So, another unelected Italian government is collapsing, and the putatively pro-democratic media are all calling it a dark day. In many ways, it is. Mario Draghis resignation (his second in the space of a week and this time for real) is bad news for Brussels and the Eurozone. The war in Ukraine was the catalyst for Draghi's fall as it tore apart Italys left-wing populist party, the Five Star Movement. That, in turn, destabilised Italys government. The Russian media will be ecstatic: first Boris, now this.
But it is a great day for Italy's leading right-wing populist party the post-fascist Fratelli d'Italia (Brothers of Italy) which is now in a very powerful position. Fratelli d'Italia continues to top the opinion polls and its leader Giorgia Meloni looks set to become Italys next prime minister. Its an astonishing change of fortunes for a party that received just 4 per cent of the vote in 2018.
At the next general election, which could take place as early as September, it is likely that Brothers of Italy in coalition with its traditional allies the Lega, led by Matteo Salvini, and Berlusconi's party Forza Italia (which these days polls about 8 per cent) would get enough seats to form a government.
None of this was meant to happen, according to the mainstream media and their experts. But the experts didnt understand what the war in Ukraine would do to European politics.
Francis End of History Fukuyama summed up the prevailing view back in March when he wrote on his website that the war in Ukraine would be a hammer blow to right-wing populists because their leaders had treated Vladimir Putin as an ally in their culture wars to defend traditional values and had thus acted as his useful idiots.
In Italy, however, the war has delivered what looks like the coup de grace, not to right-wing, but to left-wing populism. Last month, the left-wing Five Star movement split into two parties over whether to send arms to Ukraine. Its leader, Giuseppe Conte, and the majority of its MPs and senators, do not agree with sending weapons on the grounds that this will merely prolong the war uselessly.
Such views reflect a widespread opposition in Italy to America and Europes involvement in the war in Ukraine (prompted by a knee-jerk hatred of America), as well as cynical selfishness given that 40 per cent of Italy's gas comes from Russia. Theres also an ingrained Italian pacifism which is partly a reaction to the countrys fascist past. A majority of Italians consistently oppose sending arms to Ukraine, according to the polls.
But Five Stars founder Luigi Di Maio, Italy's Foreign Minister, believes it is Italy's duty to help Ukraine defend itself against the Russian invader. This is the official line of the Draghi government even though in practice Italy sends fewer arms to Ukraine than tiny Latvia whose population is similar toMilan's.
So Di Maio and 51 of 5 Stelle's 155 MPs, plus 11 of its 72 senators, quit Five Star to form a new party called Insieme per il Futuro (Together for the Future). Di Maio told a press conference: We needed to decide on which side of history we wanted to be on with those on the side of Ukraine which has been attacked, or on the side of the aggressor, Russia.
Before the split, Five Star had the most MPs in Parliament. Now, the radical-right populist Lega has the most. But even before this schism, the alt-left Five Star was already in a sorry state. Just four years ago it got more votes than any other party at the general election (32.7 per cent), formed a coalition government and became the most talked about populist party in Europe.
In 2013, during the campaign for the first general election Five Star contested, its founder Beppe Grillo, a raucous, bearded comedian who is a Latino version of Billy Connolly, promised if we get into parliament we'll open it up like a can of sardines, we'll let you see all the stitch-ups where the money goes, where the contracts go, we'll let you see everything... So stealing will be difficult, because when you put reflectors in there the thieves become as good as gold.
His slogan was Vaffa! eff off, roughly speaking to everything, it seemed, except wind farms. His dream was to replace parliament with direct democracy on the internet. He built the movement which was run like a cult by delivering high voltage rants to packed piazzas and on his website, which attracted millions of followers. His was a movement, not a party, he insisted, because parties like parliament are corrupt. He instructed his followers for that is what they were to refuse to speak to the media for the same reasons. He swore blind that Five Star would never form a coalition with anyone else and withdrew from the frontline to play the role of guru.
Slowly but surely, it all began to unravel. Five Star's politicians began to talk to the media. It became a party. And as it did not have enough votes to govern on its own, it agreed to take part in a coalition government with the unelected Conte, a law professor, as prime minister. Initially Five Star formed a coalition with its arch enemy the radical-right Lega and then once that had collapsed with its other arch enemy, the post-communist Partito Democratico, which also collapsed, and then finally, in February 2021, with both these arch enemies together, in Draghi's emergency national unity government.
