Saturday 23 March 2013

Berlusconi is everywhere, even on toilet rolls


Mon, 18 March, 2013 (Saint Cyril of Jerusalem). Customs officers of the port of Venice find a container full of toilet paper portraying the former prime minister of Italy, Silvio Berlusconi. 

Toilet rolls with Silvio Berlusconi face that smile at you
Toilet rolls that smile at you
The news was first published by the local newspaper Il Gazzettino, that learned how the port of Venice's authorities informed the Public Prosecutor's office about the finding of a container full of toilet rolls with Silvio Berlusconi's photo printed on it (on any single sheet, to be more precisely, you can find a picture of the media tycoon).

As the newspaper acknowledged “heavy loads of goods with a low market value” might hide cigarettes of other smuggled goods, but this wasn't the case.

Friday 22 March 2013

Berlusconi leaves his worries behind...


Fri, 22 March, 2013. Silvio Berlusconi is portrayed as a driver of a Ford Figo who “leaves his worries behind”, symbolised by Ruby the Heartstealer, Francesca Pascale and Nicole Minetti tied up and gagged in the boot of the car.


Ford Figo Indian advert with Silvio Berlusconi, belly dancer Karima El Mahroug aka Ruby the Heart Breaker, Silvio's girlfriend Francesca Pascale and (former) sweetheart Nicole Minetti
The infamous advert created for Ford India,
with Karima-Ruby, Francesca and Nicole
A drawing appearing on the Ford Figo's ad by Ford India Ltd shows three curvaceous women – namely belly dancer Karima El Mahroug aka Ruby the Heart Breaker, Silvio Berlusconi's girlfriend Francesca Pascale and (former) sweetheart Nicole Minettihands a feet tied, muzzled, in the rear booth of a red car, whilst the former Italian prime minister is sitting in front of the vehicle, at the wheel, smiling and showing the V sign.

«Leave your worries behind with Figo's extra-large boot» reads the claim on the bottom of the page, obviously referring to Silvio's headaches about bunga-bunga parties, sex scandal trials, and other matters related to women.

Not exactly something that Berlusconi would find funny – we presume – and not exactly something in a good taste – we might say – considering the poor record of India in terms of behaviour of men towards women.

Tuesday 19 March 2013

Berlusconi and the trial over the obscure bribing


Tue, 19 March, 2013. Neapolitan tribunal rejects “immediate judgement” in latest Silvio Berlusconi's proceedings for bribing members of the Senate of Italy, following the “Operazione Libertà” inquiry.

Sergio De Gregorio, unintentional target of a bribe paid by Silvio Berlusconi
Sergio De Gregorio, unintentional target of a bribery?
“Operazione Libertà” (“Operation Freedom”) was the name that - back in 2006 and 2007 - Silvio Berlusconi gave to a series of actions taken in order to “acquire” politicians from the Romano Prodi led left-wing coalition and bring to an end the Prodi II Cabinet, basically a bunch of Communists (as Silvio would put it, and actually a few parties of the coalition did have the “Communist” word in their name).

During the “Operation Freedom”, some of the Senators from IdV (former magistrate Antonio “Tonino” Di Pietro's movement, “Italia dei Valori”, in English: “Italy of values”) – Antonio Razzi, Domenico Scilipoti and Sergio De Gregorio – switched side and became staunch defenders of Silvio Berlusconi (some of them up to his resignation in 2011).