143.3 road deaths per million inhabitants, Belgium
137.7 France
112 Italy
66.5 Sweden
57.6 Great Britain
5 license plate forgery rings (est.), Italy
It may come as a surprise that notoriously reckless Italian drivers are in the middle of the road for road accident victims in comparison with European counterparts according to OSCE data, but less surprising that Italian motorists might be considered the most cunning of drivers. Police in several Italian cities recently uncovered highly sophisticated forgery rings used to outsmart electronic monitoring devices.

For 900 euro, drivers tired of increasing restrictions for traffic in city centers could purchase a copy of someone else’s license plate, insurance documents and circulation papers. The ring was discovered when officials at the Naples department of motor vehicles were inundated with protests over tickets from car owners who didn’t live in the Southern city. The scandal soon spread to Milan and Rome, where investigators uncovered some drivers with faked plates had violated pedestrian zones some 200 times in a month. The traffic department of the capital has since set up a online protest form and been deluged with requests to reconsider tickets.
"I don’t exclude the possibility that the investigation goes before the judges for criminal charges," said head of Roman traffic police Angelo Giuliani. "We’re examining the photos with a magnifier and in some cases the strategy for altering the plates are obvious. We’ll see."

Further proof that little escapes the long arm of Italian bureaucracy: in addition to helmets and capes, the ‘soldiers’ posing with tourists outside Rome’s coliseum will also be armed with a license.
Officials of the Eternal City have decided to regulate costumed poseurs in an effort to keep fees down and give a certain dignity to the enterprise — only historically accurate costumes will be allowed.
The create-your-own job scheme, classic example of the Italian mastery of the art of getting by, will now require a background check and knowledge of English.

Currently about a hundred costumed men wander outside of the monument trying to catch the attention of tourists, but even that will soon be no more: the new rules will give each centurion a few square meters to stand in and any breaching of territory — along with charging more than standard rate — will warrant a heavy slap of fine.

"The rules will let this new professional figure emerge," said city council member Daniela Valentini, who added that rules are expected to be approved by the end of 2002. "Visitors will also enjoy it more and be sure to pay the right fee."

Every eventuality hasn’t been covered by the new rules. In fact, these extras on the set of Rome’s history have made a special request to the city council — permission to be equipped with a Polaroid camera — and charge an extra fee if they’re asked to take pictures.

Related resources:
Route 66 A.D. : On the Trail of Ancient Roman Tourists
No license needed for this ancient tour….

59% of Italian family talk dominated by soccer
2 week delay in soccer season
+ 32% Italians more aggressive

This micro-poll of divorce lawyers predicts a rough moment for Italian couples faced with a late start in the soccer season — without the national sport they will become more aggressive, prone to stray and have little to talk about. Perhaps also hoping for a boom in their own business, the 300 lawyers polled said that soccer occupies a fundamental place in the Italian family and the absence will be negatively felt. The precious ‘buffer space’ that the sport holds for many couples will lead to incomprehension, bickering and a decline in the quality of sex according to the lawyers. The much-awaited soccer season, pushed back because of player shuffles and administrative/financial woes, should start on Sept. 15.

Related resources:
A Season with Verona: Travels Around Italy in Search of Illusion, National Character, and…Goals!
English writer Tim Parks takes a close-up look at the world of Italian soccer…

If you’re interested in leading Italy, a new course organized by current Premier Silvio Berlusconi could help you reach the goal. A three-day ‘training course’ for politicians held in the medieval jewel of Gubbio (Umbria) this week.

The billionaire, often referred to simply as The Knight, has long been recognized for revolutionizing the Italian political scene — borrowing easy-to-remember sports metaphors, using snappy songs, slogans and marketing campaigns worthy of his mainstream television networks. He has often doled out advice for his Forza Italia candidates, most notably to avoid eating garlic and have a firm handshake, but this is Italy’s first political boot camp.

"The setting is similar to a spiritual retreat," explained spokesperson Sandro Bondi. "It’s the right place for an exchange of experiences for people from all over Italy." The town, currently governed by the left, may also remind would-be leaders of future challenges.

