I bump into Zorislav Petrović, one of the leading lights from Transparency International Croatia. We shake hands. “How’s your case going?” he asks. “It’s at the Constitutional Court right now,” I reply, “but I hope to go to Strasbourg soon.” He nods. “And how’s golf in Motovun?” he asks. “Well,” I scratch my head, “it’s dead, but mainly because of the global economic crisis.” He nods again. And then he smiles: “You’ve surely contributed to its troubles!” Unconvinced, I raise my eyebrows. “Anyway,” he concludes, “all the best!” We shake hands again and part our ways. Our conversations sums up pretty well the last seven years of my life, as well as a few more to come. To wit, good intentions be damned.