A new contender in Italian politics shows a promising first election in the February 2013 election.  In a play for power that features familiar faces such as the pope-backed Mario Monti and former disgraced Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, the Stop the Decline party offers a libertarian-focused platform that promises to reduce taxes on Italians by 5% over the next 5 years. 

The party has received notable attention recently in its perceivably credible roadmap to achieving its goals of reducing Italy’s growing massive debt.  Stop the Decline represents a compelling case study in its entrance into Italian politics.  Its adept use of social media has been particularly effective in getting the party noticed.  In addition to its novel use of technology, its founding economists are imports from the United States including Michele Boldrin of Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri; Sandro Brusco of Stony Brook University in New York State; and Andrea Moro of Vanderbilt University in Tennessee.

Despite the momentum the party brings to the election, it has also had its share of controversy.  Stop the Decline’s candidate for prime minister, Oscar Giannino, earlier in the election resigned the party’s leadership, yet remained the prime minister candidate, after he was caught lying about his academic credentials from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.  His claim of having a masters degree in “Corporate Finance and Public Finance” turned out to be fabricated.  In fact, Giannino did not even attain a bachelor’s degree.  However, this controversy pales in comparison with what Italian voters are used to.  The exit of Berlusconi amidst his allegations of corruption are still fresh on the minds of Italian voters.  Ironically, the former prime minister is predicted to perform better than Giannino, whose party is still trying to establish its platform and its mission with Italian politics.

For further information:

http://www.ibtimes.com/oscar-giannino-italys-most-fashionable-politician-resigns-slideshow-1097020

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/21/world/europe/21iht-italy21.html?ref=italy&_r=0

On Monday, February 11, 2013, Pope Benedict sent shockwaves throughout the world.  For the first time in seven centuries, the Pope resigned.  Along with the 1.2 billion Catholics, the rest of the world sits and waits for Conclave, where the Cardinals will elect a new Pope.   There is, however, another election looming even closer than Conclave.  This Sunday, the Italians will go to the polls and elect a new Prime Minister. 

There are two contenders this year, incumbent Mario Monti, and the widely polarizing Silvio Berlusconi.  Experts have widely speculated that the somber mood the Pope’s resignation has created in Italy will bode well for Monti, as he has the backing of Pope Benedict XVI.  Monti is an Italian economist who was invited by President Napolitano to become the Prime Minister in the wake of Silvio Berlusconi’s resignation in 2011.  Monti, described as a “practicing Catholic,” is one of the first technocrats to assume the position.  Many think because of the debt issues currently facing the country, the Italians will choose the incumbent on election day. 

The second candidate, Silvio Berlusconi, always seems to be in the spotlight.  The resignation of the Pope, and his subsequent endorsement of Monti, will have some effect, probably negative, on Berlusconi’s election chances.  Amidst his many scandals,  Berlusconi, still appears to be a contender for the position. 

Soon enough the Catholic Church will have its new leader, but even sooner, the Italians will have a Prime Minister, either the same one, or one that resigned just over a year ago.

Three Americans, which includes a former CIA station chief, were convicted Friday, February 1^st as a result of an abduction of an Egyptian terror suspect from a Milan street as a part of the CIA’s extraordinary extradition program. The three were convicted in absentia by a Milan appeals court. The men were previously acquitted by a lower court in 2009. Their convictions mean that, in all, 26 Americans have been found guilty for the abduction.

The convictions in this case had historical implications, as they were the first convictions ever levied against CIA agents who were allegedly involved in conduct that led to torture. Rome station chief Jeffrey Castelli was sentenced to seven years in prison. Betnie Medero and Ralph Russomando were each issued six-year sentences.

None of the Americans ever either appeared in court or been in Italian custody, and they can potentially be arrested if they travel to Europe. Last year, Italy’s highest court upheld (in absentia) the convictions of the other 23 Americans involved in the kidnapping of the suspect, Osama Moustafa Hassan Nasr. Upon his abduction, Nasr was transferred to two different U.S. military bases in Europe, and then was flow to Egypt. It was in Egypt where Nasr claims he was tortured. Nasr was later released.

For more information:

http://www.leaderpost.com/news/Three+convicted+kidnap+case/7908783/story.html

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/wireStory/milan-court-convicts-americans-cia-kidnapping-18375601

Our next look at this year’s Digest authors explores the work and background of Susan Tejada.  Tejada formerly worked for the National Geographic Society as editor-in-chief of National Geographic World magazine.  She has also written and edited books about geography made for young readers, including Dig It: How to Collect Rocks and Minerals (Reader’s Digest Explorer Guides) and Geo-whiz! (Books for World Explorers).

Tejada was born and raised in Providence, Rhode Island.  In Chautauqua, New York, she took part in the Highlights Foundation summer Writers’ Workshop, teaching non-fiction writing for young readers.  Tejada volunteered for two years with the Peace Corps in the Philippines.  There she taught classes and edited the Peace Corps/Philippines national magazine.  Tejada has also been an associate editor of EPA Journal, in which she worked as a reporter of environmental issues.

Recently, Tejada was the recipient of a research fellowship from the Lilly Library of Indiana University.  With this, she did the research for her latest book, In Search of Sacco and Vanzetti:  Double Lives, Troubled Times, and the Massachusetts Murder Case That Shook the World.  In September of 2012, Tejada was featured at the Library of Congress National Book Festival for this work of nonfiction about the controversial trial of two Italian-born anarchists who were convicted of robbery and murder.  A starred review in Booklist says In Search of Sacco and Vanzetti has “the suspense and engagement of a good thriller . . . [with the] . . . “perceptive history of early twentieth-century radicalism.”

Sources:

http://susantejada.com

http://www.amazon.com/Susan-Tejada/e/B001K8CGTO/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0

http://www.loc.gov/bookfest/author/susan_tejada/