Elites and the Democratic Desease , London 2010

This chapter takes into account not only the Italian economic decline but also its democratic malaise which is connected to the reciprocal mistrust that exists between the mass of people and the few elites. Democratic malaise is also linked to a social disease that mediatised, professionalized and financed politics has difficulty in interpreting as crisis of Italian social democracy. We place this democratic malaise right in the centre which attacks an affluent society like Italy and invades its political, social, cultural and economic dimensions. It is a malaise whose causes are related to representative and pluralistic democracy (such as the leading classes) on the supply side as well as the social demand side. At present, we have an Italy that is dominated by cynicism and mistrust, and pessimism amplified by the strategy of fear and later by the financial crisis is certainly not a starting point. Italians should give greater importance to what is positive both in the society as well as in the ruling classes. Above all, they should have the strength to change, especially in the Southern Italy, in order to find the spirit of national community once again. A ruling class should be one that first gives an example of merit, responsibility, capable of making decisions and which has a vision of the future.