It was government by " baksheesh " and " wasta " _ tips and influence.
12.
Most of them wander the city, their hands outstretched asking for " baksheesh, " or money.
13.
For his part, Alfonse Jean, 40, a taxi driver, is still puzzling over New York standard baksheesh.
14.
Bleibtreu said the Germany of the future might become a land where " nothing is achieved without baksheesh ."
15.
It used to be said that with the right " baksheesh, " anything could be done in Lebanon.
16.
We place strong moral connotations on the difference between, say, a tip and a bribe, but baksheesh knows no such subtleties.
17.
But any place will do where official record-keeping is slipshod, civil servants earn survival wages and baksheesh is a cultural hallmark.
18.
In different contexts " baksheesh " may mean a tip, a bribe, a kickback, a charitable contribution or an extortion.
19.
Since " baksheesh " is a way of life in Egypt, it seems little can be done to stop vote-buying.
20.
Is it cynical to suspect that their interest in American democracy may not be as intense as their interest in the baksheesh dispensed by Congress and presidents?
