Berlusconi's "miracle" plan
Berlusconi has practically ceased ruling in Italy for some time. Now he's merely an actor, a poseur. It's what he does best. But now - surprise, surprise! - he's come up with a giant "reform plan". Do bear with me, though. The devil is in the details. For instance, while under that plan the police in a number of regions will remain without money even for fuel for their vehicles, state senators will still bathe in luxury, and use the fancy exclusive services that are being granted to representatives - for free. Nice plan, eh?
At first, when Berlusconi presented his plan, everyone seemed impressed. The markets responded enthusiastically (like they know anything about the real world anyway?) Because what Berlusconi laid out in just 14 pages (apparently he's trying to beat Herman Cain's plan for a 3-page plan), if realized in practice, would truly be the "biggest program for economic reform Italy has ever seen" (Corriere della Sera). Except, the nice impressions lasted for little more than a day. Then reality struck back.
It dawned pretty fast on everybody that the contribution of the Italian prime-minister at the meeting of the leaders in Brussels was just on paper. 14 pages full of empty promises - from the "realization of human potential", to "constitutional reforms". Many of the proposals in the plan even had a concrete schedule. For example in just 4 months "all institutional and administrative decrees should be rewritten", so that "the economy could be stimulated". Sounds so beautiful, doesn't it? And by 2014 the state is supposed to stop accumulating debt, and start registering only surplus. Niiiice!
It does sound like a real miracle. The Italian miracle, it was called. And that's precisely why no one really believes this nonsense. The opposition is convinced that all this only aims at postponing the imminent death of this government for a little while. The main media (those which are out of Berlusconi's corporate reach, anyway) are also quite skeptical. La Stampa summarized the dominant opinions with the assessment, "Italy's weak spots are the windlessness in parliament and the political impotence of the ruling elite".
So, for quite some time Berlusconi has stopped ruling the country. He's just playing a theater - the only thing he's good at. His coalition has practically dissolved already. The only thing nominally keeping it in whole is the fear of many MPs that if new elections come, at least 50 of them (of the ruling coalition) would have to lose their seats. And that's a scary thought indeed.
When you look closely, the austerity program proposed by Berlusconi means a drastic slashing of all funds for education, culture, health-care, even security. I mean in Modena for example, the police would run out of fuel for their cars within 2 weeks after the implementation of the plan. And the municipal authorities in Ferrara wouldn't be able to even send a fax, a letter or anything made of paper, because they'd have run out of money.
But what really enrages the Italians is the huge disconnect between politicians and people. While all those slashes are being done under Berlusconi's plan, the luxurious restaurant at the Italian Senate would still be serving all kinds of fancy meals at ridiculous prices. Everything that the waiters dressed in liveries and butterfly-neckties will be serving will still be largely paid for from the pockets of the tax-payers. And the senators will be paying their meals as if they're some kind of tips: veal carpaccio would still cost 2.76 euro, spaghetti with fresh octopus - 1.60 euro, etc, etc... The senators will still use the services of a beautician and masseur for free, and psychotherapist (because they really need it, you know - they're under such immense pressure); the medical exams and eyeglasses would also be paid for by the state. Of course, that's also valid for their entire families. Because they're an important part of the state affairs, see?
The representatives in the lower chamber are no exception, either. They'll enjoy the same privileges and bonuses like their colleagues in Senate. Even the regional provincial officials will be part of the God-anointed host. The representatives will still have the right to retire with a huge pension of 6,000 euro, just after a 5-years' work in parliament. Of course they'd all support the plan if it was solely up to them, because who would be crazy enough to vote against such privileges? As for the ordinary people who remain outside this scheme - screw them. They can yell for a while, but winter is coming, the temperatures are gradually dropping below freezing at night, so they'll yell a bit, then they'll go home. And they'll keep paying. Capisce?
At first, when Berlusconi presented his plan, everyone seemed impressed. The markets responded enthusiastically (like they know anything about the real world anyway?) Because what Berlusconi laid out in just 14 pages (apparently he's trying to beat Herman Cain's plan for a 3-page plan), if realized in practice, would truly be the "biggest program for economic reform Italy has ever seen" (Corriere della Sera). Except, the nice impressions lasted for little more than a day. Then reality struck back.
It dawned pretty fast on everybody that the contribution of the Italian prime-minister at the meeting of the leaders in Brussels was just on paper. 14 pages full of empty promises - from the "realization of human potential", to "constitutional reforms". Many of the proposals in the plan even had a concrete schedule. For example in just 4 months "all institutional and administrative decrees should be rewritten", so that "the economy could be stimulated". Sounds so beautiful, doesn't it? And by 2014 the state is supposed to stop accumulating debt, and start registering only surplus. Niiiice!
It does sound like a real miracle. The Italian miracle, it was called. And that's precisely why no one really believes this nonsense. The opposition is convinced that all this only aims at postponing the imminent death of this government for a little while. The main media (those which are out of Berlusconi's corporate reach, anyway) are also quite skeptical. La Stampa summarized the dominant opinions with the assessment, "Italy's weak spots are the windlessness in parliament and the political impotence of the ruling elite".
So, for quite some time Berlusconi has stopped ruling the country. He's just playing a theater - the only thing he's good at. His coalition has practically dissolved already. The only thing nominally keeping it in whole is the fear of many MPs that if new elections come, at least 50 of them (of the ruling coalition) would have to lose their seats. And that's a scary thought indeed.
When you look closely, the austerity program proposed by Berlusconi means a drastic slashing of all funds for education, culture, health-care, even security. I mean in Modena for example, the police would run out of fuel for their cars within 2 weeks after the implementation of the plan. And the municipal authorities in Ferrara wouldn't be able to even send a fax, a letter or anything made of paper, because they'd have run out of money.
But what really enrages the Italians is the huge disconnect between politicians and people. While all those slashes are being done under Berlusconi's plan, the luxurious restaurant at the Italian Senate would still be serving all kinds of fancy meals at ridiculous prices. Everything that the waiters dressed in liveries and butterfly-neckties will be serving will still be largely paid for from the pockets of the tax-payers. And the senators will be paying their meals as if they're some kind of tips: veal carpaccio would still cost 2.76 euro, spaghetti with fresh octopus - 1.60 euro, etc, etc... The senators will still use the services of a beautician and masseur for free, and psychotherapist (because they really need it, you know - they're under such immense pressure); the medical exams and eyeglasses would also be paid for by the state. Of course, that's also valid for their entire families. Because they're an important part of the state affairs, see?
The representatives in the lower chamber are no exception, either. They'll enjoy the same privileges and bonuses like their colleagues in Senate. Even the regional provincial officials will be part of the God-anointed host. The representatives will still have the right to retire with a huge pension of 6,000 euro, just after a 5-years' work in parliament. Of course they'd all support the plan if it was solely up to them, because who would be crazy enough to vote against such privileges? As for the ordinary people who remain outside this scheme - screw them. They can yell for a while, but winter is coming, the temperatures are gradually dropping below freezing at night, so they'll yell a bit, then they'll go home. And they'll keep paying. Capisce?