Italy election: Populist surge prompts political deadlock

Italy’s voters have turned to right-wing and populist parties in an election that is set to leave the country with a hung parliament.

The Eurosceptic, anti-establishment Five Star Movement was the biggest party with almost a third of the vote.

But a coalition of the far-right League and centre-right of ex-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is set to win most seats in the lower house of parliament.

Forming a government may now take weeks of negotiation and coalition-building.

One of the biggest winners was League leader Matteo Salvini who declared his party had the “right and duty” to govern at the head of a right-wing coalition.

Results showed the League conquering broad swathes of Italy’s north, while Five Star saw its strongest show of support in the south.

Silvio Berlusconi Set For High-Profile Docu And Possible TV Series Produced By Leone Film Group

ROME – As his political star fades, Silvio Berlusconi is set to be back in the spotlight with a high-profile documentary in the works based on many hours of video interviews by American journalist Alan Friedman, author of the upcoming book “Berlusconi: The Epic Story of the Billionaire Who Took Over Italy,” plus a possible TV series.

Italy’s Leone Film Group has inked a deal with Friedman, who is a former Financial Times and Wall Street Journal columnist, to acquire fifty-percent of global distribution rights to the docu and also an option to produce a fictionalised TV series based on Friedman’s book about Berlusconi’s rise from media mogul to running Italy as prime minister for three mandates.

“We are delighted to have purchased these rights,” enthused Andrea Leone, president of Leone Film Group, the company originally founded by Spaghetti Westerns master Sergio Leone.

The book “Berlusconi: The Epic Story” will be published in the U.S. in October by Hachette Group while Rizzoli is publishing in Italy. The authorised Berlusconi bio will come out in twenty countries. Hachette is touting the tome as comparable to Walter Isaacson’s Steve Jobs bio and David Frost’s interviews with Richard Nixon.

The documentary, working-titled “My Way: Berlusconi in his Own Words” is said to be based on more than 28 hours of video inerviews conducted by Friedman with Berlusconi and more than one hundred hours of other interviews and conversations he held over an 18-month period. The docu’s director has not been disclosed.

Berlusconi is known as a master media spinner. In an announcement to plug the book last June he said that for years he had turned down journalists who asked him to tell them his life story but instead “agreed to cooperate with Friedman because I trust him.”

Friedman claims in a statement that when he embarked on the Berlusconi project in March 2014 he told the scandal-worn TV-tycoon-turned pol he would not let him “off the hook or do him any favors.”

Berlusconi ‘selling £350m holiday villa to Saudi royal family’

Silvio Berlusconi reportedly gave Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef a personal tour of the spectacular Villa Certosa last week

Silvio Berlusconi, Italy’s former prime minister, is reportedly considering a £350 million offer from the Saudi royal family to buy his sprawling holiday home on Sardinia’s Costa Smeralda.

The 78-year-old billionaire media mogul reportedly gave a personal tour of the spectacular Villa Certosa last week to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, the kingdom’s interior minister and first in line to the throne.

Italian media speculated over the weekend that Mr bin Nayef may be negotiating on behalf of King Salman, Saudi Arabia’s leader.

One of the six swimming pools  Photo: LaPresse/Empics Entertainment

The 168-acre holiday estate includes 68 rooms, six swimming pools, a huge park and an artificial volcano to entertain guests, some of whom have been snapped by paparazzi frolicking naked and semi-naked on the grounds – most memorably the former Czech prime minister in 2009.

Silvio Berlusconi and Jose Maria Aznar at Villa Certosa in 2003  Photo: Rex

Perhaps the most famous attraction at Villa Certosa is the James Bond-style private grotto, which includes a sea-God mosaic that leads directly to the sea via a secret underground tunnel.

Villa Certosa has a private grotto, with a secret underground tunnel that leads directly to the sea  Photo: Xclusive

Mr Berlusconi said he built the tunnel as an escape route after receiving multiple death threats. His high profile guests, who have in the past included former Prime Minister Tony Blair and Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, can also use the tunnel to arrive discretely by sea.

Silvio Berlusconi with Cherie Blair and Tony Blair at Villa La Certosa  Photo: EPA

Previous potential buyers have reportedly included wealthy Britons, Russians and Arabs, but Mr Berlusconi never closed a deal.

