Month: May 2018
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Hot under the Colle
The temperature at the Colle (parliament) this week must be pretty high. Judging by the chatter in the barber and bar here in Sicily, everybody has pretty strong opinions about what has been going in Italy over the last week. Obviously its a mess, exacerbated by a partial media that is inventing more stories than…
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The mighty fall
Lots of arrests in Sicily this week, all connected to Antonio Calogero Montante – ex president of the Sicilian Confindustria with special powers to combat the mafia. Montante was already under investigation for ties to a clan from Caltanisetta, but this week the net widened. The charges are many, including associazione per delinquere – ie…
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The Silvio’s hit the fan
Hold on to your hats kids – Silvio has just been allowed to stand for parliament – the conviction of incandidatability having been quashed. In the midst of the negotiation between 5S and the Lega to form a government, Silvio has got a new lease of life – and will no doubt now form an…
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How to get ahead and influence people
Heres a story for any aspiring businessman. Modican chocolate is famous. Apparently. It is made to the Aztec recipe brought here by the Spanish. But its not. It is a chocolate made by the Modicani using a recipe brought here when Sicily was under Spanish dominion, and is a traditional folk food typical of…
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Democritically Italian
The situation afterthe President tutted and rolled his eyes yesterday hasnt changed. Nobody want to play with each other, and the M5S are taking the ball home. Matterella outlined the options – a neutral government to limp on till Xmas, or elections. It seems that 8 July is favourite of the Lega and…
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Talk to the hand,cos the face ain’t listening
On Monday Presdient Mattarella will hold last ditch talks to try and find a government – this is todays state of play. Lega – will form a government with anyone except Renzi and the PD PD – will form a government with Forza Italia Fratelli d’Italia – will form a government with FI and…
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To the wire and beyond.
It’s been a month of openings and closures: Di Maio for the M5S trying to get support for a government led by him, Salvini dithering as to whether to ditch BErlusconi and the PD dithering. And MAttarella the President has to try and cobble together a government or go back to the voters. It’s…