Matteo, Silvio & Diversity

The "President of the Council of Ministers of the Italian Republic" (i.e. Prime Minister) is a political leader of Italy since 1861. In the past six years, Italy has had four prime ministers (via). After the referendum defeat last Sunday, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi - "the Justin Trudeau of Italy" as The Washington Post once called him (via) - declared he would resign.



In 2011, Sun King Berlusconi said, gay couples would never be allowed to marry in Italy or have adoption rights (via). In 2016 - thirty years after lawmakers first proposed the legal recognition of civil unions in Italy -, the Italian Government gave final approval to the law recognising civil unions of same-sex couples; the bill was supported by Matteo Renzi (via). Before Renzi, Italy was "the only major Western European country with no civil partnerships or gay marriage" (via). Renzi met LGBT civil rights activist and Mayor of a small town Alessia Ballini when he was the Mayor of Florence. She inspired him to support the Civil Unions Bill which was passed five years after her death (via).

"The two soon grew close, and the traditionally Catholic Renzi - a man opposed to civil unions - and the lesbian civil rights campaigner found they shared more similarities than differences. Ballini introduced Renzi to her partner, Teresa Vieri, and it was through his experience of this relationship that Renzi learned the powerful lesson that love is love." (LOTL)

“In these crucial hours I keep close to my heart the thought and memory of Alessia. And that’s enough for me, because laws are made for people, not for ideologies. For those who love, not for those who make proclamations.”
Matteo Renzi

“I have a gruelling work schedule and if I happen to look pretty girls in the face now and then, well then, it’s better to be a fan of pretty women than to be gay.”
Silvio Berlusconi



When Renzi unveiled his cabinet in 2014 (at that time Berlusconi was about to start serving a suspended sentence, i.e. working four hours a week in a nursing home with Alzheimer's patients; via), "one of its most striking aspects was that, for the first time, it was to be split equally between women and men" (via). Renzi's step was a huge one in a country that has never had a female prime minister or head of state, in a country where female politicians are still judged by their looks and outfit (via). In 2008, "gender-equality challenged" Berlusconi made the following comment concerning the Spanish Prime Minister's decision to have a cabinet with more women than men (via):

"[He] has formed a government that is too pink," reads one. "That's something we cannot do... because there is a prevalence of men in politics and it isn't easy to find women who are qualified for government. Now he's asked for it. He'll have problems leading them." The other imagines "the merrie Lawes by them newly Enacted, To live in more Ease, Pompe, Pride, and wantonnesse: but especially that they might have superiority and domineere over their husbands [and] cure any old or new Cuckolds...".
Silvio Berlusconi

To be fair, Berlusconi had also chosen women for the Parliament: a Miss Italy contestant, a former contestant of the Italian "Big Brother", an actress, a soap opera star, and a topless model (via) ... all of them supporting the "harem culture" message he has been sending with showgirls on his TV channels for decades (via).

"(...) while other European lands actively promote gender equality as a builder of national prosperity, Berlusconi has led the charge in the opposite direction, effectively stifling women by creating a world in which they are seen first and foremost as sex objects instead of professional equals." Newsweek

“It is clear to everyone that a mother cannot devote herself to a job (...)"
Silvio Berlusconi

"Let's hope it's a girl."
Matteo Renzi before the Clinton-vs.-Trump election

"I said to a girl to look for a wealthy boyfriend. This suggestion is not unrealistic."
Silvio Berlusconi



"Women are lining up to marry me. Legend has it, I know how to do it."
Silvio Berlusconi

"When asked if they would like to have sex with me, 30% of women said, 'Yes', while the other 70% replied, 'What, again?'"
Silvio Berlusconi

"I never understood where the satisfaction is when you're missing the pleasure of conquest." 
Silvio Berlusconi denying that he would pay sex workers

Women are "God's most beautiful gift to men."
Silvio Berlusconi

In order to prevent rape, "we would need as many soldiers as there are beautiful Italian women."
Silvio Berlusconi

"Italy is now a great country to invest in... Today we have fewer communists and those who are still there deny having been one. Another reason to invest in Italy is that we have beautiful secretaries... superb girls."
Silvio Berlusconi
(In 2015, one of his "superb" secretaries was jailed for three years; via)

"Angela Merkel is an un****able fat ****."
Silvio Berlusconi



"An Aids patient asks his doctor whether the sand treatment prescribed him will do any good. 'No', the doctor replies, 'but you will get accustomed to living under the earth'."
Silvio Berlusconi