Silvio Berlusconi drives Russian President Vladimir Putin in an electronic buggy  Photo: AFP/Getty

According to the Corriere della Sera, negotiations with the Saudi royal family intensified after King Salman cut short his holiday on the French Riviera, following protests over the closure of a nearby public beach due to security concerns.

Villa Certosa already has an impressive security apparatus. In 2004, by government decree, the residence was declared an alternative maximum security headquarters for Mr Berlusconi, who was then the country’s leader.

Berlusconi “bunga bunga” case acquittal confirmed

Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, pictured in 2008

Italy’s highest court has confirmed former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s acquittal on charges of abuse of office and paying for sex with an underage prostitute.

Berlusconi was convicted in 2013 in what became known as the “bunga bunga” case, but won an appeal the next year.

The Court of Cassation has now rejected prosecutors’ appeals to overturn the acquittal and hold a fresh trial.

The three-time Italian leader remains embroiled in several legal battles.

Berlusconi and the 17-year-old dancer involved, Karima El-Mahroug, known as “Ruby the Heartstealer”, denied having had sex.

Karima el-Mahroug is escorted outside a Milan court by two Carabinieri police officers after giving her testimony at the trial in Milan (May 2013)

The judges at the Court of Cassation took more than nine hours to reach their decision, and will issue a written ruling detailing their reasoning with the next 90 days.

The verdict leaves Berlusconi free to rally his Forza Italia party as it struggles to maintain a leading role in Italian politics, analysts say.

But he remains under investigation for allegedly paying off witnesses in the “bunga bunga” case, and is on trial in Naples for alleged political corruption.

Last week Berlusconi completed a community service sentence for tax fraud, at a care home.

Berlusconi Underage Sex Conviction Overturned By Italian Court

Italian former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has won an appeal against his conviction for paying for sex with an underage prostitute.

His seven-year prison sentence has now been thrown out by judges in Milan, in the so-called “Ruby” case.

Last year a court found that he had paid for sex with a 17-year-old nightclub dancer, Karima El-Mahroug, known as “Ruby the Heartstealer”.

Berlusconi is doing community service after being sentenced for tax fraud.

That was a separate case involving his business empire Mediaset. Berlusconi, 77, helps out once a week at a home for people with Alzheimer’s disease.

He began doing that service in May – and so far it is the only final judgment against him, despite various other court cases.

‘Bunga-bunga’ reports

In the Ruby case both Berlusconi and Ms El-Mahroug denied having had sex.

During the trial reports emerged of raunchy “bunga-bunga” parties at his private villa attended by showgirls. Some of the female guests however described them as “elegant dinner parties”.

Berlusconi, a billionaire tycoon and veteran politician, was also acquitted of a charge that he abused his prime ministerial powers by pressuring the police to free Ms El-Mahroug when she was in custody.

In another separate case he is accused of having bribed a senator.

As a result of the conviction over Mediaset he was banned from holding political office for two years and expelled from the Senate.

Reacting to Friday’s verdict in Milan, Berlusconi’s lawyer said it “goes beyond our rosiest expectations”.

Political repercussions

Berlusconi was in power three times as prime minister, dominating Italian politics. He still heads the right-wing Forza Italia party.

The acquittal may enable him to remain a strong influence in politics and may also help centre-left Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, observers say, as Forza Italia may be less inclined to block the government’s reforms.

“This ruling will bring people together. We will be calmer working in future and be more united between ourselves and with all of the centre-right,” said Lucio Malan, a Forza Italia senator, quoted by AFP news agency.

Former Berlusconi secretary arrested with 24 kg of cocaine

(Reuters) – Italian police on Thursday arrested Federica Gagliardi, a woman who acted as Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s secretary at two international summits in Canada in 2010, on suspicion of smuggling 24 kg of cocaine on a flight from Venezuela.

Gagliardi, who is in her early 30s, was taken into custody at Rome’s Fiumicino airport shortly after arriving on a flight from Caracas after police found the drugs in her carry-on luggage, a finance police spokesman said.

Officials provided no further details, but according to Italy’s anti-drug police estimates the local street value of 24 kg of pure cocaine, after it is cut with other substances to be sold on, would be about 6.7 million euros ($13.21 million).

The police did not say whether they found pure cocaine.