That Five Star agreed to participate in such a government led by Draghi the ex boss of the EU's Central Bank and ex director of Goldman Sachs, who is the epitome of Davos Man, and the Euro Establishment shows just how far the party had travelled. It was only ever populist in words, never in deeds. Its one concrete achievement has been the introduction of automatic unemployment benefit for an unlimited period which had never existed in Italy. Previously, only people with full time contracts who lost their jobs received unemployment benefit and only for a limited period.
Nowadays Five Star is polling only 11 per cent and has lost 8 million voters since 2018. At local elections last October and in June it was virtually wiped out. What we are seeing in Italy is the death of left-wing populism.
Look at Five Star very beautiful Virginia Raggi, who swanned in from nowhere, aged 38, to be elected mayor of Rome in 2016. Five years later, with wild boar roaming the streets amid the uncollected rubbish and buses going up in flames, Raggi did not even make it to the second ballot. In Turin, where the outgoing mayor was another young Five Star woman, the party got just 9 per cent of the vote compared to 30 per cent in 2016.
In a desperate attempt at renaissance, Conte last week deliberately it is certain provoked a crisis for the Draghi government when Five Star Senators refused to take part in a vote last week on a welfare package. The pretext was their objection to a clause in the package authorising the mayor of Rome to start construction of an incinerator to tackle the citys chronic rubbish crisis.
Draghi immediately tendered his resignation even though his coalition won the vote without Five Stars support. President Sergio Mattarella refused to accept his resignation and Draghi agreed to report back to parliament this week. In theory he could govern without Five Star but he refuses on the grounds that his government was formed as a national unity government to tackle the Covid emergency.
Conte no doubt bets that the only way to recuperate his partys lost votes is to abandon the Draghi government, however late in the day, and return Five Star to its origins as the scourge of corrupt elites and saviour of the planet. It is surely too late.
Meanwhile, as Italys left-wing populism collapses, support for right-wing populism in the shape of Brothers of Italy continues to grow. True, the other right-wing populist party, the Lega, has seen support collapse from a high of more than 30 per cent at the 2019 European Parliament elections to 15 per cent now. But it is not Salvini's support for Putin that has lost him consensus. It was his decision to abandon the first Conte government in 2019 in a doomed attempt to force a snap general election which he thought he would win followed by his participation in the Draghi government.
Brothers of Italy, in contrast, has reaped the benefits of remaining in opposition. It was the only major party to refuse to participate in the Draghi government on the not unreasonable grounds that it is yet another Italian government led by an unelected figure (five of the last seven Italian prime ministers were not elected politicians when appointed). The last elected Italian prime minister in the sense of being the leader of the party which got the most votes at a general election was Silvio Berlusconi, who resigned in 2011. That grim statistic is a terrible indictment of the state of democracy in Italy.
Follow this link:
Mario Draghis fall and the death of Italian left-wing populism - The Spectator
- A Clockwork Greenshirt Introducing the Alt Left ... [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2018] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2018]
- Jordan Towers 70news [Last Updated On: March 7th, 2018] [Originally Added On: March 7th, 2018]
- Robert Stark Talks to Ashley Messinger About ... - altleft.com [Last Updated On: March 18th, 2018] [Originally Added On: March 18th, 2018]
- KNOPPIX 8.1.0 - Linux Live System [Last Updated On: March 19th, 2018] [Originally Added On: March 19th, 2018]
- Protesters Try to Shut Down Jordan Peterson at Queen's ... [Last Updated On: April 27th, 2018] [Originally Added On: April 27th, 2018]
- KNOPPIX 8.0.0 - Linux Live System [Last Updated On: May 25th, 2018] [Originally Added On: May 25th, 2018]
- John McCain: Dying Without Dignity - committedconservative.com [Last Updated On: June 10th, 2018] [Originally Added On: June 10th, 2018]
- What is the Alt Left? - American Greatness [Last Updated On: June 29th, 2018] [Originally Added On: June 29th, 2018]
- event object JavaScript - Dottoro [Last Updated On: July 28th, 2018] [Originally Added On: July 28th, 2018]
- Virginia Election Predictions: Will Weather Rain on ... [Last Updated On: August 24th, 2018] [Originally Added On: August 24th, 2018]
- Alt-Left Melts Down Over "Unmasking Antifa" Act | Zero Hedge [Last Updated On: December 19th, 2018] [Originally Added On: December 19th, 2018]
- KNOPPIX 7.4.2 / ADRIANE 1.7 - Live CD / DVD [Last Updated On: December 19th, 2018] [Originally Added On: December 19th, 2018]
