World News Today - Article II
By Noah Alter
What’s going on in Italy?
Silvio Berlusconi was the premier of Italy. A premier is similar to the prime minister of Canada or United Kingdom and the president of the United States. He was basically forced out of office this past Saturday. Giorgio Napolitano (the president of Italy) plans to ask Mario Monti to try to form an intermediate government once Berlusconi resigned. The president of Italy in my opinion is similar to a monarch figurehead like her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth II of England. During his last term, he was known for his sex scandals, “bunga bunga” parties and criminal charges that he paid a 17-year-old girl to have sex, but he denies his actions. His bunga bunga antics and legal troubles aside, Berlusconi’s biggest shortcoming is to have failed to put in place the “liberal revolution” that he promised in 1994. The Silvio Berlusconi era is finally over. Every year, 90,000 people leave the country of Italy and nearly a million in the last decade, due to a shortage of jobs. The people believe that post-Berlusconi’s Italy is going to be chaotic. Mario Monti’s government found out that they have to pay as much to borrow money as the previous (Berlusconi) administration. Italy had to pay 6.29% already to raise 3 billion euro (over 4 billion USD) of five-year money plan; considerably higher than the 5.3% stated only a month ago. Jens Weidmann, president of the German Bundesbank & Member of the 23-strong ECB governing council told FT, he doesn’t think anything has changed at all. “What we are facing in Italy is a small confidence crisis and only the Italian government can resolve that crisis,” he said. The German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in her speech to her CDU party that “political union” is the main goal to make changes to EU (Europe) treaties to put a budgetary discipline across the eurozone (all countries that partake in the euro currency) in action. People believe that until the problem is acted upon, the eurozone seems no closer to fixing the issue. Italy has the third largest bond market in the whole world follow Japan and the United States with debts of around 120% of national income. The Chancellor of Germany said, “If the euro fails then Europe will fail.” A lot of the people in Italy blame Silvio Berlusconi for are inability to properly lead a country. I find it quite strange that they act on him now, when he didn’t get in trouble previously for is immoral acts with many young women, but I don’t know the answer to that. Italy is now looking to basically reform the government of their country. Stay tuned for more information.
**Some of this content was taken from The Guardian News in the U.K.**
By Noah Alter
What’s going on in Italy?
Silvio Berlusconi was the premier of Italy. A premier is similar to the prime minister of Canada or United Kingdom and the president of the United States. He was basically forced out of office this past Saturday. Giorgio Napolitano (the president of Italy) plans to ask Mario Monti to try to form an intermediate government once Berlusconi resigned. The president of Italy in my opinion is similar to a monarch figurehead like her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth II of England. During his last term, he was known for his sex scandals, “bunga bunga” parties and criminal charges that he paid a 17-year-old girl to have sex, but he denies his actions. His bunga bunga antics and legal troubles aside, Berlusconi’s biggest shortcoming is to have failed to put in place the “liberal revolution” that he promised in 1994. The Silvio Berlusconi era is finally over. Every year, 90,000 people leave the country of Italy and nearly a million in the last decade, due to a shortage of jobs. The people believe that post-Berlusconi’s Italy is going to be chaotic. Mario Monti’s government found out that they have to pay as much to borrow money as the previous (Berlusconi) administration. Italy had to pay 6.29% already to raise 3 billion euro (over 4 billion USD) of five-year money plan; considerably higher than the 5.3% stated only a month ago. Jens Weidmann, president of the German Bundesbank & Member of the 23-strong ECB governing council told FT, he doesn’t think anything has changed at all. “What we are facing in Italy is a small confidence crisis and only the Italian government can resolve that crisis,” he said. The German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in her speech to her CDU party that “political union” is the main goal to make changes to EU (Europe) treaties to put a budgetary discipline across the eurozone (all countries that partake in the euro currency) in action. People believe that until the problem is acted upon, the eurozone seems no closer to fixing the issue. Italy has the third largest bond market in the whole world follow Japan and the United States with debts of around 120% of national income. The Chancellor of Germany said, “If the euro fails then Europe will fail.” A lot of the people in Italy blame Silvio Berlusconi for are inability to properly lead a country. I find it quite strange that they act on him now, when he didn’t get in trouble previously for is immoral acts with many young women, but I don’t know the answer to that. Italy is now looking to basically reform the government of their country. Stay tuned for more information.
**Some of this content was taken from The Guardian News in the U.K.**
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