Words About Things

The Mayor of a town in the south of Italy has taken the idea of ‘fashion police’ to a new level by banning women from wearing miniskirts that are ‘too short’. Mayor Luigi Bobbio feels that short skirts and exposed cleavage will harm the reputation of Castellammare di Stabia a resort town on the south coast. The new law was put to the vote and passed, women wearing skirts which law enforcement officers deem to be too short will be handed a €300 fine.

too short?

The ban comes as part of Bobbio’s move to enforce matters of ‘public decorum’ including swearing and playing football in the street. Opponents to the new law say that it is chauvinist and treats women like public objects:

“By equating women’s clothing with urban decorum, this measure implies women are no more than benches or hedges. This turns the clock back years for women and undermines all our victories.” – Councillor Angela Cortese.

The decision on what will be considered too much cleavage or too short a skirt will be left to police officers. On the spot fines will also be given to those who wear swimming costumes anywhere public apart from the beach. Female members of the opposition Democratic Party held a “Mini-skirt Day” rally in protest of the new law.

Interestingly the power to create local laws was handed to mayors by Italy’s Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi who is famous for having an eye for the ladies.

In the ongoing negations/ discussion about what to do for our summer holiday another idea has surfaced: scooting round Italy on a vintage Vespa. I have never actually ridden on a scooter but it seems simple enough and I’m willing to give it a try – as long as you remember to put your feet down when you stop at traffic lights it should be okay right? I like the idea of being able to travel between towns without losing the feeling of being outside (although I might change my mind if it started raining).

A scooter isn’t the most practical mode of transport in the UK – you really need a dryer, warmer climate to make driving a scooter enjoyable. We think of Italian scooter owners as suave and stylish but some scooter owners in the UK can have a touch of the Mr Bean about them.

I’ve been reading about renting scooters online and it seems to be a fairly simple process, dropping off the scooter in a different location might be a challenge but there are bound to be companies who offer this. You can even get electric scooters now so they are more eco friendly than they used to be. Whilst looking for information I came across this video which gives the impression that Italians have a rather relaxed attitude to the rules of the road and personal safety.

My girlfriend’s suggestion is that we just rent a convertible hire car rather than scooters for safety reasons. Perhaps I have watched too many old Italian and French films but riding on a Vespa just seems much more interesting.  I suggested that we could just take the contact details of some Italian car hire companies and ditch the scooters if we need to but she didn’t look too keen!

Related articles by Zemanta

• Scooters Trying Really Hard (neatorama.com)
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• Scooter Safety and You (motorcycleinsurance.org)

Silvio Berlusconi has had a tough weekend, first he was attacked by a man wielding a souvenir model of a cathedral then Italy banned breast implants for girls under 18. (For any lawyers reading: I’m sure Berlusconi has never shown an interest in a girl under 18, although he has been to at least one 18th birthday party this year).

The new legislation aims to prevent girls from rushing in to having plastic surgery without having first considering the risks. There have been many reports of operations going wrong and of girls receiving sub-standard implants.  Francesca Martini of Italy’s welfare ministry has suggested that a register of qualified plastic surgeons should be drawn up in order to prevent botched operations being performed by less skilled doctors.

“This legislation is primarily aimed at the growing number of girls under 18 who have breast enhancement surgery purely for fashion reasons and have no idea of the risks involved. Far too many adolescent girls are unaware of the fact that there are risks with this type of surgery and it should not be used purely for fashion and looks.At the moment we have a Wild West, cowboy style system of plastic surgery for young women and this must stop.”

It has been estimated that around 10,000 teenage girls had breast enhancement surgery in Italy in 2008. Most of these operations were paid for by the girl’s parents as a gift. In the UK it is still legal for girls under 18 to have cosmetic surgery although many surgeons are unwilling to operate on those who are still growing.