I was living in Slovakia shortly after the Velvet Divorce. Man-o-man, that was the Wild West.

Some of my students were telling me about the various mafias. There was a small gangland war going on in Piestany between the Russian, Serbian, and Croat mafias, each of which got some of the hotel business in Meciar's privatization schemes. I told them they were watching too many American movies.

Then I went to Piestany. Near one of the hotels, I saw a motorcade of black Mercedes and 15 or so muscular men in dark suits. Not your typical tourists.