dont turn on the tv tonight.

New week, new threats. Today isnt the day, but its a day when Berlo will launch/relaunch Forza Italia, and which therefore means a video message to be played in its entirety on Mediaset networks with edited highlights in Rai. The relaunch of Forza Italia is fraught with problems for the old saggy one. Not least of which is there is a law to change. You see parliament has decided to do away with public funding for political parties, or so they say. It will also not be allowed for indicted criminals to fund poitical parties. And as the last election saw the PDL elected, and not Forza Italia the new FI has no right to any state money. So theres a problem, it will start its life in the red,as Silvio wont be allowed to bankroll it as he has always done in the past. So, there is awailing and aghashing of collective teeth as they seek a way round this minor hiccup. Tomorrow we have the vote on whether Berlo will be chucked out of the senate. Grillo and the M5S are threatening to vote to keep him in, just to piss off the PD who cant agree on a common policy and a public/secret vote. If the M5S let Berlo stay it will be the end of them – but theres the rub – half the political parties only exist as opposition to Berlo. Once he goes they have no capacity or policy to carry on.
In the meantime things get worse. We are coming out of the recession they say, the GDP is down yes, but it will soon go up. The pathetic grasp of economics that the Italian governing class shows us to be even more mired in the mirey mire than was thought possible. For 6 months there has been a generalised scrabble to find 4 billion to cancel the council tax. Nobody has actually thought that from 2015 the savings must be arounnd 45 billion to keep Italy within the fiscal compact. Impossible without cutting all of education and or health. Or just shutting up shop altogether. Not content with paying huge interest rates on the national debt, they will now have to cut spending futher, with a derisory amount raised in taxes as everyone is now unemployed or evading or both. This does not bode well. Italy will be bankrupt in 2 years – cease to be ITaly and break up to avoid a 2,000.000.000.000 national debt which is now officially unrepayable. Ever. And we are meant to be creaming ourselves to an orgasmic froth about the relaunch of Forza Italy. I think not.