The Italian media dubbed Gagliardi the “white lady”, splashing her picture on the front pages and describing her as Berlusconi’s mystery companion when she stepped off the plane in Toronto in June 2010, previously unknown, dressed in a white linen blouse and trousers.

In response to questions about her role, Berlusconi’s office said she was acting as his secretary on the trip. She said she had met Berlusconi while campaigning for a member of his party.

After a few weeks, she dropped out of the media spotlight, but her LinkedIn page says she remained a regional government secretary in Rome until last year. ($1 = 0.7192 euros)

The Mysteries and Tragedy of Russia’s Bottomless Karst Lake (PHOTOS)

The water is serene but deathly cold – and danger lurks beneath its surface. Yet, in the aquatic depths the promise of discovering hidden underwater caves and relics of our past awaits. Here, beauty and allure belie risks – but risks that some are prepared to take.

“A sapphire in a ring of green trees.” That’s how this stunning lake has been described. Even on overcast days, the water has a deep, crystal blue color like the gemstone to which it has been compared.

But there is much more than splendor to this lake. Beneath its smooth surface lie mysteries as yet unsolved. And some of these are secrets that the lake will not easily give up; at least, not if the recent tragic death of one diving explorer and the hospitalization of another are read as telltale signs.

9 Magical Zen Gardens

Zen garden is an interesting and deeply spiritual aspect of Japanese gardening traditions. The typical Zen garden consists of an enclosed and shallow sand box of sorts which features predominantly sand or gravel with rocks of various shapes and sizes.

The rocks and sand (or gravel) are the chief elements of the garden, which generally creates the scene of islands in the sea. The sand or gravel in a Zen garden represents the sea or ocean and is used instead of water. It will be carefully raked by tending monks to create the impression of waves on the surface of a body of water.

The rocks themselves represent islands or rock formations jutting out from the water. The overall goal is to create a small-scale recreation of an aerial or cliff-top view of an intricate coastal scene. One of the primary differences between a Zen garden and most other varieties is the lack of living elements. Although grass may sometimes be included, no other plant or flower species will be found in a classic Zen garden.

This can be both unusual and exotically appealing to people with no past experience with the history and meaning of a Zen garden.

The world’s most extraordinary hotels in pictures

Mihir Garh, Rajasthan 
“The fort sits in splendid isolation amid the Thar Desert near Jodhpur. It looks like an enormous sandcastle, a mirage, and is not just a unique place to stay; it’s a shrine to the artistic and architectural traditions of Rajasthan in general and Jodhpur in particular.”

Planet Baobab, Botswana
“Botswana’s Makgadigadi Pan comprises the world’s largest network of salt pans – a thirsty, mirage-inducing landscape of flat, shimmering expanses under hard blue skies. Halfway along the sole tarred road through this arid moonscape, a statue of an anteater towers at the dusty verge. It is a surreal sight, and an appropriate signpost for the distinctive Planet Baobab.”

Prendiparte B&B, Bologna, Italy
“A medieval high-rise turned romantic hideaway, the Torre Prendiparte is unlike anywhere else you’ll ever stay. The living area is on the first two floors and comprises a snug, classically-furnished living room, mezzanine bedroom, and kitchen. Above this is the former jail where you can still see graffiti left by prisoners on the 2m-thick walls.”

Qasr al Sarab, UAE
“Rising from the shifting sands, Qasr Al Sarab appears like a mirage on the edge of the vast Empty Quarter desert. Outside high crenellated walls echo fortresses of old. Inside rooms continue the dream of Arabian Nights with sumptuous fabrics, carved Islamic designs, woven rugs, wooden doors and metalwork lanterns.”

Peppers Cradle Mountain Lodge, Tasmania, Australia
“A stay at Peppers Cradle Mountain Lodge plunges you into the heart of Tasmania’s wilderness, with luxury that feels as organic as your surrounds. The cabins are nestled privately in the bushland, with wallabies bounding past the windows and wombats shuffling amid the trees.”

Free Spirit Spheres, British Columbia, Canada
“Suspended in the trees on sturdy guide ropes, Vancouver Island’s Free Spirit Spheres look like giant eyeballs peering deep into the British Columbia woodlands. Step inside and the handmade orbs – accessed via spiral rope staircases or slender steel bridges – are lined like comfy boat cabins with built-in beds and cabinets.”

