Aug 4, Threats of “civil war.”

What is astonishing is that Berlusconi’s supporters scream and shout about democracy being subverted, magistrates ignoring voters. But of course they never talk about the actual facts and evidence of the cases against Berlusconi. The fact that three different courts have found incontrovertible evidence that completely phony transactions were invented in order to inflate the apparent cost of buying movies in order to divert tens of millions of euros from Mediaset into secret bank accounts controlled by Berlusconi doesn’t seem to trouble them. He’s stealing from himself they say, if they pose the question at all. But of course, he is stealing millions from the shareholders of Mediaset and from Italian taxpayers. He is creating millions in ready cash that he can use for his own purposes and we have seen what some of those purposes are: maintaining a stable of women for his bunga-bunga parties and perhaps the 3 million euros used to buy a senator and bring down the Prodi government and much, much more we know nothing about it but can well imagine. A judge presented with clear evidence of a crime what is he or she supposed to do? Not convict? Suspend the law for the sake of one person because he is the head of a political party? That seems to be the argument of his supporters. Of Sandro Bondi who threatens Civil War if Berlusconi’s conviction is not overturned.