- Jacobs Email - IT - Teamwork at Jacobs University [Last Updated On: January 4th, 2019] [Originally Added On: January 4th, 2019]
- KNOPPIX 7.7.1 - Linux Live System [Last Updated On: January 4th, 2019] [Originally Added On: January 4th, 2019]
- KNOPPIX 8.1.0 - Linux Live System - knopper.net [Last Updated On: March 5th, 2019] [Originally Added On: March 5th, 2019]
- The Politically Incorrect Australian [Last Updated On: April 22nd, 2019] [Originally Added On: April 22nd, 2019]
- Lionel Nation - YouTube [Last Updated On: April 22nd, 2019] [Originally Added On: April 22nd, 2019]
- Andrew Yang Rejects Support From White Nationalists ... [Last Updated On: May 1st, 2019] [Originally Added On: May 1st, 2019]
- AltLeft.com "The Left of the AltRight" [Last Updated On: May 2nd, 2019] [Originally Added On: May 2nd, 2019]
- Automate the Boring Stuff with Python [Last Updated On: June 3rd, 2019] [Originally Added On: June 3rd, 2019]
- UI Events KeyboardEvent code Values - World Wide Web ... [Last Updated On: June 3rd, 2019] [Originally Added On: June 3rd, 2019]
- Dont like the facts? Just Schiff the narrative - Boston Herald [Last Updated On: October 1st, 2019] [Originally Added On: October 1st, 2019]
- Netflix vows crackdown on users who share logins with pals or family and could make you pay EXTRA - The Sun [Last Updated On: October 24th, 2019] [Originally Added On: October 24th, 2019]
- Everything Paradox Interactive Announced At PDXCON 2019 - Kotaku Australia [Last Updated On: October 24th, 2019] [Originally Added On: October 24th, 2019]
- The psychology and physiology of propaganda: A study of the radicalization of women - University of Virginia The Cavalier Daily [Last Updated On: January 30th, 2020] [Originally Added On: January 30th, 2020]
- One of the Vail Valley's fur-baby favorites, Dr. Julie Alt, is calling it a career - Vail Daily News [Last Updated On: January 30th, 2020] [Originally Added On: January 30th, 2020]
- Netflix FINALLY lets you turn those annoying autoplaying trailers off heres how - The Sun [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2020]
- Netflix FORCED to remove nine movies after government objections including boozy Jesus party film - The Sun [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2020]
- Netflix trialling 2.99 cheapest ever plan but it only works on smartphones or tablets - The Sun [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2020]
- Netflix offers first-ever FREE movie that you dont need account to watch - The Sun [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2020]
- The Death Throes of the Failed Sandernista Revolution - Real Context News [Last Updated On: March 16th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 16th, 2020]
- Life under lockdown: Italy is being consumed by panic - Spectator.co.uk [Last Updated On: March 16th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 16th, 2020]
- Netflix is testing cheap new mobile-only plan that costs just 2.40 a month - The Sun [Last Updated On: March 16th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 16th, 2020]
- Howie Carr: Its time to wake up sleepy Joe Biden - Boston Herald [Last Updated On: March 16th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 16th, 2020]
- Living in an Italy consumed by fear - The Spectator USA [Last Updated On: March 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 27th, 2020]
- Hungarian Press Roundup: Weeklies on the State of Emergency - Hungary Today [Last Updated On: March 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 27th, 2020]
- Essential Mac keyboard shortcuts and key combinations - Macworld UK [Last Updated On: May 3rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 3rd, 2020]
- AltLeft Shuts Down Toronto Comedy Show Over Words 'Free ... [Last Updated On: May 3rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 3rd, 2020]
- COVID-19 UPDATE: East Hampton Testing Site To Open May 15 - 27east.com [Last Updated On: May 9th, 2020] [Originally Added On: May 9th, 2020]
- Conservative Jews: Do you care about Israel? Then vote Trump out - Forward [Last Updated On: June 21st, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 21st, 2020]
- As shul reopens, can we make it more welcoming to Orthodox women? - Forward [Last Updated On: June 22nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 22nd, 2020]
- End the Civil War Before It Starts: Vote Engel and Schleifer - The Jewish Press - JewishPress.com [Last Updated On: June 22nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: June 22nd, 2020]
- The Rising Blood Tide of The Alt-Left & the Real Threat of Antifa - AmmoLand Shooting Sports News [Last Updated On: July 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 12th, 2020]
- The Shot Heard Roundand Round and Roundthe World - The Dispatch [Last Updated On: July 12th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 12th, 2020]
- Netflix launches shuffle button that plays a random show for viewers who dont know what to watch - The Sun [Last Updated On: July 23rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 23rd, 2020]
- Why the Alt-Left Is a Problem, Too | Vanity Fair [Last Updated On: July 23rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 23rd, 2020]
