Thursday, July 1, 2010
Egidio Sterpa I met many years ago when, as a member of a minority of one person, played for Italian Liberal Party. The Liberal Party at that time was dominated by the figure of John Malagodi, national secretary and later honorary president. Malagodi held the party because of his eloquence and management apparatus considered then authoritarian (today would be considered a tolerant and permissive party leader). The Liberal Party of
Malagodi had its greatest success in the elections of 1963 when he introduced himself as the '! Liberal alternative "to the center-left, coming to conquer 39 deputies and 19 senators. The campaigning in the election of the Liberal Party was committed in an accident that deserves to be remembered: our motto "a free man vote liberal socialists replied with a manifesto claiming that" a man kicking plant vote! But the outcome was still extraordinarily favorable to the Liberal Party.
However, that success (a million more votes) did not translate into changes government in which Malagodi (and others) had hoped the center-left, albeit with a less substantial majority, continued to rule. The only consequence of the outcome of the election of 1963 was that, thanks to the arguments of the liberal center-left governments became less gruesome than those which preceded the elections.
Malagodi, instead of profiting by the experience, was convinced that "back into the game" the party should move left, what I personally did it with great determination. It was roughly at this point that it becomes a part of the party who was at Einaudi, the Cross and my father. Soon discovered with horror that mine was a wise decision: that party, with few exceptions, was not liberal. One exception was in fact Egidio Sterpa who headed one of two minority groups that criticized Malagodi "right" (the other was owned by Raffaele Costa).
To get an idea of \u200b\u200bwhat the Liberal Party looked like a little liberal party, consider that in the American elections of 1980 Malagodi tifava for Carter, the most discredited before the current U.S. president. So I decided to send a letter to the Giornale di Montanelli which alleged that the decision to Malagodi would reiterate to Churchill's famous comment "is the first time I see a rat that gets on a sinking ship." Montanelli published it without comment (Which implied that he agreed) on the page of readers. Malagodi responded with a letteraccia which was published.
Between me and the leader of the Liberal Party there was bad blood was very proud to be president of the Liberal and did not like the definition that I gave "parties which share only two things are said and Liberals always lose elections !
Sterpa was different was not part of the chorus of malagodiani, although always behaved with great fairness toward the leader (I'm not sure it was paid the same money). But above all he had interpreted the role of Italian liberalism, if not the same as mine, was certainly plausible and sensible. He wrote well and with great weight, unlike many journalists, could be prolific without being superficial.
was tied to the journal in those years was one of the few dissident voices (along with "Radio Beast", the GR2 Gustavo Selva Gianni Letta, and Time) and hosted the signatures of many liberals authentic and authoritative, as Enzo Bettiza, Caesar and then Zappulli Nicola Matteucci, as well as many others. Sterpa is acknowledged in that environment, which is a further source of sympathy between us, as it was on those columns that I began my business partner's in print. I
remorse at not being able to collect your invitation, repeatedly reiterated in recent years to take part in meetings of liberal dissenters dall'andazzo current. I am convinced that any initiative would be doomed to failure but I would have liked to renew the relationship, even if dialectical, with an exponent of the Pli of my younger years, with a sincere and disinterested friend. I remember him and will continue to remember this with sympathy.