"We must be aware of the superiority of our civilisation, a system that has guaranteed well-being, respect for human rights and - in contrast with Islamic countries - respect for religious and political rights, a system that has as its value understanding of diversity and tolerance..."
Silvio Berlusconi

"The West will continue to conquer peoples, even if it means a confrontation with another civilization, Islam, firmly entrenched where it was 1,400 years ago."
Silvio Berlusconi

"(...) in the China of Mao, they did not eat children, but had them boiled to fertilise the fields."
Silvio Berlusconi

"Ah, Barack Obama. You won't believe it, but the two of them sunbathe together, because the wife is also tanned."
Silvio Berlusconi

"(...) the man who has invested in hope over cynicism, who has raised a generation to try (Yes, we can).” Obama will go but "stay in history and the hearts of many of us."
Matteo Renzi on Barack Obama

Finally, two of my favourite quotes:

"I don't need to go into office for the power. I have houses all over the world, stupendous boats... beautiful airplanes, a beautiful wife, a beautiful family... I am making a sacrifice."
Silvio Berlusconi

"I am the Jesus Christ of politics. I am a patient victim, I put up with everyone, I sacrifice myself for everyone."
Silvio Berlusconi



In an interview, Matteo Renzi's wife Agnese Renzi openly said how much she had learned from her little niece Maria who had taught her "the true meaning of love". Maria has Down Syndrome and was adopted by Matteo Renzi's sister Matilde Renzi (via).

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- photographs (Vanity Fair) via and via and via and via and via
- List of Prime Ministers of Italy by time in office: LINK

Fiat in 1966: The second best shape in Italy, no German thrift to spoil the picture

How would you like to get away from it all with the Second Best Shape in Italy? A Little? A Whole Lot? The Most! (Check one. Don't cheat)
If you checked "The Most,", Congratulations! You're a natural born Fiat man. A man who knows a beautiful thing when he sees it - and what to do with it. A man loaded with red blood cells that glow brighter when adventure's in the wind. The Fiat 1500 Spider with five forward speed transmission is adventure on wheels, bumper-to-bumper excitement that makes everything fun. You checked only "A Little?" Cheer up. Spin the Spider around the block and check with us again. Always have at least one Fiat!



At $1237 what could cut a prettier figure than the Second Best Shape in Italy?
Any way you figure it, the beautiful buy is Fiat. Designed and crafted with an eye for the artistic, a hand for precision - and this 600D two-door sedan for economy plus. Because Italians regard their cars almost as highly as their women, they create Fiat with no hint of the economy showing. This means you get the shape, the finish, the performance and all the "extras" at this incredibly small cost. Drive the 600D today and marvel at the way this fabuloso production shapes up. Always have a least one Fiat.



The Second Best Shape in Italy at the coolest little figure in its class - $2585. That's all the money you part with for all this car, the Fiat 1500 Spider. Styled by Pininfarina, the romantic web it spins is captivating America. It's dynamic outside and a dynamo inside - a perfect expression of Italy's fabled creative energy and inspired art. Lean into a curve with Fiat's curves and know what it's like to drive this five forward-speed sportsman's dream. And to help you keep it humming, there are 425 parts-and-service centers in the U.S.A. This new five-speed Spider is waiting for you at your Fiat dealer. So what are you waiting for? Always have at least one Fiat.



The second best shape in Italy at the hottest little price in the USA. You've seen the first, in films. Now see the Fiat, in person. Fiat is the hot one. The Italians did it the way they do most things. With style. With flair. With flourish. And there's no Germanic thrift showing. This Fiat sport comes with all the extras at not a penny extra. Bucket seats, power brakes, leatherette upholstery, heater, defroster, tachometer, dual electric wipers, safety belt anchors, bumper guards, self-cancelling turn signals, help-lights and tool kit. And speaking of figures, you can't even come close  to a shape like this at a price so trim and appealing. At $2639, it's the lowest-priced sports car in its class. Every family should have at least one Fiat.



Introducing a New Car & a quick question: Is the Second Best Shape in Italy quite proper for a Family Man?
Answer: depends on the man - and the family. If you're lucky enough to have a built-in flair for style and a family to match, the new Fiat 1100 R four door sedan is right down your freeway. There's that fabulous Italian shape. The immediate responsiveness. the sweet, even disposition. And no German thrift to spoil the picture. Though it's only $1564, it comes to you with all the "extras" at no extra cost, including front wheel disc brakes, safety steering column and four-on-the-floor shift. If you're extra enough to appreciate it, see the 1100 R at your Fiat dealer's today. And always have at leat one Fiat.



images (mostly from 1966)  via and via and via and via and via