Agony and the Ecstasy

It is true, you cannot blame politicians for all of Italy's problems. You have to look at the Italian culture to try to understand how complex it is. I have been in very very long conversations where for example you only talk about coffee and where it is made best, and how is best to drink it, and how much it costs, people share their memories of their best coffee, etc and at the end of the conversation everyone has their own say, but nobody actually agrees on where to get the best coffee in town! This may seem a funny example, but this translates into everything, politicians talk about the same things over and over and never really arrive to a solution. There is also the problem of confrontation, Italians in general do not confront, they follow. I have been in business meetings for hours and at the end of the day, nothing got said or resolve because no one makes a stand...and if you do, you are considered "polemico". To change the country, you have to change the way people think... how can you change that?

We think it's time to open our eyes.
We can't only accuse politicians for this situation; even if we can't change the political system by ourselves, we should open our mind window and see what's happening outside our home.
It's not true that Italians are happy in this situation. They just prefer finding happiness somewhere else, inside their family or with their friends.
Instead of watching the world pass it by on the screen of a TV, we should understand that media is giving us a distorted image about how things are going on, we have to try to change our way to face the problems.
Finding happiness inside family or by going out with friends doesn't help to solve the problems, it's just a way to divert from facing what we consider the "other people's" problems.
We have to become conscious that the other people's problems are relative also to us, because we can consider them in an other point of view, that is as problems of our entire community.

A group of students from Padova

Yes, problems. Never "Italians".
Yes, few kids, but they dont kill people.
Yes, not extraordinary for business, but we dont destroy a country to take away their oil. We dont kill people and kids (look at numbers, English) to make business.
Yes. Problems.

Antonio
littlewing1313@yahoo.it

Italia, amore mio.
Io ti amo, così come sei.
Sofferente.

....the solution?? Declare war to a neighbor country like Monaco or Switzerland on an ordinary Friday, and surrender on the following Monday. Then everything will start functioning......

Italy just needs to copy the best practices from the countries around them, with regard to improving the investment situation and hence getting back some growth in this economy. We need fiscal controls and effective punishment for the unethical behaviour which exists throughout all politics and government related jobs. Anyone who is asked to pay over 50% in taxes, has to hire people for life, and has to work with a bureaucracy and ridiculous costs like we have here would do anything to avoid this system. Clean up the mess inside the dishonest self serving political system as an example to start with, then maybe others will start to believe again in this country. Naples is just a metaphor for the whole country. Dirty, old, disorganized and run poorly. Kick the bums out, I say!!! Send us Barack, please!!!
Ron Marx
Milan

The recipe for Italy is really not very complicated. Unfortunately Italy has been given the poor quality of politicians which they asked for, superficial, corrupt and unable to manage anything in a professional way. In any other country, the democratic system is capable of 'throwing the bums out', but in Italy, people are resigned to this helpless state of affairs for some reason. Patriotism? No way, unless you insult their country, then suddenly, everyone becomes 'Italian'. For sure there are wonderful things about living in this country, but they are overshadowed by the uncertainty and lack of a clear future of hope with real programs. The politicians here don't need to reinvent the wheel, they just need to be able to copy what has worked for the other countries around them, like Spain, the UK, France and the US to name a few. This takes courage, the ability to communicate clearly to a fairly ignorant population about these questions regarding change and growth. It's disgusting to hear the empty words of 'solutions and hope' from our political leaders, who have proven time and time again that they're only capable of holding on to power and lining their pockets, not interested or capable of guiding Italy into the future. We need a revolution here, where taxes are halved, controls for evasion are finally in place, punishment for unethical behaviour is real and quick. It's not so difficult, just learn to copy from the best, not the worst. Italians are all clever theives at heart, the worst possible attitutude one could have in a situation where coming together for survival is what is really needed, and getting rid of the old guard is just the beginning. We need a Barack Obama here, believe me.

...because italians are used to listen to manipulated media that brainwash them with good and positive news like "being first in the world about fashion, food, soccer, racing cars". So people feel happy, they don't have access to any other comparison with other parts of the world....
Give an italian a good portion of spaghetti and a tv game of his favourite soccer team and he will forget about the national air carrier Alitalia, the disservice of the rail network, the eternal waiting list in public hospitals, the perpetual union strikes, the infamous public education system, the incredible system of Justice, the pressure of mafia, ndrangheta, camorra, sacra corona unita. Luckily, more and more italians have started using Internet and so a new window is being open to the outside world and they can see how prehistoric is becoming their country. It will take decades before a self esteem sentiment will spread among younger generations of italians.....let's hope

The picture of Italy is more or less the one painted in this article....but....BUT I'm tired of reading everywhere about young italian fellows not willing to leave their homes. Are you kidding me?
I just turned 25, and since I'm 19 I'm trying to leave home! I'm studying at university, working as employed and I have a very little own business. But still I can't make it out of my family's house!
Have you got the slightest idea of how much frustrating can it be? Everyday's it's a long effort and battle against odds, old infrastructures, delays, taxes! Italian people are happy? Well, I can only speak for myself but I'm not! And no one hears me no matter what I try to do to speak up.
I am worried all day long I won't make it. I start to loose the will to roll up my sleeves to achive something. I'm loosing the sense of it....and you dare to call this happiness? you dare to tell me that young people and italians in general are happy with the situation? Stop asking senators, or university researchers: try asking your questions to enterpreneurs, workers, students! I live nearby Milan and I should feel lucky for this. I can't imagine the people living in the South right now.
Francesco Rossi
francesco.rossi@malpensaonline.net

Feb 20, 2008
Let???s face it. In every problem in any country, the government is always to blame, but come to think of it, it is the people of that country are to blame. Like for instance the overpowering garbage in Naples, the people of Naples should come together and do something. I notice these days, there is no more unity, it is always I, I, and I, no more we, we and we.

