Wednesday, 15 December 2010
Unbelievably Silly Content in Wikileaks Cables
'2. (SBU) The Vatican is highly hierarchical [sic] with the Pope ultimately responsible for all important matters. Yet it is also highly decentralized in its decision-making. [the Roman Catholic Church tends to be High, ed.] This structure reflects belief in the principle of "subsidiarity": leaving decisions to those closest to, and best informed on, a particular matter. [there have been complaints over aeons about God being like this. He is, of course, best informed, but He will leave us to make our choices. (And the Pope is His representative on Earth, even now, even to America, ed.)]'
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4 comments:
What's the story with Catia Polidori who suddenly, for no apparent reason,switched her vote and saved the emporer's bacon?
Any news? Story is already dead in the UK.
Berlusconi is reported to have said,
'My interest is in individual members who belong to parties with whom they no longer agree.
Among the 'futuristi' there are various members who have now paid their dues to Fini and feel their place in continued opposition 'unnatural'.
A coming-together has certainly begun as some have already come to us to offer their collaboration. In their view, what with one thing and another, after yesterday's vote, the idea of a Third Way hasn't much of a hope any more.
There are various posts unfilled in the Executive.'
The press are issuing lists of 'papabili' (qualifiers) including 8 members of Fini's faction of whom 7 are in the Lower House, a number of centre ground politicians, and some Democratic party members.
I would guess Polidori jumped early to get to the front of the queue. B. argues against tactics for winning over entire factions, and in favour of detaching individuals one by one with various enticements ranging from, 'no ideological fronts in a time of national and international crisis', to, 'how much? And, by the way, we know all about such and such a peccadillo'.
I might add, Mr Q, that Berlusconi was elected with majorities in both Houses, which he has just demonstrated he retains. There are no democratic grounds for the President to call an election. There are no democratic grounds for B to step down from office. Not being privy to what was said in his consultations with the President yesterday I can only guess that he said, not unreasonably, 'I have defeated a no confidence vote in bothe Houses. If you feel that I am disrupting the serenity of Italian governance then I will agree to fight another election (which he would win). But I will not leave my majority to some other Leader mysteriously 'chosen' by cobbled-together coalitions from across the leftish political board.'
There are shades of the driving out of Blair by Brown here, mutatis mutandis, except that the Brownies have been seen off.
Bill, Catia Polidori has a family business selling University education and giving degrees via Internet. There are prospects of substantial subsidies to this kind of industry at the expense of state Universities. Such prospects would have vanished with the fall of B's government.
Another vote came from someone who previously had complained publicly of an attempt to buy his vote in exchange of having his mortgage paid off; evidently in the end he got an offer he could not refuse.
Another vote came from a supplier of acupuncture services who complained that his kind of activity had never received any official support...
...and a couple of hundred newly elected MPs would have lost their entitlement to a substantial pension and golden handshake if the Berelusconi government had not lasted out for at least another year...
HG, do you really believe, then, that a free, competitive market for MPs a sufficient condition for democracy???
Think again.
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