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Letter from Washington
Editor Oscar Bartoli
Oscarb1@starpower.net
www.ilgonline.com
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(Beyond the News)
Circulation 21,000 in Italian and English
An Open Letter to President Obama
Dear Mr. President:
All it took was two storms to knock out phone, Internet and TV service for tens of thousands of people in the nation’s capital. You might know this, but the reason it happened is that the electric, phone and cable TV companies have chosen to string dozens of cables, from pole to pole, over our heads. When the wind blows hard and the rain pours down, the trees – which have shallow roots because the aquifer is very close to the surface so there is no need to dig deep – topple over and drag down the poles and the wires. By the way, the electric company’s transformers are also mounted on these poles. In winter, ice builds up on tree branches and they break off, again bringing down poles and cables. As a result hundred of thousands of residents are forced to shiver in the cold. And every year the newspapers trot out the same headlines.
Mr. President, did you know that every city, town and village in Italy has buried cables?
I live in one of the nicest areas in Washington DC and there is practically a canopy of wires and cables everywhere.
You might ask, why don’t you take this up with the mayor? I’ve done in and I’ve also contacted the journalists who cover the Metro Section at The Washington Post. I always get the same, and a times resentful, explanation that when cables are strung on poles they are easier to repair. This makes no sense. If the cables were buried they wouldn’t constantly need to be repaired.
Since you now live here, I think you will begin to realize how, at least in this regard, the US is decades behind Europe.
I realize that you have bigger problems to deal with that this one. However, perhaps someone in your Administration might bring this to your attention. In which case, you will most certainly understand that convincing the parties in question to modernize their distribution networks would spare hundreds of thousands of citizens from serious and repeated discomfort, not to say danger, and at the same time create employment for thousands of people.
Many thanks for everything you are already doing.
Very truly yours,
Oscar Bartoli
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Moving from Analog to Digital
On June 13 three million American families woke up and turned on their TVs, but saw only a black screen. Overnight, more than 900 television stations throughout the country changed from analog to digital signal. At the end of a long transition that began with political backpedaling in 2006, President Obama will have 20 billion dollars in his budget from the sale of freed up frequencies, the telecommunications industry will be able to offer new and faster wireless service and the people in charge of national security will have gained a new and wider communications network.
The price for all of this will be paid by those citizens, mainly elderly and of low income, who did not buy the analog to digital converter box and stronger antenna needed to make their old TV work. Jumping for joy are retailers of new TVs and cable TV companies whose subscribers are increasing by leaps and bounds.
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Platonic Dialogue after the European Elections
Phaedon:
O Master of Sublime Wisdom, after wandering throughout the world, I am once again at your feet to imbue the essence of your thought. We are on Mount Olympus looking down on Earth and in particular at what happened in the boot shaped peninsula where elections were held, as in the rest of United Europe. Upon reading the press I was struck by a terrifying headline, “A Manqué Plebiscite.” What does it mean?
Plato:
Beloved disciple, it is a reference to the usual distortion of the Italian Communist press that wants to deny that once again our Leader has vanquished the media hordes that attacked him all last month.
Phaedon:
Look, Master, the Leader was asked questions about his hanging out with minors, parties and bacchanalias in his Sardinia villa, the use of government airplanes to ferry dwarves and dancers, just as his tutor Craxi had done. Add to this his wife’s filing for divorce and the worries of those close to him about his health – because let’s not forget – our Silvio has had prostate cancer surgery, and according to what I have been told by the inner circle, he got a pacemaker two years ago in Cleveland.
Plato:
I see that you insist on spreading Leftist riffraff slander about our Munificent Benefactor.
But this ferocious aggression is not based on reality. The elections resulted in a 2% loss, but the Liberty Party reaffirmed itself as the most important political party on the Right in Europe.
Phaedon:
I speak only for myself, O Luminous Mind of the Empyrean Heavens. You persist on defending the indefensible. The personal behavior, the tons of lies and non-answers are an insult to public opinion. The life of a public man is not private, but is in the public domain.
Plato:
I am of completely opposing opinion. The sexual exploits of a politician have nothing to do with what he does in the name of and for the good of the masses who elected him to his high office.
Phaedon:
In the USA and in other western countries the sexual straying of a politician, when discovered result in the end of his career. Look at what happened to Senator John Edwards, a Democrat who cheated on a wife with terminal cancer. Once the tabloid the National Enquirer, found out about it and made it public, the senator – who was a shoo-in as Obama’s vice president - disappeared from public life.
Plato:
No one in Italy cares what happens in the US. In any event, the election results might not have been a plebiscite for Berlusconi who, as a good salesman always aims high, but they did confirm that most Italians love him and support him.
Phaedon:
O Generous Master, you are talking about people who wish they were him or her. It is a population of people who live vicariously by watching this soap opera and hope that HE will defeat the evil doers and the woman who attacks only because she is after his money.