Politics, apparently, aren’t Berlusca’s only forte — newspapers reported today that three soccer stars who accompanied him on a morning jog were all practically k.o. by the portly premier. After the run, Guido Viceconte was confined to bed for the rest of the day while Mario Pepe says he almost had a heart attack and Antonio Tajani confessed that he, too, had to take it easy for the rest of the day.

Related resources:
www.forzaitalia.com
the official party site….

Rome’s Colosseum, ancient symbol of blood sport, has become a beacon for protesting against the death penalty. Over the next few evenings, the project called “The Colusseum Illuminates Life” will brighten summer nights as a reminder of the value of human life.Filled with tourists during the day, one of the eternal city’s most famous monuments goes dark at night — but some 20 times this year it has lit up in protest or for celebration. Last week, in fact, the Colosseum brightened to celebrate the suspension of 30 planned executions in Guatemala. Some 46% of Italians are against the death penalty — and actively protest executions around the world.

www.capitolium.org/eng/virtuale/webview.htm
The next lighting-up, Tuesday Aug. 6 — have a look with this webcam

30 million Italians on vacation (est.)
6,300 flights over weekend
10 mile back-ups (average) on autostrade
6 cops sent from North to keep law in South

About half the country is on vacation the first two weeks in August, known as the ‘summer exodus.’ Most Italians spent the first hours of a much- awaited break in line on the autostrada — in some places like Barberino and Firenze sud up to 25 miles. Despite campaigns urging Italians to take vacations in alternate periods, both Premier Silvio Berlusconi and President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi are relaxing on the isle of Sardinia. Berlusconi is vacationing at his Costa Smeralda villa, with guests including British Prime Minister Tony Blair and family.

Those vacationing on the beautiful isle of Procida (near Naples) will have to mind their manners — the law will be enforced by a police force from Bergamo. The summer reinforcements raised more than a few eyebrows since the police come from a stronghold of secessionist party Lega Nord to keep law in the presumably laissez-faire South.
"We needed someone from outside to keep things above board," said mayor Luigi Muro. "We all know each other here and sometimes that isn’t a good thing." The regular police force, 13 strong, can’t keep up with the nearly tripled summer population.

Related resources:
Eating in Italy: A Traveler’s Guide to Hidden Gastronomic Pleasures
Required reading for your next Italy visit…

28.7% Italian men work Saturdays
21.3% EU men work Saturdays
31.7% Italian women work Saturdays
24.2% EU women work Saturdays

Statistics bear out what many residents of the Bel Paese have long suspected: the country’s legendary disorganization doesn’t lead to a more relaxed lifestyle but in fact a longer working week.
The numbers, which come from a Eurostat study, show that ‘laid back’ Italians work more than supposedly nose-to-the-grindstone counterparts in countries like Germany, Denmark and the UK. Sundays, however, are still considered a day of rest for most Italians — only 7.4% men and 5.7% of women work the last day of the week, compared to the EU average of 10.7%.

A plate of the national dish will take on a new significance when ‘anti-Mafia pasta’ arrives on Italian store shelves in the fall. A courageous anti-Mafia group is reaping the fruits of a protracted battle with local organized crime: they’re harvesting the first grain from confiscated fields of Mafia boss Tot? Riina and his relatives the Grizzafi family near Corleone, in Sicily.

This is the second time a small cooperative led by local priest Don Ciotti, has re-appropriated Mafia land for a symbolic harvest. In April 2001, the olive oil made from groves of fugitive Sicilian Mafia baron Bernardo Provenzano was transformed into holy oil used to baptize babies, in confirmation ceremonies and to administer last rites in Turin.

The ‘anti-Mafia pasta,’ expected to be available in the COOP supermarket chain in the fall, may have to crowd in with local products emblazoned with the Corleone brand, which the city government decided to use on local milk and cheese products capitalizing on the notorious town name. Notable residents of the town of 11,000 in the province of Palermo include fugitive boss Bernardo Provenzano and clan head Totò Riina, currently serving several life sentences. Corleone will also ring a bell with consumers because of "the Godfather" films, thanks to the fictional family called of the same name.?1999-2004 zoomata.com

Zoomata is the brainchild of a bilingualjournalist based in Italy who thinks out of the box. This brain is for hire.