Who's the dumbest of 'em all?

I'm trying to get my Italian true love to explain to me, in simple terms, the innerworkings of Italian government. And why Italians seem to support prime minister Silvio Berlusconi. My true love seems to be at a loss. She detests the man. Because he's a philanderer in politics and love and in virtually everything. But like me, she can't just merely write him off. Because she's an Italian. And thinks of Berlusconi as a national disgrace. I'm not an Italian. And that makes a difference. He's not my prime minister. Though I tell her I'd be able to accept Berlusconi in trade for any of the Republican candidates for president. We Americans are fully capable of doing worse than Berlusconi. Far worse. Or so it seems to me. So we are locked in an eternal debate over which country has the worse politic. We concede that each of 'em are bad. Very bad indeed. Maybe beyond redemption. I've fled the U.S., in part, to isolate myself from the mayhem of American politics. The utter inability or willingness of politicians from rival parties to work together. For the good of the country. For the common good. The Republicans, I contend, would rather wreck their own country than see Democrats or President Barack Obama get credit for saving it. They oppose any and all solutions to political, economic and social problems -- merely because Obama is in favor. Many of the solutions were once advocated by Republicans. But they balk now only because Obama favors 'em. Of course, that's stupid as stupid can be. But nobody ever accused a Republican of having a brain. Same goes for Berlusconi. He's a billionaire. Capable of buying his way into political power. And it helps that he owns a vast network of TV channels. Therefore, he can spread his bullshit across all of Italy. And Italians are just as susceptible as Americans to political bullshit. We Americans have a rich legacy in the fine art of political bullshit. We were inundated in the smelly stuff from the beginning. By founders that thought it was right and proper to have an economy based in large part on slave labor. And even in modern times, it's an economy designed to make the rich richer and the poor poorer. But apparently a majority of Americans think that's the way it's suppoed to be. Because we do nothing to change the system. We are just as dumb as the Italians. Or is it that the Italians are just as dumb as us? --Jim Broede