele frumoasa to come out of hiding and walk around town showing off their fit figures in this year’s spring fashion. Normally, this turn of events is received with much happiness, the drinking of beer, and showing of white teeth through a ritual called smiling.

Of course, once the Bula has made his judgement and the fetele begin entertaining, then sunglasses become instantly and immediately acceptable, if not required. Whereas just 3 days ago a foreigner would attract stares for wearing sunglasses to protect himself from snowglare, now Bula has officially approved sunglass season as evidenced by 90% of the population suddenlly coming outside with dark plastic eye coverings.

Huzzah!

BR23 writes:

I just read unconfirmed reports about one protester killed by the police, with a skull broken.

Unbelievable. Outrageous.

RushMush provides the translation of Lipski.

4:45 pm The crackdown. In the area by the “Lukoil” ad, the special forces have started real people hunting. Cursing like crazy, going into the buildings’ backyards, the SpezNaz dispersed, detained, and beat people. Kozulin got detained. An amromred MAZ truck pulled up.

Hunting people like some twisted scene from Planet of the Apes… yet no one in Europe has the cojones to do something about. Why?

(You say “it’s complicated” and I reply, “so what?”)

Reuters reports:

Belarussian police on Saturday detained the two opposition leaders who lost to President Alexander Lukashenko in elections a week ago, Russian news agencies reported.

Alexander Kozulin and Alexander Milinkevich had been leading days of rallies against what they called electoral fraud.