They are the millions and millions of Italians who were born and grew up in the shadows of his TV programming and who hate the country’s new multi-ethnic immigrants. The manqué plebiscite is a breach that could become a ravine.
Plato:
Don’t be absurd, beloved disciple. Our Leader is going to Washington in a few days and the tan man in the White House would do well to take heed of his recommendations on how to restore the world’s economy, solve cultural conflict, and distribute millions of pedal powered electricity generators to reduce oil consumption. Well, that’s enough for now. I’m fed up and want to go watch “I’m a Celebrity – Get Me Out of Here!”
Nancy Pelosi in Piazza Italia
More than 1,000 invited guests attended the celebrations for Italy’s National Day (the Day of the Republic) in Piazza Italia, the large covered atrium of the Italian Embassy in Washington, DC. Ambassador Giovanni Castellaneta, the subject of a recent laudatory article in the Washington Post, was accompanied by his lovely wife. The Ambassador took the occasion to speak of reconstruction efforts in the Abruzzi, which was devastated by an earthquake on April 6. A video showing the rescue and reconstruction of the National Guard and thousands of volunteers was shown. A wooden triptych that had survived the destruction of l’Aquila was on view to demonstrate that the past cannot be erased. Italy’s brilliant future was represented by a performance by an eight year old virtuoso pianist. In his speech Ambassador Castellaneta also thanked the United States for all of the assistance given to the victims of the earthquake. Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House and thus the third most powerful person in the nation after the President and the Vice President, spoke of her Italian American heritage and her close ties to her land of origin. She also reminded the guests in attendance that Italians discovered America, gave it its name and contributed to its greatest through the sacrifices of generations of immigrants.
The Benefits of Sleep
Millions of Americans do not sleep well due to stress, the gallons of coffee they down, alcohol, financial worries tied to the recession, divorce, hours spent driving, worrying about the children or being caught in a shoot out between rival gangs. The American Association for Sleep Medicine at its recent annual conference in Seattle focused on evidence that the problem is affecting an increasing number of people in the western world. A lack of sleep can result in cardiovascular disease, diabetes, depression and obesity. Proper sleep does not mean just staying in bed. It requires the periods of deep sleep during which the body repairs itself. There are sleep labs where, after a night spent in bed connected to electrodes, you can be told what your problems are such as how much you move around while sleeping or struggle for breath because you suffer from sleep apnea.
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The Foreign Communist Press
Following are comments posted on the Times Online by “Communist” readers from the Perfidious Albion in a fierce attack on our beloved Leader.
The Times is well known for being a conservative paper, but that’s only on the surface. It is really under the guidance of a dangerous shark named Murdoch (they say he is of the extreme Right, but he only cares about dollars and euros). For some time now the Times has been taking its marching orders from the Italian Left, which despite having been reduced to a bunch of whimpering capons, for its part takes orders from the leaders of a formerly Masonic Spectre, led by Licio Gelli - with occasional interjections by the stainless Andreotti and his pickaxe Cossiga. They want to straighten out their “brother” Silvio who doesn’t follow orders and makes out with minors. But then, after all, as correctly pointed out by one of our Leader’s minions, the age of consent in Italy is 14. So what’s the big deal if she’s 16 or 17?
All the other English, American, French and Spanish language papers that ferociously criticize our Great Benefactor are philo-Communist and in the service of Spectre and cripto Islamics who hope for the destruction of the West, and the restauration of regimes that will abolish the freedom given to women, the number one enemy of humanity. Just look at what happens when they feel they can say whatever they think and do whatever they want. Perfect example of this is the brouhaha caused by Mrs. Lario, the Great Proliferator’s wife, with her statements to the Leftist press.
Conclusion: The stridently critical articles of the international “Communist” press attacking the Astrophysical leader of Italy are a clear manoeuvre (obvious to those who can read between the lines) to demonstrate that Western culture is corrupt (the clearest example is Italy) and therefore must be replaced by another value system.
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Can someone remind me how old Berlusconi is? Berlusconi is 73 years old ) Only with foreign press we can show the true Berlusconi, the corrupt man. Help us, Thanks
Berlusconi is Italy's greatest disaster since World War II. All people around...the price Italy will pay for many many years ahead will be terrible. Berlusconi's 'gaffes', tricks, lies, crimes and rudeness are not reality...
The problem is not Berlusconi: the problem is the Italian people, that love him, that approve the government... nonsense, Italians are like that: choose a PM like Berlusconi, that is and acts exactly Italiano.
Once upon a time lived in France a Berlusconi like entrepreneur called Bernard Tapie, who liked football &*...career, so that he turned back to where he came from: the Showbiz. Soon Mr. Berlusconi a singer again?
...Italian national residing in the UK and it saddens me that Berlusconi, thanks to his televisions and press has reduced my country...fellows eunuchs, they repeat amongst themselves exactly what Berlusconi tells them . Please help Italy to get rid of this ...
