Tuesday, October 15, 2019
What's the Italian word for Berwick-upon-Tweed?
A highly interesting feature on a little exclave caught between Switzerland and Italy. Campione d’Italia was handed back and forth by princes and bishops in the Middle Ages, and later ended up as a haven for spies of all sorts. Why did the spies like it?
Without casino money:
Casinos are evil, but if my small town faced that choice, I'd fight to keep the casino.
A casino was first set up in Campione in 1917, designed as a way to listen in on foreign diplomats cutting loose there. Its status as a quasi-neutral playground prompted the OSS, the CIA’s precursor, to set up a base there briefly.I've been noticing the role of casinos as a power base for a long time, and I've also discussed the ties between casino-owning ethnic gangs and Deepstate. But I hadn't thought about the intentional USE of a casino as a trap for spies. It makes sense, and it completes the circle. Bloomberg is reporting on Campione because of a new exclavian back-and-forth. The casino went bankrupt a few years ago, so the town is in economic trouble. The new post-Salvini government in Italy is going all in for Soros and EU, leaving no stone unturned in its murderous efforts to destroy all vestiges of Italy. Thus the new government wants to eliminate some traditional exemptions that had given Campione an economic advantage. Campione's leaders believe that neutral Switzerland would do a better job of maintaining its unique in-between status. Switzerland apparently likes the idea, so it's not just talk. = = = = = Stupid sidenote: Given these connections, I'm surprised Buckley never wrote a spy novel titled The Well-Tempered Exclavier. = = = = = Geographical sidenote: A little googlestreeting shows that Campione is built on a sharp hillside with lots of switchbacks in its streets. Sort of like a high-class version of Logan, WV. With casino money:
Without casino money:
Casinos are evil, but if my small town faced that choice, I'd fight to keep the casino.
Labels: defensible spaces, Sorosia
¶ 10:51 AM
