Boneheads Blindsided By Magyar Mea Culpa

Raise a glass of Egri Bikavér and say egészségedre to Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany for his refreshing rant against his own "boneheaded" governance, which has been made public, along with his admission to some compulsive lying, after the release of a taped discussion:

"There is not much choice. There is not, because we screwed up. Not a little, a lot. No European country has done something as boneheaded as we have.

"Evidently, we lied throughout the last year-and-a-half, two years. It was totally clear that what we are saying is not true.

"You cannot quote any significant government measure we can be proud of, other than at the end we managed to bring the government back from the brink. Nothing. If we have to give account to the country about what we did for four years, then what do we say?"

Mr Gyurcsany thanks "divine providence, the abundance of cash in the world economy and hundreds of tricks" for keeping the economy above board.

In a speech sprinkled with obscenities, he says: "We lied in the morning, we lied in the evening."

Some analysts suggest the leak may be with the prime minister's permission as he posted a full transcript on his own web blog.

Mr Gyurcsany may be trying to emphasise the need for tough reforms, they say. Local elections are set for 1 October.

Mr Gyurcsany went on television on Sunday amid the row and said the "lies" he referred to were those politicians told citizens, who now believed they could have "happiness as a gift".

"We have to stop the deluge of lies which have covered the country for many years," he said.

Skilled Magyar speakers, or just residents of New Brunswick, N.J., can check out the full transcript at Gyurcsany's blog.