Rome Diary: Italy’s leap into the dark: Smells, signals and symptoms of fascism

[tom_paine]

NOTE: In other words, Italy goes more Bushie than Bush.

As a premise to this diary of events, notes and comments covering a period of one month following the whimsical and perverse electoral choice of this country of 60 million people, I remind readers that since the time of Machiavelli, Italy has often been a political guidepost in Europe. Therefore, Italy’s peculiar preference today for an updated form of fascism that once cost them so dearly and, furthermore, is headed by an accused crook is worth a close look.

April 12-13, 2008: Silvio Berlusconi and his People of Freedom Party (PDL) in alliance with the neo-fascist National Alliance (AN) and the autonomist and populist Northern League (Lega Nord) swept general elections this weekend with an 11-point advantage. A nightmare for many Italians and an unbelievable twist of irony for the rest of the world, the 72-year old media magnate -- false hair, face lifts and lifted shoes, and Italy’s richest man -- thus becomes the nation’s prime minister for the fourth time. Even before assuming office, irrepressible Berlusconi is ensconced in power where he will remain for a five-year term . . . and mortality permitting, most likely longer.

Today Berlusconi has more powers concentrated in his hands than in any Italian political leader since Benito Mussolini. In this cool April, a full month before he is to assume office, he is making pronunciamientos right and left on domestic and foreign issues and is in contact with his favorite foreign leaders, George Bush and Vladimir Putin.

Italy’s new quasi two-party system creates a totally different scenario from the diffused power of its traditional broad coalition parliamentary governments. This time electors opted for the compact coalition led by Berlusconi. In a watertight alliance with the (post) Fascist right, Berlusconi has a solid Parliamentary majority allowing him to establish in effect a one-man government, while at one stroke he eliminated from Parliament the Communist left opposition he so hates.

more...

http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_3321.shtml

[tom_paine]

1. Wow, so no one seems to give a shit that Bushie Italy is showing it's true colors.

Not to worry, within 25 years, likely, that will be US. Maybe a lot sooner.

[beac]

2. Having lived in Italy and retaining close ties there I CARE!

And Italy is a lot like the US with widley varying opinions of its leaders and inter-regional finger-pointing.

I hate that some in the world judge ALL Americans by Bush, but most Italians I know do not paint me with the same brush as the Nincompoop-in-Chief, so I try to return the favor.

That said, we do not have a town in Florida piled up the results of a year-long garbage strike a la Naples(that Berlusconi has promised to clear by 2012!?!?!), so it's true that Italy will always have its own particularly WTF aspects to its goverment. ;)

[tom_paine]

3. The worrisome part isthe now open characteristics and praise of fascism

and not just the Plausible Deniability Kinder and Gentler fascism the Bushies have cooked up so that Amerikan Subjects can still believe we are free, but the dyed-in-the-wool, burn-down-a-Gypsy-camp, calling themselves the New Falange, for God's sake, Old Timey Facsism.

I take your point about the regional differences and not lumping everyone together, and yet when fascism or Inverted Totalitarianism rears it's ugly head and begins it's usual course of theft and enslavement, every single person in a society is to blame.

In Imperial Amerika, that's me, that's you, that's EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US.

So while we are all different, we are also all responsible for the actions of the tyrants who rule us.

Anyway, I wish your Italian friends and family members the best of luck in defeating the Italian Bushies before Italy reprises it's role under Germany in the 30s and 40s, except under Imperial Amerika of the upcoming 10s and 20s.

May you have better fortune in defeating your totalitarian tyrants, though so far it looks as if your luck has been worse than Amerika's, where totalitarianism threatens and is likely to cement itself for the remainder of our lives, if not longer.

[cyclezealot]

4. Scarry.

This Fall maybe we will go to Greece instead.