Berlusconi critized by a Finnish PM, called a disgrace

[Tiriol]

Once again, the Italian Prime Minister insults Finland and angers the Chair of the Grand Committee of the Finnish Parliament. Reported by YLE News.

Tuomioja Slams Berlusconi
published today 04:30 PM, updated today 04:34 PM

The Chairman of the Finnish Parliament's Grand Committee, Social Democratic MP Erkki Tuomioja has issued bitingly harsh criticism of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconia. Writing in his personal blog, Tuomioja calls Berlusconi a disgrace to Italy and the whole of Europe.

According to Tuomioja, Berlusconi speaks and acts in such a chauvinistic manner that he could hardly continue as prime minister in any other civilized country than Italy.

He also wrote that Berlusconi has acquired a fortune worth millions by unscrupulous means. Tuomioja, a former Finnish foreign minister, chairs the Grand Committee in Parliament which is responsible for Finland's EU affairs.

Silvio Berlusconi is known for his colourful speech. In the past he has criticized Finnish food and recently made a statement about visiting a "Finnish wooden church" that in Italy would have been demolished.

Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb has confirmed to the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera that Berlusconi was on a private visit to Finland in 1999. However, he is not known to have been taken for a visit to a wooden church.

YLE

Once again the poorly trained organ grinder's poor excuse for a monkey sets his foot firmly in his mouth in an attempt to cultivate some "civilized" air for himself (being basically a robber baron turned to politics) by mocking other nations (in this case, Finland, again). Some of you may remember his other wacky antics like saying that the European Food Safety Authority could not be located in Finland, because apparently we have no taste for cuisine; and that his "manly charm" (which has caused his wife to seek divorce recently) was the reason why our President (Tarja Halonen, the first female President of the Republic of Finland) dropped the bid for the location of the authority. I'm sure there are many more examples of his hilarious and thought-provoking, highly philosophical stances on various issues that no doubt will inspire future generations and show them the greatness of his genius.

WHY is this man, who seems to be a real-life version of the Mayor Quimby from The Simpsons, once again the Prime Minister of Italy? Do the Italians have so perverted sense of humour?

[Androsphinx]

Because he's worth $10 billion and owns half the television networks?

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

If I recall reading somewhere, Italy is a patch work of right and left wing tendencies and because of this random oscillation between both sides, at this point of time, it happens that they favoured a right wing Prime Minister.

[Hendrake]

He is one of the reasons I'm ashamed of my country. Perhaps the biggest one.

He's a loathsome tax-dodging mafia-enabling under-age-tail-chasing crook allied with catholic bigots and xenophobes. His verbal gaffes are nothing compared to the self-serving laws he inflicts on Italy.

As soon as I get my degree (November, I hope) I'm going to move to France. I don't like Sarkozy, but I view him as the lesser evil...

[Sea Skimmer]

It helps that for the most part the Italian government is incapable of actually accomplishing anything in either political direction, so the hell if it matters who runs its. I mean when most of your public services and the whole construction industry are already long in the hands of the mob, what’s going to get worse?

[Tiriol]

Helsingin Sanomat publication has little more information about Berlusconi's "hilarious" comment.

Berlusconi’s church comments met with astonishment in Finland
Petäjävesi Church looks like reasonable candidate, but Silvio is not in the visitors' book

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s Wednesday statement ridiculing a Finnish wooden church prompted astonished reactions and even a measure of resentment within Finland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs as well as in the Finnish congregations conserving and appreciating their wooden places of worship.
The Italian PM was even suspected of having confused Finland with some other country that he had visited.
Iceland has for instance been put forward as the real victim. At least the last four letters are the same...

During a recent appearance in Rome as a guest of the mayor of the Italian capital, Berlusconi - who is renowned for his gaffes and outspoken remarks as much as he is for cultivating the image of a Lothario - praised the beauty and the cultural heritage of the city.
To emphasise his message Berlusconi then went on to compare Rome with Finland.

“Can you imagine, when I was in Finland they took me to see an 18th century wooden church. I remember how important this was to them. We woke up early in the morning and travelled to the church for three hours”, the Prime Minister said in front of the TV cameras.
“Over here such a church would have been bulldozed to the ground”, Berlusconi continued, drawing an X sign in the air with his hands.

On Thursday morning the Ministry for Foreign Affairs protocol department immediately started looking for information regarding which Finnish church the Italian leader had been referring to, and when an 18th century wooden church would have been shown to him.
No such information was found.
Berlusconi has not even visited Finland as a guest of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
Berlusconi himself has recalled his unofficial 1999 trip to Finland, when Finland hosted a meeting of representatives of Europe’s conservative parties. But even this tightly-scheduled conference’s programme did not include a 3-hour drive to see a church.

The best-known wooden church in Finland from the time that Berlusconi mentioned is the old Petäjävesi Church in Central Finland, which was completed in 1765.
The church is regarded a masterpiece of northern wood architecture, and since 1994 it has been on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.
On Thursday the Petäjävesi Church was considered the prime candidate as the target of Berlusconi’s possible excursion.
Vicar Seppo Ojala, however, gave an assurance that Silvio Berlusconi has never visited the site.

In Vicar Ojala’s opinion, the Italian Prime Minister’s comments should not be shrugged off as a mere joke.
Instead, the Finnish state authorities should react to the slanderous criticism towards the cultural value of Finnish wooden churches.
Approximately at the same driving distance from Helsinki are also located the Central Finland wooden churches of Keuruu and Pihlajavesi, which were completed in 1758 and 1780 respectively. Berlusconi, however, has not been seen as a guest at these churches either.
According to Keuruu Vicar Ossi Poikonen, the Italian Prime Minister’s mockery of the Finnish wooden churches can just be ignored as opinions of no value whatsoever.


Note: It is quite heart-warming that we have received a large number of emails from embarrassed Italian readers apologising for their Prime Minister in no uncertain terms. We are very grateful for the support. If it is any consolation, Finland can almost certainly boast politicians occasionally capable of similar feats: as they say, "there's one in every crowd".

It is as I suspected: Berlusconi is a total idiot and a considerable number of Italians are actually embarassed about him. But still, it doesn't help my opinion of the man (or of Italian politics) at all.

For those interested, the Petäjänjärvi Church is pictured here:

[Crown]

Berlusconi is there just to make other European leaders feel superior, and at times to make them wet themselves with repressed laughter. Who can forget this classic at the end of Italy's Presidency of the EU;

"Let's talk about football and women." (Turning to four-times-married German Chancellor, Gerhard Schroeder.) "Gerhard, why don't you start?"

The man is a classic fool; and like others have pointed out, Italy have long proved that one does not require a successful and strong central government to actually run a country.

[Next of Kin]

Berlusconi...a farce!?! How is this earth shattering news?

[Edi]

Berlusconi...a farce!?! How is this earth shattering news?

It's not, but he's riled Finns enough that if he makes more quips about us, sooner or later someone or other from our political scene is going to dissect him in great detail. If he ever came to visit Finland and tried to go somewhere without bodyguards, chances are he'd leave on a stretcher.