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...gaffes? The majority of Italians think Berlusconi just speaks his mind, and they don't care if foreigners are puzzled, or worse. Some remarks are unforgivable, of course. Obama's suntan, jokes about concentration camps, sexist comments. If you head a government you must know that your words - reported instantly, compressed into sound bites - can baffle foreigners. Italians abroad know this. They complain, rightly, that Berlusconi's faux pas allow those who don't like Italy to ridicule us, ignoring the good things we do around the world...
...London ("Mr. Obamaaa! I'm Mr. Berlusconi!") was a lovely Borat moment - harmless, and quite funny. Talking on his mobile while Angela Merkel was waiting for him at the NATO summit? He was just showing off ("I can convince Turkish leader Erdogan to accept Rasmussen as head at NATO. Leave it to me, guys.") And when he told earthquake victims in Abruzzo to think of their situation "like a weekend of camping," sure, it didn't sound good to an outsider. But most Italians understood Mr. B. was just trying to sdrammatizzare, to play down the situation, defuse the tension...
Berlusconi is a seasoned politician (he was first in office in 1994, and he's the only European head of government born before World War II), and he knows that international misunderstandings don't harm him at home - and often quite the contrary. Those who criticize him don't vote for him anyway...
...truth is that Berlusconi is not only Italy's head of government, but the nation's autobiography. He combines generosity, inconsistency, acting talent, stamina, tactical lapses of memory and loyalty. He promises things he doesn't do, and does things he's never mentioned. His Italian opponents - even the best, the most honest and lucid - are right to worry. Not about Berlusconi himself. But about the Berlusconi inside them...
...records of his youth. "I like the mood of those records--the intensity," he says. "The sound is uncluttered. There's power and suspense. The whole vibration feels like it could be coming from inside your mind. It's alive. It's right there. Kind of sticks in your head like a toothache...