Taskonak Hotel, Goreme, Cappadocia, Turkey
“Göreme has dozens of beautiful cave-hotels but Taşkonak manages to dish up the cave-suites and stupendous views Cappadocia is famous for without breaking your budget.”

Thonga Beach Lodge, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, South Africa
“One of few such lodges within the extraordinary 328,000 hectare iSimangaliso Wetland Park, a Unesco world heritage site.”

Saugerties Lighthouse, New York state, USA
“Saugerties Lighthouse is a historic 1869 landmark that makes a wonderful base for exploring the scenic Hudson valley. It is 100 miles north of New York City, and the red brick building has played a pivotal role in safely guiding steamboats, barges and other vessels safely along the Hudson river over the years. More recently (in the mid 1990s), the lighthouse was transformed into a two-room B&B, providing safe haven of a different sort.”

The Gibbon Experience Treehouse, Bokeo Reserve, Laos
“The tree houses erected by conservation group Animo are a thing of architectural wonder, straddling the giant trunks of strangler fig trees. But more extraordinary still is that to reach these vertiginous eyries you’ll have to trek through the fecund realm of the tiger, then catch a series of exhilarating zip lines strung across the forest canopy, before flying into your night’s accommodation.”

Amazing color pictures from 1960s Budapest

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National Geographic Photo Contest

 

 

 

 

100 years old pictures in colours before World War I

Türkei, Bursa, Ladengeschaeft einer Confiserie, Auguste Leon, 1. Juni 1913

Vietnam. Tonkin, Leon Busy, 1914

Indien, Statue des Heiligen Stiers, Stephane Passet, 29. Januar 1914

Österreich, Wien, Judengasse, Fotograf unbekannt, 23. April 1913

Mongolei, nahe Ulaanbaatar Urga, Stéphane Passet, 23. Juli 1913

Irland, Galway, Marguerite Mespoulet, 26. Mai 1913

Indien, Uttar Pradesh, Agra. Mausoleum Taj Mahal von Shah Jahan für Mumtaz Mahal, Stéphane Passet, 19.-21. Januar 1914

Indien, Amritsar. Marmorne Strasse zum Goldenden Tempel, neben den rituellen Reinigungsbecken, dem Darbar Sahib und dem Hari Mandir, Stéphane Passet, 15. Januar 1914

China, nach Kalgan. Nomadenlager, drei Männer und ein Junge vor einer Jurte, Stéphane Passet, 18.-21. Juli 1912

Water pipe smoking. Samarkand

Mongolei, Ulaanbaatar. Der Finanzminister des unabhängigen Staats Mongolei auf dem Marktplatz, Stéphane Passet, 22. Juli 1913

Major Lazer & DJ Snake – Lean On (feat. MØ)

Listen To A Rare 1965 Recording Of Stanley Kubrick’s Most Profound Interview

When physicist and renowned author Jeremy Bernstein (born December 31, 1929) penned a terrific piece on 37-year-old burgeoning director Stanley Kubrick for The New Yorker, the story gained so much attention that Bernstein was commissioned to write an even more elaborate profile of the legendary filmmaker. Normally Kubrick would have flat-out refused, however, he agreed due to the fact that he shared a common passion with Bernstein — chess. When Bernstein travelled to Oxford, England for the conversation on November 27, 1965 it was also captured on tape. The interview remains to this day one of the most profound conversations with Kubrick ever recorded, and you can listen to it in full below.

Helios – Hope Valley Hill (Arms and Sleepers Remix)

Keith Kenniff – Helios

Mac DeMarco // “Brother” (OFFICIAL SINGLE)

 

Alan Watts: Sense of Nonsense

November 27, 1965: A Rare Recording of Stanley Kubrick’s Most Revealing Interview

“People react primarily to direct experience and not to abstractions; it is very rare to find anyone who can become emotionally involved with an abstraction.”

George Orwell on how to make the perfect cup of tea

Excerpt from Orwell’s fantastic 1946 essay outlining his 11 “golden” rules of tea /

Harald Grosskopf’s 1979 Masterpiece “Synthesist” Is 7 Minutes Of Pure Amazingness

Yesterday TEEN DAZE released a new mixtape which you can stream and download by visiting ThePlayground.co.uk.  The 8-track collection provides a perfect ambient backdrop for pretty much any situation, but the crown jewel of the mixtape is unquestionably Harald Grosskopf’s brilliant track “Synthesist”.