- What Is Alt-Left? Here's What You Really Need to Know [Last Updated On: July 23rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 23rd, 2020]
- What Is the 'Alt-Left'? For Starters, Not a Thing | WIRED [Last Updated On: July 23rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 23rd, 2020]
- Howie Carr: Alt-left media still cling to their Big (Russia) Lie - Boston Herald [Last Updated On: July 28th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 28th, 2020]
- McCarthyite witch-hunt over alleged anti-Semitism explodes in British Labour Party - WSWS [Last Updated On: August 3rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 3rd, 2020]
- Antifa Berkeley: Why the 'Alt-Left' Is a Problem | Time [Last Updated On: August 7th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 7th, 2020]
- Alt-Right, Alt-Left, Antifa: A Glossary of Extremist ... [Last Updated On: August 7th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 7th, 2020]
- What is the "alt-left" Trump was talking about? - CBS News [Last Updated On: August 7th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 7th, 2020]
- Is There an 'Alt-Left'? - Snopes.com [Last Updated On: August 7th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 7th, 2020]
- Say Goodbye to IITs, IIMs Et Al? NEP 2020 Will Convert Indias Top Institutions Into JNU Copies - Swarajya [Last Updated On: August 10th, 2020] [Originally Added On: August 10th, 2020]
- Checking In With the Newsletter Economy - New York Magazine [Last Updated On: September 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: September 2nd, 2020]
- Resident Evil survival horror TV series is coming to Netflix and fans think its the next Stranger Things - The Sun [Last Updated On: September 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: September 2nd, 2020]
- With Republicans like these, who needs Ds? - The Highland County Press [Last Updated On: September 2nd, 2020] [Originally Added On: September 2nd, 2020]
- Here's Why You Should Never Use the Term "Alt-Left" - POPSUGAR [Last Updated On: September 8th, 2020] [Originally Added On: September 8th, 2020]
- [OPINION] Law and order president? The chaos and violence Trump wants you to be fearful and hateful of is happening now under his watch - Asian... [Last Updated On: September 8th, 2020] [Originally Added On: September 8th, 2020]
- Hungarian Press Roundup: No Compromise in Sight over Theatre and Film University - Hungary Today [Last Updated On: September 8th, 2020] [Originally Added On: September 8th, 2020]
- Slow Joe Biden is a few fries short of a Happy Meal: Howie Carr - Boston Herald [Last Updated On: September 8th, 2020] [Originally Added On: September 8th, 2020]
- Netflix launches its first TV channel that streams shows just like regular telly - The Sun [Last Updated On: November 13th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 13th, 2020]
- Bellingcat's Eliot Higgins on messaging Alexei Navalny to say 'we know who tried to kill you' - iNews [Last Updated On: February 4th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 4th, 2021]
- Hungarian Press Roundup: Two Opposing Views on the Culture War - Hungary Today [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2021]
- Getting Started with Python PyAutoGUI [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2021]
- Sample Macros - Jitbit [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2021]
- I tracked down my Corbynite troll and now he's in prison - The Telegraph [Last Updated On: July 27th, 2022] [Originally Added On: July 27th, 2022]
- Helping Ukraine Not Provoking Russia But a Proper Response to Years of Global Russian Aggression - smallwarsjournal [Last Updated On: July 27th, 2022] [Originally Added On: July 27th, 2022]
- US Gov to Crack Down on "Bossware" That Spies On Employees' Computers [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]
- Chinese Spaceplane Releases Mystery Object Into Orbit [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]
- Hackers Just Took Down One of the World's Most Advanced Telescopes [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]
- AOC Says Her Twitter Account Broke After She Made Fun of Elon Musk [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]
- Huge Drone Swarm to Form Giant Advertisement Over NYC Skyline [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]
- That "Research" About How Smartphones Are Causing Deformed Human Bodies Is SEO Spam, You Idiots [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]
- Jeff Bezos' Housekeeper Says She Had to Climb Out the Window to Use the Bathroom [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]
- Twitter Working on Plan to Charge Users to Watch Videos [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]
- Scientists Use Actual Lunar Soil Sample to Create Rocket Fuel [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]
- NASA Sets Launch Date for Mission to $10 Quintillion Asteroid [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]
- Elon Musk Meeting With Advertisers, Begging Them Not to Leave Twitter [Last Updated On: November 4th, 2022] [Originally Added On: November 4th, 2022]