Wednesday, April 19, 2006
Italians Concerned More About Next American
"Adventure" NOT Terrorists!!!!
Because Italians are trained from birth to look
for the hidden hand behind every event, they’re eyeing the recent U.S.
State Department Travel Warnings about Demonstrations, Terrorist Attacks, and
Violent Actions against Americans as politically motived by
George W. Bush to help his pal Berlusconi in the recent Elections by ramping up
the fear and paranoia.
The Italians seem underwhelmed
by any new potential for danger. Last summer, an Al Qaeda public-service
announcement threatened to turn Italy into
“a cemetery.” Nobody here flinched.
Besides, everybody still remembers the 1970’s,
when for a whole decade extremists from the left and the right waged urban
civil war using terrorist tactics, including the bombing of the Bologna
train station and the kidnap-murder of ex-Premier Aldo Moro. It’s hard to
make Italians worry more than usual. And even when you do, they’re too
stubborn to show it.
Anyway, it’s tough to imagine anything
terrible happening during demonstrations. Italians have always lived their
politics passionately, outdoors and together—in piazza, as they
call it. It’s a shame that America has
gotten out of the habit. There is the inherent sociability of people here.
Whether it’s anarchists against drug laws or senior citizens for bigger
pensions or the single fathers or the students or the homeless, crowds
gathering purposefully are part of daily life. You read in the morning paper
where the day’s demonstrations will be and when and then plan your
schedule to either join or avoid the traffic jam.
This is Not France.
That is a whole different story!!! :)
Here,
the fear isn’t for Americans, it’s of them. Not
of American tourists, of course— Italians are afraid of America itself and what new
mischief we might drag them into.
Roman Holiday:
PLACID ON THE
PIAZZA
Despite U.S.
Warning
The
New
York Observer
By Bill Tonelli - April
24, 2006
ROME—Exactly how scared am I supposed to be over here?
I’ve
been wondering about this since last month, when the U.S. State Department
announced that Americans living in Italy are now in danger of
possible terrorist attacks. For some reason, the terror isn’t sinking in.
Even after they warned me that:
Demonstrations
are planned in various parts of the country in anticipation of the upcoming
Italian Parliamentary elections April 9 and 10, and municipal elections in May ….
Demonstrations may be large, but even peaceful demonstrations have the
potential to escalate into violence. Some of the demonstrations may be
announced; others may be spontaneous …. The Department of State advises U.S. citizens travelling or residing in Italy to avoid areas where
crowds are expected to gather, take common sense precautions, and closely
follow media reports ….
Of
course, it’s tough to even find a place in Rome where crowds are not expected to gather, much less to remain there.
Americans in Italy tend to be found in
cities rather than, say, remote, sparsely populated mountain villages. You end
up thinking that whoever writes these announcements ought to get out of the
office more. What if the Italian government warned its citizens visiting New York to “avoid areas
where crowds are expected to gather”?
I
guess I could just stay inside for the next few months, but it’s
difficult when outside, there is Rome. Still, how can I take
unnecessary chances once I hear that:
…
The Department of State reminds Americans of the continuing threat of terrorist
attacks, demonstrations and other violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests
overseas. Ongoing events in Iraq have resulted in
demonstrations and associated violence in several countries. Italy continues to be under
heightened public threat by al-Qaida and other
Islamic extremists for its continued participation in multinational activities
in Iraq and Afghanistan. U.S. citizens are
reminded to maintain vigilance, take appropriate steps to increase their
security awareness, and exercise caution in public places or while using public
transportation. U.S. citizens are advised to
immediately report any unusual or suspicious activity in Italy to the police or the U.S. Embassy in Rome.
I
don’t know what kind of coverage this got back home (though I can guess:
not much). But the announcement—which is less dire than the “travel
warning” the government issues to scare you away from Sudan or Haiti—was front-page news
several days running in the Italian papers. Whenever America has something to say
about Italy, people here pay
attention. Some of the stories were about whether the warning would scare off
tourists. But mostly the coverage was of the effect it would have on the
election for prime minister, which the polls had pretty tight between the
incumbent, Silvio Berlusconi, and leftist Romano Prodi. Because Italians are trained from birth to look for
the hidden hand behind every event, they’re eyeing the political motive
for George W. Bush to help his pal Berlusconi by ramping up the fear and
paranoia.
In
Il Messaggero, Italian foreign minister
Gianfranco Fini, of the right, responded to the alert
with this practical tip (my translation): “Certainly, if an American
citizen goes to a demonstration held by certain elements of the radical left,
where they burn the American and Israeli flags, and says, ‘I am American
and I voted for Bush,’ he runs a risk.” Beyond that, though, the
Italians seem underwhelmed by any new potential for
danger. Last summer, an Al Qaeda public-service announcement threatened to turn
Italy into “a cemetery.”
Nobody here flinched. A huge amount of Rome is already a cemetery. It’s
why tourists come. Besides, everybody still remembers the 1970’s, when
for a whole decade extremists from the left and the right waged urban civil war
using terrorist tactics, including the bombing of the Bologna train station and the
kidnap-murder of ex-Premier Aldo Moro. It’s hard to make Italians worry
more than usual. And even when you do, they’re too stubborn t! o show it.
Anyway,
it’s tough to imagine anything terrible happening during demonstrations.
Italians have always lived their politics passionately, outdoors and together—in
piazza, as they call it. It’s a shame that America has gotten out of the
habit. The weather in Rome is almost always nice
enough for a walk, and there is also the inherent sociability of people here.
Whether it’s anarchists against drug laws or senior citizens for bigger
pensions or the single fathers or the students or the homeless, crowds
gathering purposefully are part of daily life. You read in the morning paper
where the day’s demonstrations will be and when and then plan your
schedule around the blockages.
A
few days after the Italy announcement, the State
Department made a similar warning to Americans in France. There, demonstrations do
inevitably degenerate into violence, even against the demonstrators. Unlike Italy, Paris is a tinderbox. But all
the terror is homegrown.
Here,
the fear isn’t for Americans, it’s of them. Not
of American tourists, of course—Italians are afraid of America itself and what new
mischief we might drag them into.
“Beel,” our neighbor Fausto
said to me yesterday, “chi in America ama
questa guerra in Iraq?”...
But
Italians don’t hold a grudge against us for dragging them into Iraq. They feel about America the way I’d feel my
about my 7-year-old if he pulled a loaded pistol out of his backpack and began
waving it around the kitchen. I’d love him as much as ever. But I’d
be real worried about what he was going to do next. From over here, America looks scary even to me.
Otherwise, terror seems far, far away....
This column ran on page 5 in the 4/24/2006 edition of The New York Observer.
You may reach Bill Tonelli via email
at: btonelli@observer.com .
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