I’ve often spoken about Arco and our grapes and sometimes our apples, but just three or four kilometres from Arco, going towards Trento we come upon a small town called Dro, which is famous for its plums and though they have to compete with the California prunes imported from the U.S. many people prefer the plump Dro prunes to the California brand.
once again the rain has fallen
and once again the country succumbs
each year a new region
is drowned under the floods
and yet we’re surprised:
’cause the area changes.
disaster is always just ’round the bend
just a question of when the big rains begin
as parliamentarians fight to stay in their seats
the people sit and shout at the TV watching the deadbeats
politics has become another circensus
to distract us from the real problems that’re all around us
I look at the news from ’round the world
of war and famine and useless debate
prejudice and racism and national hate
I look at the world covered in water and snow
and ask myself where do we think we will go…
with all the talk, talk, talk
the useless chat
of pushing the blame to this group or that
though the rainfall was copious
that isn’t the problem
unlike in some places
here the issue’s neglect
rivers overgrown in trash and debris
buildings and roads encroaching the beds
greed and corruption
and procrastination
Italy…
the land of…
“tomorrow…maybe”.
There is nothing new about floods in Italy. It has to do with the terrain and how the cities have been built over the centuries…here in Trentino not so many years ago, we had the same problem…then around 25 years or so after one of the worst river disasters of the Region, something was decided to be done…and the Provincial Government began to clean up the rivers and free up the river beds. Dams etc were also created to dole out the water. It took quite a few years and a lot of money. A maintenance program, which is one of those things that usually gets forgotten when such projects are finally undertaken in Italy, was also created and most importantly, followed. But there is something to be said here…Trentino and Alto Adige is an autonomous region. When we too will be under central government rule, we might also have problems of getting the job done. Hard telling. The other Autonomous Regions for the most part have not had the same success.
“Autonomous regions with special statute
Autonomous regions with special statute
Article 116 of the Italian Constitution grants to five regions (namely Sardinia, Sicily, Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, Aosta Valley and Friuli-Venezia Giulia) home rule, acknowledging their powers in relation to legislation, administration and finance. In return they have to finance the health-care system, the school system and most public infrastructures by themselves. (This is accomplished by a substantial tax return from the central government, which is being whittled down because of the present “economic crisis” g.s.k.)
These regions became autonomous in order to take into account cultural differences and protect linguistic minorities. Moreover the government wanted to prevent their secession from Italy after the Second World War.[6]
Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol constitutes a special case. The region is nearly powerless, and the powers granted by the region’s statute are mostly exercised by the two autonomous provinces within the region, Trentino and South Tyrol. In this case, the regional institution plays a coordinating role.” Wikipedia
Noreen Crone-Findlay talks about the crafts she loves with her friend, Tottie Tomato. They'll be sharing tutorials, how to's and step by steps for spool knitting, crochet, doll making, small loom weaving, wood working, paper crafts and all manner of other fun crafts. This is a family friendly blog.
Carpe Diem's Tanka Splendor is part of the Carpe Diem Haiku Family. It's a weekly tanka-meme in which you can write and share tanka inspired on a given prompt every Saturday (mostlty, sometimes it will be on another day).
Noreen Crone-Findlay talks about the crafts she loves with her friend, Tottie Tomato. They'll be sharing tutorials, how to's and step by steps for spool knitting, crochet, doll making, small loom weaving, wood working, paper crafts and all manner of other fun crafts. This is a family friendly blog.
Carpe Diem's Tanka Splendor is part of the Carpe Diem Haiku Family. It's a weekly tanka-meme in which you can write and share tanka inspired on a given prompt every Saturday (mostlty, sometimes it will be on another day).
Bastet and Sekhmet's Library 