...to free from communications controls that is made by Berlusconi. The Italian people are unable to build a clear opinion of...economic, politics and so on, and many believe that Berlusconi will improve Italy. Europe may save us?
Berlusconi and Ancelotti were Italians in Serie A. Problems could work themselves out over time without cultural differences.
Berlusconi is an embarrassment to Italy and the western world. The sooner the Italians dump him, the better it is for them and the rest...
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F as in FIAT, Ferrari and ... Farce
It seemed a done deal.
Marchionne was showered with hosannas by the sycophants of the Italian press (meaning those who drive big Alfa Romeos and Lancias on permanent loan).
It seemed a done deal.
Even though no one could understand how it was possible to purchase a company (Opel in this case) without paying a cent and only on the basis of the unquestionable superiority of one’s engines).
General Motors chose the Austrians and the Canadians because they preferred to go with them rather than take orders from those vulgar Italian whom they cannot stand.
It seemed a done deal.
Mosley the great Formula 1 guy, a survivor of sexual schenanigans tainted by Naziism, steps down – as agreed with Ecclestone, the fomentor of the current circus, and says that given the ongoing widespread crisis it is best to set a limit on wild spending by the great racing stables. After all Honda has left the Formula 1 and given the team to Ross Brawn for one pound sterling and now Brawn is winning everything. But the Ferrari people start to rant and rave and cry that reserarch is on the chopping block and super cars were being compared to compacts.
The sycophants said Ferrari would pull out from the championship and, even though they weren’t able to tell their readers exactly what the fuss was all about, they were sure all the other great teams would do the same and perhaps even start a new championship.
It seemed a done deal.
And then we find out that Ferrari and the others have agreed to participate in the 2010 championship. They say an agreement has been reached with FIA (International Automobile Federation). Ferrari’s image has suffered. It’s the ususal Italian screw up in the public realtions pit stop.
It seemed a done deal.
Now let’s see what happens with Chrysler. We wish the best of luck to Marchionne – he will need it.
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Minuets for Payment
The 6,000 people who paid $200 to $500 to attend the debate between the two former American Presidents, Bush and Clinton, at the Toronto Convention Center applauded politely, but certainly not ethusiastically. After all what the two former Presidents offered was a minuet with few disagreements. It has come to this: George W. Remembering how his father and Clinton have spent so much time together, traveling to lands stricken by natural disasters and coordinating aid, that his mother Barbara practically considers Bill Clinton one of her sons. Apparently that is why George W. called his former rival “brother.”
Clinton admitted that during his presidency the two or three things he couldn’t solve really distressed him. Among them was the genocide in Rwanda, with the massacre of 250,000 people, that might have been avoided if he had been able to send 20,000 soldiers. George W. commented that it would not have been easy to send troops in time to avoid the massacre.
It is not know how much the organizers of the event paid for the two former President’s participation. Usually Clinton gets $300,000 for a speaking engagement.
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The Sons of Italy Grand Gala
It was the 50th Anniversary Gala of the Sons of Italy, a foundation that is dedicated to granting scholarships to worthy students and giving funds for research on diseases such as Cooley’s Anemia and Alzheimer’s. The Sons of Italy also collect funds for people stricken by natural disasters. They raised $250,000 for the Abruzzi earthquake victims. Guest of honor was Italy’s Amassador, Giovanni Castellaneta. The Sons of Italy National Education and Leadership Award for the first time in the foundation’s long history did not go to an Italian American. This year it went to Vice President Joseph R. Biden. The Vice President was accompanied by his wife and a niece. He delivered a cordial speech in which he declared that he truly did deserve the award as he had spent all his adolescence among the Italians of Claymore in Delaware. He made reference to the Catholic priests who have helped him, in particular when his first wife and little daughter died in a terrible car accident the same year of his election, as a 29 year old, to the US Senate.
Every Year 325 million people die because of the climate
According to a study commissioned by the Global Humanitarian Forum of Geneva, 325 million people die every year due to climate changes that result in famines, disease and natural disasters. This terrifying number is forecast to double within the next twenty years and will affect 10% of the world’s population (currently 6.7 billion people).
Economic losses due to global warming are calculated at $125 billon, which is more than all of the aid from rich nations to poor ones. According to the Geneva report, economic losses will reach $340 billion by 2030.
The price will be borne mainly by the poorest nations even though they are the ones least responsible for climate changes.
Kofi Annan, former Secretary General of the United Nations, has asked governments to attend the conference scheduled for next December in Copenhagen. The conference goal is to replace the Kyoto Protocol on the environment with a new one.
The report also addresses very openly the danger that disasters caused by climate changes will intensify and result in greater draught, flooding, hurricanes, higher sea levels and desertification.
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(Beyond the News)
Circulation 21,000 in English and Italian
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Translation by Prof. Maria Enrico --- m.enrico@att.net
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