The weapons of mass distraction - UK minister Jack Straw, obviously distracted
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Italy wants to regulate Google and Youtube
THE FORMER MEMBER of the illegal right-wing masonic paramilitary P2, Silvio Berlusconi, is using his role as Italy's cathedral headbutting Prime Minister to push through legislation to prevent Italians from watching Youtube and other Internet video sites in a bid to defend his media empire.
Silvio Berlusconi is concerned that his media empire, which is based on some of the worst television in the world and targeted at Italy's elderly, will suffer from Italians having access to Youtube. After all hip replacement surgery is better than watching Berlusconi's endless parade of reality shows and game shows filmed in aircraft hangers with casts of thousands. By comparison, Youtube must seem pretty attractive even to the elderly.
While bloodthirsty right-wing media moguls like Rupert Murdoch do not have overt control of governments, Berlusconi is going to have a law fast-tracked that will effectively force Youtube, Dailymotion and the like to submit their content to an Italian government agency for approval, that is, censorship. In Italy this agency will probably be headed by someone who, even if not exactly a political mate of Berlusconi's, certainly would not want to annoy him too much.
Not surprisingly Google, press freedom watchdogs and telecom providers are among those pressing for changes in the draft decree, which they say would erode freedom of expression and order the technically impossible. But Berlusconi does not care if the system does not work. It just means that Youtube will have to leave Italy to his empire, where most shows feature young women practically hanging out of their revealing clothing but children only appear on singing shows as cute, talented, wearing braces and dressed 40 years out of date.
Ironically Berlusconi is insisting that his law is vital to protect children from content harmful to minors, that is, pornography and excessive violence. But the irony that he, a pint-sized serial philanderer whose own wife is divorcing him over his constant womanising with girls a third of his age, is pretending to lecture people on morals seems to have escaped him.
If he was defending children from porn he would have purged his own channel from smut first. That would mean removing the apparent rules that insist on intrusive lingering panning shots of women's legs. Nor would his channel be wall to wall with big breasted women whose only function is to stand there, thrust out their chests and giggle. Berlusconi television makes Benny Hill seem sophisticated and we can see why he is dead keen to shut down the Youtube menace.
Berlusconi's new law will require telecoms providers to shut down any Internet site not in compliance or face fines ranging from €150 to €150,000.
However some of the Italian press somewhat cynically noticed that the draft law was penned in mid-December, just around the same time the media empire founded by Berlusconi announced it was seeking at least €500 million in damages against Youtube and Google for allegedly misusing video it produced. Now it can make Google an offer it can't refuse: Pay up and do as you are told or we will shove this law through.
Again this is deeply ironic as some of the most popular shows on Berlusconi's television channel are repackaged Youtube clips.
Google initially insisted that the move would "destroy the Internet" in Italy. However it is looking like even the law drafters are starting to have second thoughts about it. Berlusconi is still popular in Italy, particularly because many of the other politicians here are seen as being corrupt and never doing anything, while Berlusconi is seen as just being corrupt.
However he is starting to slip on popularity polls and he lost a crucial law that he tried to shove through that would have prevented him from being criminally prosecuted for his business transgressions. As details of his sordid love life are becoming public he is starting to lose the support of Italy's conservatives as well, so angering the young might not be a good idea.
Someone might lob something harder than a plaster miniature of Milan Cathedral at him. µ
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..but i was wrong
1st) since a politician should care about people's welfare, Our Beloved Leader is not a politician: he only cares about himself and his wallet.
2nd) his tvs don't target elderlies only: c'mon, everybody and his dog over here drools on good-sized boobs! That's the best brain-washer available
3rd) Don't bash just Our Beloved Leader! The whole of our political class could be replaced by an army of haymen and it wouldn't change much!
(therefore)
4th) It wasn't him who thought all that: he's too dumb! Want a proof? Whenever he's got to speak withouth a script, he cover himself and his country in shame (or something else that begins by sh-, but ends in -it).
I'm saying HIS country, because even though I'm technically a citizen, I reject my citizenship!
Remember what japanese used to say: you only sleep in the bed you made. This is the bed we've made for ourselves.... so we plenty deserve this.
Hopefully, someone will invade this country, one day or another!
if Nick can make it out of Rome alive - after posting such an article.
I did not know that there was internet available in Italy. :)
I also live in Italy, this article is a piece of TRASH !! Now I know that this site is a Communist junk !!
i'm italian and i live in italy. sadly,i have to confirm all that nick has written. err, no.. berlusconi's popular support isn't diminishing.
I didn't understand your sense of humor.
You should check your facts. Who was lying about so called weapons of mass destruction ? Who was cheating his wife with a 19 year old girl ?.
It 's funny you talk about brainwashing as Berlusconi is a specialist about brainwashing people with his junk tvs.
Internet is a real place of democracy (at least for the fortunate people on earth who can afford a computer) You can say your opinion and people can read it or not. People who work in the dark to censor it are the bad guys.
"result is always bad news."
oh tongue in cheek
I really don't understand how people can claim the media is a left wing conspiracy when it's owned by the big business right.
Just like everywhere else in the world!
That is the main reason why Barack Hussein Obama got elected... the Left-Wing machine turned him into a god wannabe that had to be loved and trusted. Go figure!
In Italy it's just the same. Unions and Left-Wing control tv networks, even Mediaset owned by Berlusconi is full of Left-Wing people, the majority of those working there are Left-Wing fanatics just like those on Sky and Rai italian channels.
It's not that hard to figure out by yourselves watching channels on satellites.
All this babbling against Berlusconi is really pathetic and based on nothing more than the greedy desire for power that the Left-Wing has in every country. Whoever doesn't agree with them and dares to try affecting their power force becomes a threat and the Left-Wing brainwashing machine starts telling that he/she is an evil dictator and other nonsense lies.
The same happened with all the lies against Bush both senior and son.
Regardless of left-right labels, everyone should be concerned when media and government merge: result is always bad news.
Well, considering Berlusconi owns the media and try to redefine law according to his personal interest and censor internet, I don't know if I could still call that a democracy. When one man detains so much power, that would look more like a dictature to me.
But you're right, people are sometimes so like sheeps.
The same here in France, Napoleon wants to censor internet too. Is there a global conspiracy ?
Joerg, the author of the article was referring to the masonic lodge P2 when he wrote "illegal" not to PDL or Forza Italia. Although it takes a lot of good will to effectively distinguish any italian party from any illegal organization...
This affirms Italians suffer from short men syndrome. Constantly barking like little doggys that accidentally get stepped on.
How dare the journalist to tell that the right-wing PDL would be an illegal party,uh? The PDL is a legal democratic party that won democratic elections in Italy just like Forza Italia did before it.
How comes that such a communistic journalist is allowed to insult Italian citizens voting for a Right-Wing party,uh?
The Left-Wing worldwide along with its puppets on tv and news seem really unable to accept basic democratic rules.
You should pay respect for citizens that with absolute freedom in a democratic country like Italy voted for Berlusconi and the PDL party.
Learn to respect those you don't agree with !