Shanghai Tower (650 meters)

Raskalov and Russian photographer Vadim Mahora broke into and climbed the Gensler-designed Shanghai Tower, soon to be China’s tallest and the world’s second tallest skyscraper at 632 meters (2,074 feet) high. Although the tower will eventually boast the world’s fastest elevators (reaching 40mph), the pair had to climb the 120 flights of stairs by foot (taking them about two hours); they then spent another 18 hours sleeping and waiting for the weather to clear. The staggering resulting images show not just the dizzying heights, but also fantastic views of the adjacent Jin Mao Tower and Shanghai World Financial Center (together, the trio of buildings that are re-defining the Shanghai skyline).

Adam Magyar – Stainless, 42 Street (excerpt)

High speed video recording in NYC at Grand Central station.

Tolkien & Sendak On The Psychology Of Fantasy & The Powerful Effect Of Fairy Tales On The Adult Mind

In March 1939, renowned fantasy writer J. R. R. Tolkien penned an essay enitled “On Fairy-Stories” which explores the nature of fantasy and the cultural role of fairy tales. His argument is the same — that there is no such thing as “writing for children.” Tolkien writes: “A ‘fairy-story’ is one which touches on or uses Faerie, whatever its own main purpose may be: satire, adventure, morality, fantasy. Faerie itself may perhaps most nearly be translated by Magic — but it is magic of a peculiar mood and power, at the furthest pole from the vulgar devices of the laborious, scientific, magician. There is one proviso : if there is any satire present in the tale, one thing must not be made fun of, the magic itself. That must in that story be taken seriously, neither laughed at nor explained away.”

Tolkien adds: “Creative fantasy, because it is mainly trying to do something else … may open your hoard and let all the locked things fly away like cage-birds.” You can read more excerpts from Tolkien’s essay by visiting BrainPickings.org.

The Aqualibrium Garden – The Future of Food

The Aqualibrium Garden – The Future of Food by “Aqualibrium”

The fish in the self-cleaning aquarium in the bottom chamber of the Aqualibrium Garden provide the nutrients that feed the plants in the self-watering grow space in the upper chamber. This cycle… like nature herself… is automatic, providing the potential to grow an abundance of fresh vegetables, herbs and flowering plants all year.

The Real Walter White (VIDEO)

When AMC’s Breaking Bad premiered in 2008, one of Alabama’s most successful meth cooks was already knee deep in building a massive meth empire. His name? Walter White. In this documentary, Walter tells us the secret behind his product, how he stacked up thousands of dollars per day, and why his partner is now serving two life sentences.

A new industry born from the disaster — LED indoor farm

A new industry born from the disaster — LED indoor farm

Awesome pictures from the Hubble Space Telescope

 

 

 

 

Great Gardens: “Prospect Cottage” by Howard Sooley – NOWNESS

http://vimeo.com/103807651

Great Gardens: “Prospect Cottage” by Howard Sooley – NOWNESS

Speeding Around The World in Under 5 minutes Time Lapse

17 Countries. 343 Days. 6237 Photographs. One incredible journey.

GoPro: Wild Downhill Ride with Claudio Caluori

Claudio Calouri and Will Longden takes us on a wild run through the UCI Downhill Course at Leogang in Austria.

World’s smallest cat – Big Cats

森の木琴

TOUCHWOOD SH-08C http://answer.nttdocomo.co.jp/touchwood/

“TRUMP ANTHEM” — A Bad Lip Reading of Donald Trump

Snow falls in the Sahara desert

The town of Ain Sefra, on the edge of the Sahara desert, was hit by icy weather last week – and even snow.

Snowfall is very rare in the Sahara, despite the fact that it can be cold at night – because there’s rarely enough water around for any kind of precipitation.

Unbelievable Unlikely Animal Friendships Compilation 2017

Winds on this mountain in the US will make it feel like -67C

Temperatures on a mountain peak in the US state of New Hampshire could fall so low you risk getting frostbite in just a couple of minutes.

Micro Wind Turbine

Oxmo Puccino – 365 Jours

The Future Of Transportation

The World in 2050