On learning something once and for all, bankers wouldn’t make it as bricklayers, Madoff’s $50bn lesson to the mortals of the world

Hobbes, in June last year we bumped into one of my girlfriend’s friend and her husband.
Me, an amateur entrepreneur (if that is possible) trying to make ends meet.
Him, a successful London-NYC currency trader friends with movie stars, up and coming successful Spanish tennis players, and hooked on luxury hotels, cars and vacations.

On the leaders we deserve and the end of the Alitalia saga

Back in June, right when il corrotto Berlusconi won the now seemingly annual Italian elections on a cocktail of populism and general amnesia, I warned of one of his very electoral promises (keeping Alitalia Italian and afloat) was nothing but cheap talk.
Well, as we are used to by now, the electoral promises of the politician [...]

On smart timing, Ireland says No to the Lisbon treaty and Berlusconi uses the turmoil to score a goal to every decent Italian

It is a sad day Hobbes.
The EU seems to be in turmoil because the Irish just rejected the Lisbon Treaty or the EU Constitution with a different name. Well, I guess that was one of the two plausible results, so I don’t yet get why words as strong words crop up, since from the very [...]

On Berlusconi illegalising phone bugging for personal benefit

Oh dear, no sooner Mr Berlusconi took over the Italian government, when he started using the country as his own personal playground. Who the hell came out with il Cavalieri as his nickname? Il Corrotto would have been better.
It reads like a “Dictatorship for Dummies” book. First of all, secure the elections by supporting an [...]

On everlasting bad news on the air industry

Well, well, well, it seems that our friends at Delta and Northwest airlines finally got it right and their pilots decided to drop their selfishness –don’t ask a NWA pilot, still not convinced- and agree on who will be who within the new married airline (apparently forming the world’s largest airline in terms of traffic).
The [...]

On Alitalia’s trade union lack of realism and long-term vision

Hobbes,
I don’t know if I am the only one seeing a pattern here, but it seems that Italy, and the air and banking industries keep topping up the ranking of self-interested/head-buried-in-the sand headlines.
Combining a few of them together, and after over a year on the papers, we’ve got the Alitalia saga. Reportedly, a grotesquely malfunctioning [...]

On public trust and Italian public relations

Hobbes, I guess that continuing on my cheese series of late, I cannot but comment on the similarities between Bear Stearns management and the Italian government (and I am not talking here about Alitalia, or Fiat, or Autostrada, or Banca Antonveneta or… c’mon! what’s wrong with these people!).
As you may know by now, my obvious [...]