Selma, Thanks for posting the article. When I first saw his comments, I assumed that his branding of Schultz as a 'Nazi' was because he saw a Nazi threat.
Bill On Sun, 6 Jul 2003 18:39:13 -0400 "Selma Singer" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > Some more frightening information. > > Selma > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > Sent: Sunday, July 06, 2003 6:33 PM > Subject: The Italian poisoner > > > Berlusconi is not just another rightwinger; he is a threat to > democracy > > http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,991976,00.html > > Martin Jacques > Saturday July 5, 2003 > The Guardian > > The Italian prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, may have been forced > to > apologise, albeit belatedly, for his extraordinary attack on Martin > Schulz, the German MEP, but it seems likely that the bitter taste > will > remain to sour the next six months of the Italian presidency. More > importantly, this incident could serve as a long overdue wake-up > call to > Europe's politicians and opinion-formers about just what kind of > political > threat Berlusconi represents. > > Some have described his suggestion that Schulz should play the part > of > commandant in a film about Nazi concentration camps as a gaffe by a > gaffe-prone politician. This is entirely to miss the point. Just > because > Berlusconi says things that no other European prime minister would > does > not mean they are gaffes. They accurately describe the nature of the > man > and his politics. > > Berlusconi is - and has been ever since his political emergence in > 1994 - > the most dangerous political figure in Europe. This has gone largely > unrecognised. Tony Blair has been happy to consort with Berlusconi > and > offer him the cloak of respectability in his various attempts to > build a > pro-American axis against the French and Germans. The left, for its > part, > has been more preoccupied with the threat posed by the emergence of > a > racist far right in Europe, as epitomised by such figures as J�rg > Haider, > Jean-Marie Le Pen and Pim Fortyun. > > Certainly the populist far-right has poisoned public discourse and > shifted > political debate to the right, especially on immigration and race. > And in > the many countries where it now enjoys some kind of governmental > power, it > has succeeded in pulling the main party of the right further to the > right. > But in no case - Le Pen and Haider included - have they ever looked > like > becoming a dominant national political force. > > In contrast, Silvio Berlusconi is now serving his second term as > prime > minister; he is clearly the most powerful figure in Italian > politics; and > Forza Italia is overwhelmingly the main party of the government > coalition. > Berlusconi has succeeded in a way in which no other far-right > politician > has been able to. The nature of the threat he poses, though, goes > way > further than this. > > Ever since 1945, democracy has been assumed as a given, as an > eternal > verity, of western societies. This is clearly mistaken. Nothing > lasts for > ever: more pertinently, there is plenty of evidence that western > democracy > is now under greater threat than at any time since the defeat of > Nazism. > But the nature of that threat is now importantly different. In the > inter-war period it was from without; now it is from within. > > There are three senses in which democracy, as we have come to know > it, is > under pressure. First, traditional politics and its institutions are > losing ground to the culture of a rampant, market-driven, consumer > society. Second, the rise of an enormously powerful media has > transformed > the balance of power between the media and politics. And finally, > the > triumph of market values across society, the erosion of alternative > logics > and the weakening of the unions has bestowed on those with money - > be they > corporations, celebrities or the super-rich - a quite new influence > over > the political process. These trends can be seen throughout the west, > Britain included, but they can be found in their most advanced and > malignant form in Italy. > > The Berlusconi regime represents a degenerate form of democracy: a > halfway > state between democracy and a new form of totalitarianism that we > have not > witnessed before. The latter cannot be described as fascism even > though > the two share certain characteristics, and even though the > Berlusconi > phenomenon can be understood only in the context of a country that > was > fascist and still bears in its polity and mindset some of the traits > of > that period. But just as fascism was a completely novel form of > politics > when it first appeared, so the Berlusconi phenomenon must also be > seen as > new and distinct. > > Berlusconi is by far and away the most powerful media owner in Italy > as > well as the country's richest man. He has ruthlessly deployed his > three TV > channels and his newspapers as propaganda vehicles for his political > objectives, and refused to divest himself of them in the face of a > blatant > conflict of interest. He has used his vast fortune to establish and > fund > his private political fiefdom, Forza Italia, whose culture and style > reflects the values of the corporate, televisual and sporting worlds > that > Berlusconi inhabits and which have come increasingly to besiege the > values > of the more traditional political world. > > But it is not just that the Berlusconi phenomenon, by the > utilisation of > huge personal wealth and the misuse of media control, undermines the > division of powers on which a healthy democracy rests. He also seeks > actively to undermine the various independent centres of power, > outside > his formal control, on which the very existence of a democracy > depends. > > Ever since his election in 2001, he has eroded the independence of > the > state broadcaster, Rai, and progressively transformed it into a > vehicle > for his own views. It is generally believed that he was behind the > resignation of the editor of Corriere della Sera, Italy's most > independent > newspaper. > > Above all, he has sought to paint large parts of the judiciary - > especially those who have been involved in prosecuting him - as > engaged in > some kind of leftwing political conspiracy. In so doing he has > deliberately damaged the judiciary's credibility and legitimacy, > while at > the same time presenting himself as above the law by introducing an > act > that grants him immunity from prosecution. > > In seeking to constrain the power of institutions that are > independent of > him, Berlusconi has been pursuing a policy of creeping > totalitarianism. > His own style of political attack graphically illustrates the point. > Just > as he sought to damn Martin Schulz as a Nazi, so he is constantly > seeking > to denigrate, undermine and condemn opponents in the most extreme of > terms. > > He describes the left as "communists" under whom "there would be no > freedom in Italy". On two popular presenters that he got dismissed > from > Rai: "Public television, which is funded by everyone's money, was > put to > criminal use by Santoro [and] Biagi." On the judges: "A section of > the > judiciary is using its powers not to administer justice but to > attack and > eliminate those that it considers its political opponents." > > This kind of political style is a direct descendant of fascism, > where the > opposition is branded in the most lurid and extreme language, > accorded no > respect, and dismissed as outside the parameters of respectable and > civilised society. Berlusconi has poisoned Italian politics and this > week > did the same to European politics. It was no gaffe: this is how > Berlusconi > customarily treats political opponents. > > is not to suggest that Berlusconi is now immoveable. Enough of > democracy remains for the people to vote him out of office. But he > has > already revealed the extraordinary weakness and vulnerability of > Italian > democracy, not least the extent to which a large proportion of the > population seems willing to turn a blind eye to blatant conflicts of > interest and authoritarian excesses. > > Even if he is voted out at the next election, the damage that has > been > done to Italian democracy will be difficult to repair. Should he > remain in > office, the prospects are grim indeed. It is time Europe woke up to > the > threat Berlusconi poses. He is not just another rightwing > politician; he > represents the greatest challenge to democracy anywhere in Europe. > > � Martin Jacques is a visiting fellow at the London School of > Economics > > > _______________________________________________ > Futurework mailing list > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > http://scribe.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework > > ________________________________________________________________ The best thing to hit the internet in years - Juno SpeedBand! Surf the web up to FIVE TIMES FASTER! Only $14.95/ month - visit www.juno.com to sign up today! _______________________________________________ Futurework mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://scribe.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework
