Italy is up to a lot more than just its old tricks again

MatthewJ M says:

08:00pm | 09/10/09

Berlusconi is a populist, soley engaging in activities to enhance his standing over the italian people. But what the sad thing is the italians know no better.
For a country with a contracting labour force, due to the ageing population, compounded by the low birth rates, one thing is - italians can’t afford to be biggots, especially considering immigration is their only future. When their domestic demand is too low, they need immigrants to provide low end services (which italians do not want to do anyway), to stimulate the economy, but that is only half the problem, because there is no-one moving to higher end jobs. This is partly to do with the low birth rate, poor education system, not enough money in the domestic economy and the political red tape business must contend with (hmm did I forget Mafia control as well???). Not to mention the ones educated not wanting to work in italy. Also with Italy’s manufacturing industry, under the high euro, external countries are no longer buying from Italy, thus massive closures of companies in central italy.
Instead of dealing with these problems, Berlusconi has been able to always to create a sense of fault due to their ‘enemies,’ whether it is immigrants ‘killing’ italians, and their culture, or the centre left “communists,” making Italy weak. 
Actually when Prodi was in power he increased taxes, and decreased spending, to try and cut the rising national debt, however there again was the man himself minipulating the people through the power he has with the media.
Italy needs to wake up to this corrupt pupput, however Italians are no smarter, if they continue to believe what they see (I mean what Berlusconi wants them to see). When that day when Italy wakes up, italy will take the first of many steps to recovery. SVEGLIA ITALIA!!!

stephen says:

08:27pm | 09/10/09

Two points : first, corruption tends to fascism. (Communism starts by design, from the ground up ) This may appear untrue from History, but have a good think about it.
Second : The so-called vigilante neo-fascists are directly related to current corruption in the Italian Government. Under berlusconi, self-interest wins over the welfare of all, and ‘self-help’ groups can take their pick. The vigilantes claim to do a community service by cleaning up the crime rate ; I bet they don’t go after the mafia, only minorities, and I’ll give everyone a 10’er if these fascists DON’T put forward a candidate at the next election.

Cy says:

09:03pm | 09/10/09

The Imperial Eagle was used by the Romans, as in pre-fascist and pre-nazi.

toorak tractor says:

11:19am | 11/10/09

Absolute shambles. They should try and take advantage of the mobile labor capital from Eastern Europe and Africa.
The more Berlusconi, who looks after number one, controls the media the more power the dangerous NL and the extreme right could wield. The Left aren’t that much better, who couldn’t organise sex in a brothel.
In an economic sense Fascism worked the first time around, Heck most of the infrastructure Mussolini built is still being used today. However it worked at the cost of basic human decency and rights, which is why it failed. They need to get some stuff done, including a political clean-out of the current discourse. Fascism is not dead in Italy.

Nicholas James says:

05:54pm | 11/10/09

I enjoyed reading this. I find Italy’s socio-political dynamic very entertaining.

@Leo

Just one point; legalise, not legalize. Please. I really hate American spelling and I don’t think that we should allow it to infiltrate our mass media.