The outgoing government officials in Italy seem to have a penchant for spite. Or an extraordinary lack of common sense, or a warped idea of how to balance individual privacy against openness about government activity. Or maybe it’s just an… Continue Reading
I’ll translate this campaign poster for you non-Italian speakers: “Guess who comes in last? For rights to housing, jobs, and health care. … [In the] regional elections, vote for the Northern League.“ Just take a look at that cartoon! Can… Continue Reading
Italy’s famous instability in government has been caused, in no small part, by the multiplicity of political parties competing for seats in the Parliament, as well as a Constitution that by design gives parties proportional representation based on their votes.… Continue Reading
I’m listening to a very interesting set of lectures on CD about the Italian Renaissance. The lecturer is taking a topical approach — one lecture is about the perfidy of Cesare Borgia (and the inevitable apology for his much-maligned sister… Continue Reading
Today marks the first time that the Euro has traded for $1.50 in U.S. money. That’s right, a buck fifty buys you only a single Euro. This is not good news for Americans planning to live abroad right at this… Continue Reading
Hat tip to Andrew Sullivan.
From time to time, because I do things like talk with students about political theory, I hear arguments that a parliamentary system is better than what we have in the U.S.A. Italy, for instance, has a parliamentary system, and there… Continue Reading
Damanhur is a complex of “temples” built in secret over the past thirty years, undernearth a hill near Turin, Italy. The artwork in them is extraordinary. It seems a little garish, at first, but a closer look also suggests some… Continue Reading
Okay, Loyal Readers, it’s story time. Once upon a time, Aeneas of Troy escaped from the city during its sack by the Greeks, and eventually settled with his son Julius in Italy. Julius allied with some locals, and they founded… Continue Reading
My heart goes out to the journalist who died, but I have to agree with the Italian court here — it has no jurisdiction to try a U.S. soldier for a killing in Baghdad. The journalist was shot by the… Continue Reading