Posted on 03/06/2005 5:27:49 PM PST by saquin
Politicians of all parties denounced prime minister Silvio Berlusconi's dealings with America yesterday after an Italian hostage negotiator was killed and a journalist wounded by US forces in Iraq.
An American patrol opened fire on the car carrying Giuliana Sgrena to the airport near Baghdad, turning what should have been the joyous end of her month-long kidnapping into a tragedy.
Mrs Sgrena, 56, was wounded in the shoulder but survived. Nicola Calipari, 51, the Italian agent who had helped secure her release, died in a hail of bullets, as he threw himself over her to protect her.
At least 10,000 people filed past Mr Calipari's body as it lay in state in Rome yesterday and politicians called on Mr Berlusconi to set aside his pro-American stance and take a hard line with his ally, President George W Bush.
Romano Prodi, the opposition leader, said he hoped the government would know "how to get to the bottom of the truth". He added: "All of us, 57 million Italians, have a right to know what happened."
Oliviero Diliberto, the head of the Communist party, which is in the main Left-wing bloc led by Mr Prodi, said: "I don't believe a word of the American version. The Americans deliberately fired on Italians. This is huge. All of the centre-Left must vote in parliament for the withdrawal of our troops."
From within Mr Berlusconi's centre-Right coalition, Gianni Alemanno, the agriculture minister, spoke out, saying: "Italy must defend its honour.
"We may be trusted allies, but we cannot give the impression of being subordinate."
Bobo Craxi, an ally, and the son of the late premier Bettino Craxi, attacked Mr Berlusconi's "subordinacy" to the US.
He demanded that he stand up to Mr Bush, "even to the point of risking a break in relations", as his father had done to President Reagan in 1985, when he refused to hand over Palestinian terrorists to America.
Other loyalists voiced support for Mr Berlusconi. "The military mission must carry on because it consolidates democracy in Iraq," said Maurizio Gasparri, the communications minister.
Meanwhile the Left-wing Il Manifesto daily, for which Mrs Sgrena works and which is strongly opposed to the occupation of Iraq, quickly sold out of all its editions yesterday.
On its front page, an article dictated from her hospital bed in Rome claimed the Americans may have targeted her because of US opposition to Italy's policy of dealing with kidnappers.
Italian government sources said a large ransom was almost certainly paid.
The commie b*tch is lying.
It rhymes with Venus Envy.
This is what it's all about. The bottom line -- withdrawal of Italian troops; the truth be damned.
"Oliviero Diliberto, the head of the Communist party, which is in the main Left-wing bloc led by Mr Prodi, said: 'I don't believe a word of the American version. The Americans deliberately fired on Italians. This is huge. All of the centre-Left must vote in parliament for the withdrawal of our troops.' "
Well, well. An Italian Communist is offended by Americans. Cry me a river.
US soldiers would not follow orders to assassinate Italians, but if they did, they would finish the job.
It's that simple.
The story being given the most press around the world today is simply not believable by intelligent people. Which means the far left accepts it as gospel.
Italy has a Communist party that is as much a burr in Berlusconi's side as the Dems are in W's.
Our Dems want W to kowtow to the European Communists, and Berlusconi's Communists want the same thing. We're all lucky that the strongest countries like the US, England and Italy are led by strong men like Bush, Blair and Berlusconi.
But that doesn't mean that any of them are free from pressure by the other side. It's really only a question of how strong their supporters are and how long they can last.
After all, no major change has ever been short or smooth. The only question is whether these guys can last long enough to give the democracy movement strong roots.
Part of my point on the other thread is that vast swaths of Europe are just as anti-American as Guiliana.
And, you know, if American "bloggers" begin to take these journalists on in foreign countries for their inaccuracies, those journalists are going to fight back. Their ego demands no less. That is when you have like minded bloggers jump into the fray to add their in country perspective. A unified offensive from inside the country and out against those like Sgrena.
At first it'll barely make a ripple but the weakness of these journalists to respond is universal. They'll respond to us, and they'll respond to those in country. Curiosity will lead Italians to visit the sites. It will result in a, for example, growing influence of an Italian alternative news forum that consumers will begin to frequent more. The same can be applied to every country.
The right person(s) could seize on the potential inherant here and make this a global enterprise to open up the press to competition. To expose bias.
BTW.
I told someone today that was acting foolish to not be a Sgrena.
That's my new term for idiot.
And I don't believe a word that Communists, who have no morality and for whom ends always justify the means, say.
I appreciate Italy's friendship in the war on terror. This was a tragedy. Unfortunately, vehicles blow up and kill Americans. A vehicle should get the message when rounds are being fired that it needs to stop.
We don't shoot people who pay ransom. We consider them stupid.
An American checkpoint was threatened by these folks. The troops shot, which is exactly what they're supposed to do.
I'm putting my money on the honesty of the American troops and not on the honesty of some communist journalist.
No dissembling from the CP of Great Britain which clearly identifies her as a COMMUNIST as opposed to most media which just stop at calling her a 'journalist' for a Communist newspaper.
http://www.cpgb.org.uk/
This is the website of the Communist Party of Great Britain.
VI congress of Rifondazione Comunista celebrates release of Giuliana Sgrena
Over 1,000 comrades exploded with joy when the release of kidnapped Italian journalist and communist Giuliana Sgrena was announced at their VI congress in Venice.
I would say it's more than appropriate. LOL
Looks like Agent Sgrena's scheme to turn America's European allies against her has got a foot hold. I wonder how long until it becomes just another conspiracy theory put forth by the Left.
If Italy was subordinate them the reporter would never have be ransomed. The USA would never have allowed it. This is just an opportunity to bash the USA over an unfortunate event in a war zone.
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