Yesterday, a small miracle took place. Like the first time someone has a sighting of the Virgin, or sees a statue cry real tears, it usually starts off small. Word-of-mouth gives the story momentum, the internet makes it explode – until even the authorities have no choice but to take notice.

And so it was, with the Retake Rome initiative, spear-headed in part by an American lawyer, and long-standing Roman, Rebecca Spitzmiller, and the Fondazione Garibaldi; named appropriately...

Seeing that February is cut short this year (and I don't get a birthday), I decided this month to skip my Tante Belle Cose -- even though some nice things happened this month -- women running for office, my receiving a check for overpayment from the ACEA electric company (after 6 months), and, the best news, they took down the second ugliest sculpture ever to be made by human (in)genius - right out of my nearby piazza.

So here were are, still reeling from Haiti when now we have Chile....

I recently happened upon an interesting article in the New York Times about the false start in releasing a new game show, Our Little Genius. It appeared that the show was going ahead, despite some controversy; mostly about the effects of putting children under pressure to win life-changing money in these difficult times. But there was another sort of controversy stewing behind the scenes. The producer himself, to his financial detriment, pulled the first shows, paid out the winners anyway, and decided...

Let’s start with the obvious: The Food. While America may be the Horn of Plenty, the additives and polyunsaturated fats and corn syrup by the gallon in almost everything you eat, makes for an entire country of Pillsbury Doughboys and girls (think: Wall-E), all with diabetes 1 and/or 2. If those 'no global' Europeans could just rebel against the real culprits: Nestlè and Coca Cola et.al. onslaught, and go back to offering homemade iced teas and all that – (think: Italy is still Starbucks free) well,...

Well, so many people have been asking me if the proud Ms. Peacock did it in the bedroom with a kitchen knife, I thought I'd put my hands into the fray surrounding Italy's first O.J. trial (leave it to the Americans to export this insane media frenzy, too).

Just like everyone poring the Italian papers, I was utterly convinced Amanda Knox was guilty, along with her Harry Potter-like boyfriend, Raffaelle Sollecito. Like the Preppy Murder 20 years before, could it be, as the prosecutor...