Italy's Radical Right Turn

This very sad state of affairs is just the tip of the iceberg, I fear.
'Bizarre' new laws by Italy's mayors
Posted Sun Aug 17, 2008 12:23am AEST
When in Capri, do not wander off the beach in a bikini. If you go to the sea in Eraclea, near Venice, remember that building sandcastles is forbidden. And do not even think about mowing your lawn on the weekend in Forte dei Marmi.
Emboldened by a nationwide crackdown on crime and a government decree giving them extra law-and-order powers, Italian mayors have issued a string of often bizarre by-laws to enhance "public decorum".
Public displays of affection in a car can earn you a fine of up to 500 euros in Eboli, feeding pigeons is off-limits in the centre of Lucca while in Novara groups of more than two people are forbidden from lounging around in parks at night.
Italian newspapers have dubbed this year's holiday season "the summer of bans". But this week one town hall was forced to acknowledge things may have gone too far.
Rodrigo Piccoli, 33, called national radio to protest after he was fined 50 euros for lying down in a park in the northern city of Vicenza to read a book. The mayor has since promised to drop the ban. - Reuters

Napoliscone

http://www.bananasinpyjamas.com/news/stories/2008/08/17/2337657.htm

Italian Comedian Starts a Revolution!

Beppe Grillo is a comedian with a popular blog and a kind of Don Imus/Howard Stern attitude towards authority. Following are excerpts from the article:
On September 8 he led his vast virtual community out into the real world. They celebrated what he called "V-Day": V not for victory but "vaffanculo": an extremely vulgar, though common, expression which corresponds closely to "f*** off"' - those being invited to go forth and multiply being Italy's politicians....

Fifty thousand assembled in Bologna to demand a drastic new law banning convicted criminals from Parliament - Grillo says there are 23 MPs and Senators with criminal convictions - and to limit politicians to serving no more than two terms in Parliament.

More than 300,000 signatures were collected.

Awesome! Maybe it's time for the US peace & justice movement to stop being so FUCKING polite and grab the attention of the citizens.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10464496