Thursday, August 09, 2007

"The Caste" Super Best Seller, Riles Italians about "Political Ruling Class" -NY Times

The ANNOTICO Report

 

In Italy where a book is considered a best seller when it hits the 20,000 mark, since it was published only in mid-May, "The Caste: How Italian Politicians Became Untouchable," " has sold 630,000 copies, a phenomenon!!!

The authors seem to have caught the wave of a widespread discontent here.in a country a crisis, in which "a greedy and self-referential political class has invaded Italian society, and became a caste that is increasingly indifferent to the common good. .

 

Tale of Ruling Class Privilege Touches a Nerve in Italians

The New York Times

By Elisabetta Povoledo

August 8, 2007

ROME,  In the opening chapter of "The Caste: How Italian Politicians Became Untouchable," readers learn that Italy has a unique sense of altitude.

Among the towns that benefit from state aid to mountainous communities is Palagiano, in Puglia, whose highest point is 282 feet above sea level.

That is 12 meters less than the steeple of St. Marks Square" in Venice, the authors write. (Twelve meters is a little over 39 feet.)

But Palagiano is only one of dozens of slightly above-sea-level towns classified as mountainous, giving them a right to state aid for mountain regions that have lost population.

A bill introduced by the government on July 13 sets a new minimum of 600 meters, or about 1,970 feet, above sea level before a town may claim mountain status.

By that account, more than half of the 4,200 places now classified as mountain towns would lose their standing, putting hundreds of local bureaucrats who work to protect municipalities with more humble elevations out of jobs. But the bill faces many obstacles, and the final version may be decidedly weaker.

Mountain communities are, according to the authors of "The Caste," Sergio Rizzo and Gian Antonio Stella, a microcosm of a crisis in which "a greedy and self-referential political class became a caste and invaded Italian society."

That class, they write, is "becoming increasingly indifferent to the common good and the notion of sound administration in order to nourish itself."

If sales of the book are a good measure, the authors seem to have caught the wave of a widespread malaise here. Since it was published in mid-May, "The Caste" has sold 630,000 copies, a phenomenon in a country where a nonfiction book is considered a best seller once it hits the 20,000 mark.

Whats striking is how the book exploded off the shelves," said Giuliano Vigini, a publishing expert.

Cesare Salvi, a senator with the Democrats of the Left, said: "Sure, Ive read it. More unfortunately for politicians, everybodys reading it." Mr. Salvis own 2005 book about the political machine, "The Cost of Democracy," will come out in paperback in September.

But he said the success of "The Caste" had not yet sunk in with the books subjects. "Politicians still arent listening to this wave of protest on the part of the public opinion," he said.

Dissatisfaction with the cost of keeping members of the political class in the manner to which they have become accustomed has increasingly trickled into the mainstream and is now regular fodder for commentators and comedians. One comic, Beppe Grillo, has worked to make Sept. 8 a day to appeal to  "all our politicians - no exceptions - to take a hike."

Mr. Rizzo attributes the success of the book to this, "We name names."

And name names they do, at all levels - from the mayor/boss of a Sicilian hamlet to government ministers to coteries of political cronies. It is a densely packed, 250-plus-page tour of a world of privilege (including chauffeured cars, subsidized air travel, lavish dining and bodyguards), wanton waste of public funds and corruption. Not to mention the highest parliamentary salaries in Europe.

An oligarchy of insatiable Brahmins" is what Italian politicians have become, write the authors, both reporters for the Milan newspaper Corriere della Sera. "Where the Brahmin knows that once he has crossed the threshold into the palace of the Caste, he no longer has to worry about anything. Ever again."

Nothing is spared, not even the presidency, a revered office in Italy. The budget for that office is secret, but the authors say it is four times that of the budget for Buckingham Palace. "That was the most devastating indictment, the bomb that exploded, because we didnt hold back," Mr. Rizzo said. "We said that even such a beloved figure spent too much."

In July, Italian politicians tried to repair their image. The cabinet approved a bill aimed at "containing the costs of politics and administrative apparatus." Parliamentary leaders agreed to $82 million in cuts. Members of Parliament will now get smaller pensions, and only after five years in office. Their pensions will also be frozen if they hold other public offices. Also cut was an annual $4,200 stipend that lawmakers could use for study abroad.

Polls published in national newspapers recently highlighted a growing disillusionment among Italians with the political class.

When you think of politics what pops into your mind?" asked a survey published by Corriere della Sera.

Negative feelings like disgust, diffidence, anger, boredom," replied 58 percent of those polled, as opposed to indifference," cited by 25 percent, and "passion, enthusiasm, commitment," the choice of 17 percent.

Eighty percent of those responding to the agency ISPO for Corriere said they believed that "politicians are interested in peoples votes, not their opinions."

Its not just politicians, its the Italian mentality thats like this," said Roberto Rocca, a software developer in Rome. "Thats why I prefer not to vote."

 

The ANNOTICO Reports Can be Viewed (and are Archived) on:

Italia USA: http://www.ItaliaUSA.com [Formerly Italy at St Louis] (7 years)

Italia Mia: http://www.ItaliaMia.com (3 years)

Annotico Email: annotico@earthlink.net