Category: Società

The wrong person at the wrong place

In Italy an environment minister should be a subversive.

Someone trying (calmly and step by step but firmly and without wavering) to inverse the prevalent approach to development in our country.

Someone indicating, with small but meaningful actions, a way over the myth of eternal production growth.

Now this Mr Clini seems to be the wrong person at the wrong place.

Not happy of keeping supporting the nuclear option before and after Fukushima, he is lobbying for the interests of the steel industry against the preoccupations for health and security of the workers and the population.

Of course, there could be some grounds in that position, but that is not the environment ministry position indeed, and does not reflect the priorities and vision we would expect from a person (and an ‘expert’ person, in this case) holding that post.

Solution is always the same: handing in resignation as soon as possible.

‘Si Logo’

I did a simple exercise: noting down the first 10 trademarks which came to my mind.  Here the result:

Coca Cola, Nike, Adidas, Barilla, De Cecco, Apple, Pettinicchio, Ferrero, Timberland, Leonidas.

Only one non  ‘internationalised’, few of Italian origin, one from the country of my actual residence.

Globalisation is a fact.

Try the game ….

G as Great Game

The Great Game (lousy translation for the Italian ‘Grande Gioco’; which as the advantage to keep the double G initial, though) is an amazing experience of the scout tradition.

Usually, it consisted of a half day activity, with the group divided in two factions fighting for the accomplishment of some objective.

Strategy, strength, shrewdness, group-relation, mutual trust, role-playing, patience and some courage were involved.

Even more in the night version: ‘Grande Gioco Notturno’, when the darkness and the ability to move in an unknown environment contributed to the excitement.

There were different fighting techniques, and most of the time the introduction to the Game was a story about some exotic and long-lasting conflict.

It was something magic, especially at the beginning (8-9 years old) but also when planning and managing the activity as an adult.

I think those games served to prepare for other kind of endeavour later on.

F as Finger (the small one)

I broke my little finger playing volleyball.  It couldn’t stand right, but tended to bow.  No pain, though.

I went to the hospital and they said that a chirurgical intervention was needed.

I politely declined.   

Then my mother suggested keeping it straight with an ice cream stick (actually it was a ‘cremino’). 

And it worked. 

I can’t recognize one from the other anymore.

dita

I know, this is not the small one ….

I am a simple person

That’s what I said at my last job interview.
Later on, I wondered if I hadn’t add a ring to the chain of improper comments I started many years ago.
How to forget the “J’ai deja donne’ “ (in French = I have given already) when asked about possible deployment in a war-torn country. I immediately visualized the main interviewer crossing my name in his list with a big red X.
Or when, for a possible post in Roma, I declared that yes, the job was interesting, but I had many other things to do at the same time.
In a follow up call the man announced: “we recruited the ant and not the cicada”.
This time I doubted that having presented myself as a simple person corresponded to having admitted to be a stupid one.
And that meaning is among the possible ones, indeed.
But, according to a google research, the most frequent references are to ‘living easy, liking simple thing, not being complicated’. There is also a dedicated web group.   I have got the post.