Italy has quickly become one of coronavirus’s focal points in international news, and unfortunately, not for very positive reasons. With thousands dead, hospitals overrun, supplies dwindling, and infrastructure ground to a halt, the country is perhaps comparatively the hardest hit of any region so far, and a model of what happens when proper steps aren’t quickly taken to get ahead of the curve. Reading and seeing the frontline dispatches is harrowing enough, so one would think it wouldn’t be too difficult for Italian citizens to understand the gravity of the situation and subsequently hunker down for the conceivable future.
Well, according to these fucking furious diatribes from various Italian mayors, their constituents are still willing to roll the dice when it comes to dog walks, jogging, hair appointments, and, um, outdoor ping pong.
Yes. That is, in fact, an Italian mayor threatening to show up to high school graduation parties alongside police armed with goddamn flamethrowers to break up any mass social gatherings. Not long after, we’re treated to another politician screaming on Skype, “I’m gonna catch you. Tomorrow. Not in a year,” while gesticulating so wildly we’d think he was laying it on a bit thick, were this a Goodfellas knock-off and not, you know, real life.