AMERICAblog: Conservative Berlusconi wins in Italy
Viceroy
· 1 year ago
As Italy goes, so goes the USA LOL!
cowboyneok
· 1 year ago
Italy - sad.
On another note, you won't believe this. Lou Dobbs just claimed Obama was a coward for not appearing on his show to defend the "bitter" comment. WTF? Obama is campaigning in Pennsylvania and he is a "coward" for not dropping everything to appear on Lou's little show? Give me a break. I've had it from the elitist "talking head" "5 million per year news reader" crowd. Talk about an overblown ego.
John Aravosis
· 1 year ago
Lou Dobbs is under the delusion that people still like him. Talk about bitter.
unrepentant_expat
· 1 year ago
Thank Santa Claus for Olbermann... and you of course, John
unrepentant_expat
· 1 year ago
Marshall McLuhan: "The Medium is the Message"
...so now it is the messenger doing the shooting
Indigo
· 1 year ago
Italy doesn't have to prove itself or reach some socio-political potential, it's already wonderful. Maybe I'm a food snob but I'll pass on a visit to Olive Garden, I prefer Italian food. In Italy.
ndtovent
· 1 year ago
Italy's change of govt every year is a bit much with wayy too many political parites. However, I do like the fact that all the groups are respresented. I wish WE had a parliamentary system like the European countries do...
Nigel Elliott
· 1 year ago
Italy is such a great country, awesome history and a beautiful language. I want to learn Italian as well. It's such a pity they chose asswipe Berlusconi again as PM, when that prick should be behind bars along with Bush and Blair.
brian
· 1 year ago
Greetings from Roma. I voted on Sunday. I guess my vote did not count too much as Berlusconi won with a landslide. He promised everything this time around and I think his ownership of the Mediaset networks with their propaganda news and the failures of the liberal Prodi government put him in power. We will have another run with a nutter that wants to dismantle Italy's core systems and sell them to his friends. Does this sound familiar? If the US does attack Iran, Italy will be right by Dubya's side. Yuck!
cantagallo
· 1 year ago
Italy is like a second home for me. I've been visiting family there since I was four. During college, I spent my junior year in Bologna as part of a study abroad program. (John, I think we are about the same age so your first visit may have overlapped with my time there as a student.) Berlusconi is Italy's version of Bush complete with lawmakers willing to cover illegality with personally tailored legislation. One need only look at his coalition to get an idea of how bad this is. A Northern separatist movement, the former fascist party and of course his Forza Italia party which is more media campaign than political party, having no real platform. I'm heartbroken.
As a side-note, the NYT gets it wrong again stating that Berlusconi is inheriting Prodi's sluggish economy. This is the same kind of journalism that helped get us into Iraq. When will they stop transcribing talking points. The truth is that Berlusconi's time in office destroyed the, poor to begin with, Italian economy. Among Prodi's accomplishments was addressing this head-on and beginning to sort the mess out.
shanobama
· 1 year ago
I will see a few of my Italian friends in June in Las Vegas.
Think this is a cautionary tale of how powerful the main stream or, as some say, the corporate controlled media can be in any given country.
cantagallo, we will be feeling the same if McCain manages to snag the American election with the help of his press buddies. My sympathies.
bar-be-que anyone?
Shows what a great thing JA is doing explaining the new media to other countries- can the internet overcome a powerful corporate media machine? possibly. We will find out in November here in America.
shanobama
· 1 year ago
And my sympathies to you also, brian. promises, promises.
SociologistTina
· 1 year ago
Phenomenal post, especially in light of the fact that they possess perhaps the best early childhood educational program in the world in a locale known as Emilio Reggio. It's a grassroots set of schools whose motto is "Nothing without Joy." World-renowned.
SINGING_TROLL
· 1 year ago
Indeed. An awful shame but not really that far-fetched or unusual for Italian politics. One could say we have seen it coming for awhile. The Netherlands is in danger of going the same way. And France...Canada...Austrailia
We need a free-world-wide effort to throw these bastards out. They are creeping up across the free world, enabling those in smaller nations predisposed to tyrranical behavior to become emboldened.
We have a chance to change that tide with Obama. McCain sure won't change anything. Probably not even his diapers.
Bubbles
· 1 year ago
For Heterosexual males, if you haven't had an Italian girlfriend, well, then you haven't lived. They will simply wipe out the memories you have of other women with their passion. Amazing.
msirt
· 1 year ago
The photo looks like the hilltop town of Trevi, in Umbria, between Spoleto & Foligno. Is that right? John? Anyone?
(sorry, this was mis-threaded earlier)
nicho
· 1 year ago
Well, governments in Italy are like the weather in New England. If you don't like it, wait a few hours. It will change.
alfannaan
· 1 year ago
I was smitten after my first trip as well - loved it even more the next time....why the hell am I killing myself learning Arabic? I will revisit Italian and Italy too and hope in the meantime her politics don't cause much harm.
All Comments
On another note, you won't believe this. Lou Dobbs just claimed Obama was a coward for not appearing on his show to defend the "bitter" comment. WTF? Obama is campaigning in Pennsylvania and he is a "coward" for not dropping everything to appear on Lou's little show? Give me a break. I've had it from the elitist "talking head" "5 million per year news reader" crowd. Talk about an overblown ego.
...so now it is the messenger doing the shooting
As a side-note, the NYT gets it wrong again stating that Berlusconi is inheriting Prodi's sluggish economy. This is the same kind of journalism that helped get us into Iraq. When will they stop transcribing talking points. The truth is that Berlusconi's time in office destroyed the, poor to begin with, Italian economy. Among Prodi's accomplishments was addressing this head-on and beginning to sort the mess out.
Think this is a cautionary tale of how powerful the main stream or, as some say, the corporate controlled media can be in any given country.
cantagallo, we will be feeling the same if McCain manages to snag the American election with the help of his press buddies.
My sympathies.
bar-be-que anyone?
Shows what a great thing JA is doing explaining the new media to other countries- can the internet overcome a powerful corporate media machine? possibly. We will find out in November here in America.
One could say we have seen it coming for awhile. The Netherlands is in danger of going the same way.
And France...Canada...Austrailia
We need a free-world-wide effort to throw these bastards out.
They are creeping up across the free world, enabling those in smaller nations predisposed to tyrranical behavior to become emboldened.
We have a chance to change that tide with Obama.
McCain sure won't change anything. Probably not even his diapers.
(sorry, this was mis-threaded earlier)