"Which president?"

"Kohl! He was just walking along looking at the exhibits."

"He's still here?"

"I guess so."

"I thought he just made the opening night speech and then went back to work, you know, running the country."

"Well, not today. He was down by Hall Three looking at some encryption software, I think. Just walking around."

"What about that other guy, Schroder, the one who wants Kohl's job and they keep comparing him to Clinton. Is he still here too?"

"Oh yeah! Tony Blair they call him. Poor Kohl, people are tired of him, that's why he is here. Schroder is head of this part of Germany, Lower Saxony. CeBIT is his. He comes everyday, and just looks around. You'll run into him sooner or later. Maybe Kohl too."

Suddenly CeBIT is beginning to feel like old-fashioned Kentucky politics.

-- Janice Castro