Category Archives: italy

Monkey business

Posted on March 22, 2008 by Charles Lambert

The logo of the brand (sic) new Democratic Party here in Italy has been reminding me of something for some time. I realised what it was today. As if that wasn’t enough, the woolly monkey now used to advertise PG … Continue reading →

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Tengo famiglia

Posted on March 13, 2008 by Charles Lambert

Three short updates on Italy. (Spot the link.) Salvatore Ferranti, jailed for presumed association with the Mafia, has been granted house arrest because he’s just too fat for his cell. The bed won’t take his weight, the door’s too narrow … Continue reading →

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Cream for (fat) cats

Posted on February 14, 2008 by Charles Lambert

This smug bastard is called Sergio De Gregorio. He was elected senator two years ago for one of the smaller parties of Prodi’s centre-left coalition. A few weeks after the election he had an epiphany, funded by Berlusconi, and discovered … Continue reading →

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Fright

Posted on February 12, 2008 by Charles Lambert

It’s standard practice in the run-up to elections for opposition leaders to accuse the government of practically anything short of first degree homicide (pace Andreotti), knowing full well that retaliation only makes the retaliator look pathetic. It’s an old playground … Continue reading →

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It’s the money, stupid

Posted on February 6, 2008 by Charles Lambert

Clemente Mastella, ex-minister of justice and the man who brought down Prodi’s government, isn’t just a consummately self-regarding politician. He’s also a newspaper editor. Like all Italian parties, UDEUR, Mastella’s gang of hangers-on, cronies and relatives, has the right to … Continue reading →

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Riparliamone

Posted on January 31, 2008 by Charles Lambert

For Italian speakers, here’s the wonderful Paola Cortellesi casting a wry glance (as they used to say) at the Italian situation, character, political opportunism, and so on. She’s interrupted by the appalling Serena Dandini, but I can’t do anything about … Continue reading →

Posted in humour, italy, politics | 1 Comment

Sei una merda

Posted on January 24, 2008 by Charles Lambert

http://tv.repubblica.it/flashplayer/player_embed.swfIt doesn’t take that much Italian to understand what this nameless Italian senator (National Alliance, i.e. post-fascist) is shouting at another senator, a certain Dottor Cusumano who has just voted for the coalition to which his party belonged until, let’s … Continue reading →

Posted in italy, politics | 4 Comments

Bananas

Posted on January 22, 2008 by Charles Lambert

As predicted in my last post, Clemente Mastella has withdrawn his three (yes, that’s right, three) senators from the Italian senate, depriving the Prodi government of its majority of two (yes, that’s right, two). The government’s been looking like a … Continue reading →

Posted in berlusconi, corruption, italy, politics, prodi, vatican | 4 Comments

No corruption? No party!

Posted on January 20, 2008 by Charles Lambert

Italian politicians certainly know how to celebrate. Totò Cuffaro, centre right, president of the region of Sicily (see left: modelling a coppola, traditional Sicilian headgear, in a probably mistaken photo-op), was convicted a couple of days ago of having favoured … Continue reading →

Posted in corruption, italy, mafia, politics | 4 Comments

Pontification

Posted on January 11, 2008 by Charles Lambert

Ratzinger’s campaign against Italy’s newly-formed Partito Democratico (PD) continues apace. Not content with planting his emotionally warped moles (read, self-mortifying Paola Binetti and the other so-called Teodems – though what they understand of theology or democracy is anybody’s guess) into … Continue reading →

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