Italy looks to be making a comeback as biggest EU embarrassment

[Enkidu Warrior]

Tired of Poland having hogged the limelight for the last few years, Italian voters are on the verge of re-electing one of Europe's most vile politicians.

Exit polls place Berlusconi ahead

Veteran centre-right leader Silvio Berlusconi, 71, has a narrow lead in Italy's general election, exit polls suggest.

Mr Berlusconi, a billionaire, is bidding for a third term in office. His main rival is centre-left leader Walter Veltroni, formerly Rome mayor.

Exit polls showed Mr Berlusconi's bloc about 2% ahead for both houses.

The election was held three years ahead of schedule, following the collapse of Romano Prodi's centre-left coalition.

Correspondents caution that it is too early to predict a winner with any certainty.

The new government will be Italy's 62nd since World War II.

Tricky coalition talks are expected in the coming days. The next government faces the task of reviving Italy's ailing economy. Zero growth is forecast for the coming year.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7346666.stm

 

[Julian Delphiki]

Italy really should get its economy in order.

OTOH, there are lot's of complaints about € being too strong ..

 

[RedRalph]

Looks like he will need a coalition, so in reality probably will have less power than he did previously. My new phrase is "for every Nepal, theres at least one Italy"

 

[scy12]

Italy had something around 63 governments for the last i don't know how many years. And they have around 30 political parties. Their system is simply problematic and i imagine having elections all the time would be a hit for the economy.

 

[Julian Delphiki]

60+ govs after WW2.

 

[zxcvbnm]

Italy ~= crazy land

Why do they want Berlusconi back? That is like, not exactly but a bit similar, like the US electing Bush back at 2012.

Pundits want both parties to lose so that the government would have to be a coalition which can't cause any major ruin as they couldn't get a lot done... if it gets like that the situation is really bad.

 

[dutchfire]

Italy is the main argument against democracy

 

[MamboJoel]

Looks like he might not get the Senate though.

 

[downtown]

So, why is this guy so bad?

 

[classical_hero]

He owns AC Milan. Enough said.

 

[RedRalph]

Better than Inter Mussolini or Nazio

 

[El Koeno]

He owns AC Milan. Enough said.

QFT! Oh my, how horrible was it, when AC Milan won the Champions League, the team hoisting Berlusconi on their shoulders.

 

[Lillefix]

Berlusconi is as bad as they come nowadays, but considering the alternative are communists or former communists, I would have sat down and cried if I were Italian.

 

[really]

So, why is this guy so bad?

He is the Milan mafia.

OK that is exaggerating it a bit but he controls the 3 three main private TV stations (prime time TV = girls in skimpy tops lip syncing to something in English, after the watershed which seems to be about 8 the girls are topless)

and as prime minister he would control the 3 state TV companies (prime time TV = guess my job)

The last times he was PM he spent most of his time trying to sort out the law so that his business and property dealings could not be investigated.

Hmm how does a 20 something year old raise the finance to build 3,500 apartments and then have flight paths diverted to increase their value?

Also he has been arguing for economic protectionism eg that an Italian business man should rescue Alitalia rather than it being bailed out by Air France / KLM (he hasn't put up any cash himself)

Basically his background is dodgy and he hasn't done anything to reduce tax, bureaucracy, graft, underemployment while in office.

 

[brennan]

Feh, nobody believes Italy is a real country these days. You're not fooling anyone.

 

[Alpine Trooper]

Italy has always been a joke. What has that country done for the world in the last 200 years? Help kill Jews? Every Italian I come across is extremely uneducated.

 

[philippe]

GAribaldi is spinning so fast in his grave, he provides the power of elektricity to whole Italy.

 

[Eran of Arcadia]

Or he would, if the place weren't so corrupt.

 

[Bestbank Tiger]

Silvio Berlusconi?? But W said his name was Silver Bertucci!

 

[Bestbank Tiger]

Italy has always been a joke. What has that country done for the world in the last 200 years? Help kill Jews? Every Italian I come across is extremely uneducated.

Yo, you deserve concrete shoes for saying dat.