I’ve received a letter from a young man from Pozzuoli and I’m publishing it here.
"Ciao Antonio.
I’m afraid
At night I don’t manage to sleep because I see my beloved city dying bit by bit, just like the ItalianRepublic that no longer seems to be so democratic. Well, my city is Pozzuoli, well known since ancient times as a city of commerce and cultural exchange and because of its natural uniqueness also a city for spending holidays for the well to do senators at the time of the Roman Republic. My dreams are disturbed both by the refuse emergency that has lasted for years, as well as the slow and diabolic devastation of our territory. Over the years, our grandparents, who survived a devastating war, have accepted with an enthusiasm that is like that of a child on the night before the Epiphany, the industrialization of our beloved city without seeing into the future of the terrible consequences it has concealed. To cite some effects, there have been cases of death form asbestos! Today we find ourselves looking at drainage plans for our territory that are going very slowly and we don’t understand why! But even on a small scale we can see that nothing is working, roads are in a bad state, even just by the aeronautical academy there’s a sign up telling of the danger to any adventurer who wants to know this fantastic city.
Many other problems beset this city that one day will be formally declared unique in the world for its history and its natural phenomena (http://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/2030/).
There’s an expression that is a good description of the political and social situation of Pozzuoli, as it is perhaps for the rest of Italy: “pearls to the pigs”
Right now, the town is run by a commissioner because of infiltration by the Cammorra. The political class seems to be unchanged and meanwhile with them we are getting ready for local elections. I don’t know who else to turn to except to someone like you who is always talking about your hunger for justice. I have not voted for you and I have never done so, but perhaps you are the only person who right now can understand my existential discomfort. By now I no longer have trust in the institutions. I am really afraid of everything that is happening in Italy, yes in Italy, because I believe that the problems that are emerging in Naples and in the South are not just local but belong to the whole of Italy. At times, when I’m watching TV, it seems that this country is anything but a united country. Perhaps this is the main problem of the country; we don’t have a national identity.
Every day I cry for my future and for the future of my city. I’m thinking of going away from Italy because I’m afraid. I don’t feel protected by the institutions. And just to tell you one thing, we have collected signatures for a petition to find out whether or not the antennae that Trenitalia has installed in the environment of the Metro Line 2, are harmful even though they are close to habitation. We have not had any response.
Now I’ll stop chattering and bombarding you with these problems of mine. I’ll try to go and sleep. Perhaps by managing to dream that all this is only a nightmare.
Greetings
Walter"