# Kdo nebude chtít jít po modré, ať jde



## Tagarela

Ahoj,

I saw this phrase, _"Kdo nebude chtít jít po modré, ať jde_", in Aktualně,  it was stated by Czech Prime Minister Mírek Topolánek. 

I didn't understand it very well, is it something like "_Who doesn't want to feel going through the blue/bad, no matter whatever happens_" ?

Děkuju vám předem

Na shledanou.:


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## nimbydimby

Dobrejtro,

He's referring to those members of the party who are not willing to follow the party line, share common views and act in unison. 

Those who don't want to follow the blue can leave.

ODS or the people's democratic party (whatever is the english translation) have blue colour as their party colour, the Labour are red, the Commies are redder than red and so on. 

The phrase "jit po modre" is a hiking one. Hiking is extremely popular in the Czech Republic and the network of routes quite extensive. Each route is waymarked usually by one colour out of a set of four that are used (red, blue, green and yellow).
There is a comprehensive article about the whole waymarking system on Wikipedia in Czech, if you feel confident

cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turistické_značení_v_Česku_a_na_Slovensku

Often, as you ramble on, you hit a crossroads where different routes meet and you have to decide which way to go next. Whether you go straight down the shortest way or make a detour and follow a different path, perhaps with an extra climb, marked with a different colour. So "jit po modre" means "to follow or go along the blue (waymarking, or route)" - I'm not really sure as to what it is that we follow that is blue...you know how it is in Czech, don't you? Frequently, we use an adjective on its own, the noun just hanging in there somewhere.
Words _cesta, trasa, znaceni, znacka_ are all feminine and so is the adjectival suffix here.

To summarise, Mr Topolanek used this phrase as a metaphore, wow, a round of applause he deserves, surely, or whoever wrote that trivial rubbish.

Hope this blow-up helps.
Trada

And just to clarify, _ať jde_ stands for "let him/her/it go" literally.Here it could even be "(he,she,it) can f@"% off".

Particle at, in my view, indicates indignation or indifference on the part of speaker.


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## Tagarela

Ahoj,

Well, so, to sum-up and _czech_ if I got it right: 

*jít po modré*: general meaning -> follow the blue pathway/route in hiking. In Topolánek's speech/Political context -> follow ODS (the blues) ideas. 

*at' jde*: go away, leave, quit.  I am in doubt how polite or unpolite it is. 

 Nimbydimby, thank you for the suggestions, these hinkings sound interesting. Ah, and welcome to the forum! 

Na shledanou.:


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## tlumic

Tagarela said:


> Ahoj,
> 
> Well, so, to sum-up and _czech_ if I got it right:
> 
> *jít po modré*: general meaning -> follow the blue pathway/route in hiking. In Topolánek's speech/Political context -> follow ODS (the blues) ideas.
> 
> *at' jde*: go away, leave, quit. I am in doubt how polite or unpolite it is.
> 
> Nimbydimby, thank you for the suggestions, these hinkings sound interesting. Ah, and welcome to the forum!
> 
> Na shledanou.:


 
Ahoj,
ať jde - It is quite unpolite and stern here.


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## nimbydimby

I reconsidered this bit. Resignation (you could add "for all I care" at the end of an imperative clause with ať ) caused by indignation or irritation, therefore slightly impolite in tone (_Ať se sebere a jde_ as my upset mum would say to my father when I was being an uncooperative teenager at home). 

In our sentence, it is an imperative mood Topolanek's in; he urges those who don't want to stick together to leave the party. He could well have used neutral _může odejít._ with less impact on the audience, though.
_Ať_ can be an imperative (our case), volitional (expressing wishes) or modal particle, an interjection or a conjunction (subordinating as well as coordinating). 
Look here: pf.ujep.cz/ccv/elearning/e_opory/zimova/e_uloha001/I_sl%20druhy/vyklad1.html

Translating it to English I would use _let_ or _may_ to indicate a wish or simply an imperative clause when ordering. A synonym of _ať_ in Czech is _nechť_ which is literary, almost dated now.

I can't figure out this two letter word, that's why I keep posting...like what tense follows with different verbs etc. and it keeps me thinking)


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## ytre

po modré ...  Party color is blue. Called right wing of the house. Party election plan called ODS+ had a bilboard poster showing a hiking sign of blue trail curving towards right.  At the bottom of ods.cz/volby/weby/2006/ods_plus.php  Also the title is interrupting the sentence in the middle playing with the reader's immagination and association with Mirek's vs. photographer for not respecting the privacy and taking picture of his newborn. stream.cz/video/13/168267-topolanek-se-pere-bitka  so the reader, listener is very likely expected to finish the title: "at jde do prdele."


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