The word

And so, as sure as the Seasons change, the centre-left government has started talking about reforming Italy

Italy

Our last post discussed the furore caused by the publication, on the part of the Italian Union of Islamic Communities and Organisations (UCOII), of an

The Union of Islamic Communities and Organisations in Italy, a non-governmental association, paid to publish a full page notice in a number of newspapers five days ago under the heading “Yesterday Nazi Massacres, Today Israeli Massacres”. The notice was prompted, according to the association, due to the widespread indifference to civilian deaths caused by Israel’s [...]

Proof, if it were needed, that police forces in Western Europe and America are not heavy-handed when it comes to policing the ‘war on terror’. On the 13th of August a 34 year old Italian businessman sent an email, from the computer of his cousin, to the F.B.I. The email was a threat against George [...]

In the early evening of the 26th of January, the streets of bologna erupted in a noisy celebration. Cars and mopeds sped up and down the main thoroughfares for a couple of hours hooting and flag waving. The reason? Not, as this proud new father ambitiously expected, to celebrate the birth of my daughter, but [...]

‘Sweet Sufferin Jayzus!’ as this Monkey is prone to utter at moments of wide-eyed disbelief. A tense Quiz show studio holds its breath. The question is asked – “What rite would one use to expel demons?”. Furrowed brows from the two contestants, chemicals firing blindly across brain synapses, until Fr. Giorgio* surges for the buzzer [...]

The Court of Appeals has over-ruled a judgement that meted out a fine of 500 euros to Piero Ricca for allegedly insulting Silvio Berlusconi back in May of 2003. The occasion was one of Berlusconi’s rare appearances in court – rare not because Italy’s ex-Prime Minister has rarely fallen foul of the law, but because [...]

“Another attack in Nassiriya has refocussed the attention of the media, of politicians, and thus of public opinion on our military missions abroad. In these sad and difficult occasions there are set patterns of communication and reaction that have become rituals: bombastic, emotional and participatory, but in the end self-serving. Arid and sterile, from which [...]