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18 Feb 2012 12:46

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World: Amanda Knox’s jailhouse story scores major financial windfall

  • 4 years is how long Amanda Knox spent behind bars; the foreign-exchange student was released from an Italian jail after being acquitted of murdering her roommate late last year
  • $4 million how much publisher HarperCollins reportedly plans to pay for her story; Reports of the book deal, which includes world-wide publishing rights, point to an early 2013 release source
Posted by Scott Craft • 0 Comments • Permalink

31 Jan 2012 10:10

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World: With some still missing, authorities call off search in Costa Concordia wreck

  • 17 bodies recovered from the deadly Costa Concordia wreck near Italy earlier this month
  • 15 people are still missing; authorities have notified next-of-kin that they’ve called off the search source
  • » What’s the punishment? Costa Crociere, the Italian unit of Carnival Cruise Lines, will pay €11,000 ($14,500) for each person on the ship, and will still face civil suits from individual passengers affected by the January 13 incident. The lawyer who helped overturn the murder conviction of Raffaele Sollecito (Amanda Knox’s boyfriend), plans to file a criminal complaint on behalf of the people affected by the crash. Meanwhile, Francesco Schettino, the captain who allegedly caused the wreck and abandoned the ship, remains under house arrest.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Jan 2012 21:42

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World: Captain of crashed Costa Condoria under heavy scrutiny

  • The burden of command: In the last few days, as more and more information has trickled out regarding the sinking of the Costa Concordia cruise ship off the coast of Italy, more and more public criticism has been leveled at the ship’s captain, Francesco Schettino. Schettino was captured on audio hesitant to leave a lifeboat he’d escaped to and return to his sinking ship to coordinate passenger rescues, even as a coast guard officer ordered him to do so. Now, four days into the aftermath, and Schettino has offered up a new explanation; he “tripped” into the lifeboat in the midst of a mad dash by passengers towards the escape vessels. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Jan 2012 10:54

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World: Like a scene from Titanic: Deadly Costa Concordia cruise ship crash

  • “Have you seen ‘Titanic?’ That’s exactly what it was.” The Italian cruiseliner that went aground near the coast of Tuscany on Friday evoked a deadly situation that, to say the least, harkened back to that fateful incident. The Costa Concordia crashed on the tiny island of Giglio, forcing a tip-over that killed three and left nearly 70 others unaccounted for. The ship had a very chaotic, disorganized evacuation — putting roughly 4,200 people in danger — partly because the crew delayed the evacuation drill until days after the cruiseliner started moving. The ship was supposed to have an evacuation drill on Saturday, despite the fact that some had been on the ship for several days. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

11 Jan 2012 10:00

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World: “Italy’s biggest bank”: The Mafia’s massive profits amid Italian turmoil

  • €140 billion the amount of financial turnover the Mafia had in 2011, according to anti-crime group SOS Impresa
  • €100 billion the amount in profits the Italian crime group had; SOS Impresa says this makes them Italy’s biggest bank source
  • » Not your father’s Mafia: The anti-crime group says in an annual report that organized crime is becoming increasingly more organized, leading to as many as 200,000 business tied to extortionate lenders and leading to profits equivalent to 7 percent of the entire country’s national output. “The classic neighborhood or street loan shark is on the way out,” the group says in its report, “giving way to organized loan-sharking that is well connected with professional circles and operates with the connivance of high-level professionals.”
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

12 Nov 2011 16:37

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World: More on Silvio Berlusconi’s exit as Italian Prime Minister

The long-controversial Italian PM exits as the two chambers of Parliament passed a tough austerity plan. The Senate passed it Friday; the lower house passed it today with a resounding 380-26 vote. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Nov 2011 15:11

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World: SIlvio Berlusconi to resign as Italian Prime Minister

  • The end of an era: Silvio Berlusconi was, if nothing else, a remarkably durable politician. He served as Prime Minister three different times, briefly in the 90s and twice over the last decade, despite both political and sexual scandals (you may recall his broken promise to sell his media assets if elected, his alleged tryst with underage prostitute ‘Ruby The Heart Stealer,’ and his very specific, foul assessment of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, fr example). However, following what Reuters reports as a “humiliating” legislative defeat over proposed reforms to meet the fiscal demands of the euro zone debt crisis, Berlusconi will soon be on the way out. Honestly, we never thought this guy’s political life would end with a parliamentary defeat. It somehow seems not salacious or bizarre enough, given the rest of the man’s career. (Photo by Alessio85) source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

08 Nov 2011 11:04

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World: Silvio Berlusconi walking on eggshells after botched economic vote

The vote, which went in his favor, showed however that he no longer has an absolute majority of support in the Italian parliament. It increased calls for his resignation. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Oct 2011 14:14

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World: Italian officials separate peaceful Occupy protesters from violent groups

  • Those who are carrying out what is nothing less than urban guerrilla warfare are hurting the cause of people around the world who are trying to freely express their discontent with the world economic situation.
  • Italian Democratic Party leader Pierluigi Bersani • Separating the violent protesters in Rome from the overall occupy movement, while noting the damage they’re causing to the larger, nonviolent movement. Rome mayor Gianni Alemanno made a similar distinction, noting that “There are groups of violent people that need to be isolated.” It’s a good sign that Italian officials can see the difference between a peaceful movement and the violent elements attempting to co-opt it for their own reasons. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Oct 2011 10:38

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World: Amanda Knox, now out of jail, has massive debts to pay back

  • $1 million in legal costs incurred by Knox and her family source
  • » Two words: Book deal. Ananda Knox’s freedom wasn’t cheap, but it was a financial burden Knox was willing to pay. Her family had to foot most of the bill: Her parents both had to get second mortgages and dip into their retirement savings; her grandmother had to get a $250,000 loan. Fortunately for Knox, her story will prove to be very valuable to publishers. Sources say that she already started working on a memoir while in prison.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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