The people of today no longer have compassion, love, care and kindness. If someone dies on the street, no one will bother to care, people will just pass by and do their own thing and never bother to care.

I feel sorry for the children of today because the world that their parents would leave behind is no longer the world that we know of.

Ask yourself, if you don't change within you, nobody will do it for you.
Nilda S Hidalgo-Batzes

Let???s face it. In every problem in any country, the government is always to blame, but come to think of it, it is the people of that country are to blame. Like for instance the overpowering garbage in Naples, the people of Naples should come together and do something. I notice these days, there is no more unity, it is always I, I, and I, no more we, we and we.

The people of today no longer have compassion, love, care and kindness. If someone dies on the street, no one will bother to care, people will just pass by and do their own thing and never bother to care.

I feel sorry for the children of today because the world that their parents would leave behind is no longer the world that we know of.

Ask yourself, if you don't change within you, nobody will do it for you.
Nilda S Hidalgo-Batzes
Manama, Bahrain

An excellent article that depicts the real problem of the country: an individualistic, disrespectful culture that keeps people from getting together, prioritise problems and decide - instead of pulling together to grow, everyone is fighting to protect his own personal privileges and take a larger part of a cake that is smaller and smaller every day. Whether it's a job in public administration that has been created without real need, or an uncompetitive business relying on public contracts to survive (and corrupting civil servants to get the business); whether it's a MP that has a much higher salary and benefits tnat any of his European peers and still uses public money and influence to hire his wife and sons as consultants for inexistent jobs or a taxi driver in Rome who protests when the city wants to give more licences - and yet the number of taxis per person in Rome is the lowest in Europe - or a member of the "army" of fiscal assistants needed not just for companies or wealthy people but for just about anyone, because governments make the tax declaration more and more complicated every year and only a professional can sort it out to avoid sanctions while in France, for instance, it's a 4-sheet form --- it's always the same story; instead of pulling together, simplyfing things, creating new value, everyone is just fighting to keep his own part of privileges that is being eroded by the loss of competitiveness the country is going through.
Don't be misled by the two Italys and the private vs public sector approach: yes it's all true if you look at the country from the inside but if you take a more global approach, it's simply a country that hasn't learned what building value, making decisions, and let the best people win with fair rules means. We're in a prisoner's dlemma where everyone is waiting for some other to move first, and everyone is standing still, while just about every other country is moving forward.

well, sorry to disappoint you guys but italians are everything but happy right now, and who's writing to you is totally pissed off about the mud into wich neglected and irresponsible politicians led into. I'm 30 with a pharmacy degree and i earn a paycheck as in the States an housekeeper does, plus i 've gotta face every day insane payments (do you know we pay taxes just because we own a tv? or for the car property?! there's not a public office without lines and every medical check is about to take you away the whole day through delais and crappy customer service. yes i love the town where i'm born, i love my family and friends but this country doesn't deserve young willing people anymore.. we can't just always look back to our past and admire architecture, museums, artist and beautiful cities. Today's life is about have a chance to build a family, a career and not trying to survive squeezed by taxes and insane cost of life. I want opportunities and this country doesn't offer it anymore. Sad, sad, sad. it's so embarassing to face the rest of the world. within a year i'm outta here. promised

... not only foreigners, also italians love their country and hate it at the same time. For example me! It's a country full of art and full of junk. A country full of great architecture and with orrible huosing developments and suburbs whose design has no interest in the community's needs at all. A country with the better cars in the world for rich people (Ferrari, Lamborgini, Maserati) and the worst for the working class (FIAT). A country with a taxation level so high that people do everything (legal and not) to avoid to pay. A country with a high level of democracy that is not able to do anything. A country with a system of laws appreciated in all the world (on paper) but not respected by its citizens (in the real life). Where you can see the richest man as president guiding a nation full of debts. A country where lobbies have the real power and don't want to let it go and politicians aren't strong enough to CHANGE! Sad but true. I would like to leave this mess but I love it!

... not only foreigners, also italians love their country and hate it at the same time. For example me! It's a country full of art and full of junk. A country full of great architecture and with orrible huosing developments and suburbs whose design has no interest in the community's needs at all. A country with the better cars in the world for rich people (Ferrari, Lamborgini, Maserati) and the worst for the working class (FIAT). A country with a taxation level so high that people do everything (legal and not) to avoid to pay. A country with a high level of democracy that is not able to do anything. A country with a system of laws appreciated in all the world (on paper) but not respected by its citizens (in the real life). Where you can see the richest man as president guiding a nation full of debts. A country where lobbies have the real power and don't want to let it go and politicians aren't strong enough to CHANGE! Sad but true. I would like to leave this mess but I love it!

The article is spot on. Italy???s potential may be great but currently it is only perceived as the nation of pasta, dolce vita and corruption. Italians need to take responsibilty for their country???s fate if they want to be taken seriously again by the rest of Europe.

Despite, or rather, because of being a Catholic, I will watch "Caos Calmo" at the earliest possible opportunity. On the part of the Church, to fulminate against it on the basis of one mild sex scene is completely and utterly ridiculous. I'm not even sure Pope Benedict knows about this piece of "criticism" coming from his subordinates. The way you depict the movie, it is a wonderful satire on what it could mean to be an Italian these days and has tremendous teaching potential for other nationals as well.