Mal-Pensa

Mal-Pensa

Poor Cav, even now that he has flown to the heavens, they are still arguing over him, looking to the skies because it’s the plaque in his name at Malpensa Airport that is the cause of the discord. Just a few months ago, when Salvini made the announcement, Italians, as usual, were divided in two. The Guelfs said it was fine, that it was right, that he had been a great man, a statesman, a giant of our time, a genius from concrete to TV, from football to politics; meanwhile, the Ghibellines replied that no, Berlusconi was surely above average but dominated by shadows and a long, troubled judicial record. Even his heirs frowned: we were not informed, and perhaps too little time has passed since his death.

Ah, death! Generally, due to the intrinsic force of its mission, it erases controversies along with biological lives. In distance and physical absence, negative things are overcome and justified. And besides, Cav didn’t stain himself with crimes, especially not mass crimes, and he was certainly and objectively a virtuous expression of his Lombardy, primarily on a business level. Or should we deny that thousands of families still rely on the salaries regularly paid by Mediaset? Yes, because not all publishers pay or pay on time. And should we even talk about the thousands of others benefitting from him, from football to politics?

The fact remains that the mayor of Milan, Sala, has announced he will appeal to the TAR (Regional Administrative Court) along with other Lombard municipalities. That plaque non s’ha da fare, they say in a Manzonian manner. Although the “don Rodrigo” of the situation seems more to be Cav than the increasingly frail mayor of a city that has far bigger issues than a plaque that many care little about. Many Milanese, on the other hand, are thinking of leaving the city, which is becoming increasingly expensive and unsafe, perhaps moving to a house in the countryside near Malpensa, among the birds, the airplanes, and the divisive memorial plaques—a lesser evil compared to the Moroccan baby gangs that stab you.

Let’s be clear: perhaps it could have been avoided, but once said, how sad it is to still argue over poor Silvio. Who knows how he’s taking it while watching the air traffic from above at the most inconvenient airport in Europe!