Courtesy of Mish.
As I have said repeatedly, Greece is noting but a sideshow, with the election last Sunday in France far more important than the election in Greece that has had everyone’s attention.
For further discussion, please see Greek Election Sideshow; Socialists Win Absolute Majority in France; How Long Will the Bond Market Celebrate Another Glorious Can-Kicking Exercise?
Today I want to expand on that topic with the idea that Spain is a sideshow to Italy.
Rise of the Five Star Movement
Reader Andrea who is from Italy but now resides in France writes …
Hello Mish.
As I told you some days ago, in Italy something quite new and disruptive is happening in the political landscape. As expected, the “Movimento 5 Stelle” (5 Stars Movement) had been the real winner of the recent round of regional elections a couple of weeks ago, and in my opinion it is worth to keep an eye on them especially in the light of the recent elections outcome in many European countries.
The founder of the movement is Beppe Grillo, a comic showman, very popular in the 70s and 80s. He was (unofficially) “banned” from Italian TV in the mid-80s when he made in a Saturday night show a very satiric (and funny) joke about the Socialist party and its chief Bettino Craxi, at that time Italian PM.
In the first half of 2000s he started Beppe Grillo’s Blog, posting messages in a satiric style about economy, politics, ecology, society.
The movement is quite different from the other parties. It does not not a clear, hierarchic and defined organization. It is more a mixture of a method, a guideline and a set of rules to select candidates and programs and obtain its logo be part of the network.
Main Rules for the Five Star Movement
- Not be an elected politician prior to 5 Stelle
- Commit to stay in charge for no longer than 2 terms
- Commit to take a minimum salary and give the rest back to the community
- Post a public platform on the internet
- Be willing to hold a public debate on the platform
- Get out of the Euro and default on debt
…
