oday I switched off my phone. And as soon as I finish writing this, I'm switching off the computer and the WiFi too. I haven't been to the supermarket. At home I've turned off every light. The television already has cobwebs on it. Later I'll meet up with some friends, but we won't be going anywhere — no bars, no shops. The funny thing is that the small traders, the ones barely scraping by, aren't even angry about it. Quite the opposite. They want to do it too — White Thursday. They're all for it.
It's been nearly a year since I've written a single word on this blog of mine. I was turning into one of those tram-seat polemicists. Truth be told, since my last post I should say that things have only got worse. And that's true, unfortunately — though not entirely. Many consciences are waking up, and not just a little: on boats, in cars, in the streets, at the ballot box, on social media, people are pushing back and working hard to build, at long last, a new kind of consensus. And I've got my optimism back. I believe in it again.
There's no point anymore in saying that this president or that minister or ruler or media mogul is a filthy murderer, a clown, a venomous worm. People aren't so easily hoodwinked these days. The horrors, the wrongdoings, the abuses of power are there for everyone to see. And that, precisely, is what White Thursday is about. Even the grandmothers in the countryside will be on board.
So what are the goals of this "white" Thursday? Simple goals. Obvious ones. Unchallengeable — unless, of course, you happen to be one of those filthy murderous clowns and venomous worms I mentioned earlier.
First and foremost: out of rearmament. We would be far more respected in the world if we held firm in our rejection of war, if we refused to play any part in the wars currently being waged, and if we didn't spare so much as a passing thought to bringing back compulsory military service. Does that strike you as an outlandish goal?
Here's another one, equally obvious: cut all ties with Israel. If we repudiate war, why are we maintaining relations with a genocidal state and government? That enormous pile of billions they want to spend on drones and peashooters — wouldn't it be better invested in doctors and teachers? No? Better to have weapons? To wage war on whom, exactly?
And then there's this: we are making our Thursday white because we must guarantee freedom of speech, freedom of expression, the right to strike — we must allow demonstrations and a free press for everyone, including in schools and in the workplace. In other words, White Thursday means respecting our Constitution and its founding principles, because it was not knocked together in two days by four ignorant criminals.
And this time, Italians have made themselves heard loud and clear.
Now I'm turning everything off. You should do the same. Go to the piazza. Make new friends.
Happy White Thursday!
Alessandro Ippolito
