Issue 279 kicks off with an article by Maria Matteo on the World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil, which seems to have been hijacked by the “reformist” parties and associations, and worse. Remaining in Brazil, roving reporter Massimo Annibale Rossi wires in a report from Conceiçãozinha, Santos, on the struggle of fishermen and ecologists there against pollution and exploitation. Over the border to Argentina, and a communiqué from the Grupo Anarquista Libertad on the subject of self-organisation.

The centre pages of the issue are devoted to a detailed dossier compiled by Adriano Paolella and Zelinda Carloni on “global warming and social control”, as part of the occasional series on globalisation.

Francesco Codello discusses the reform of the schools system, and seeks the middle ground between public and private. This month’s “libertarian review” has a conversation with Cosimo Scarinzi, editor of Collegamenti, while Giovanna Panigadi talks about the experience of Mag6 [mutual financial self-management].
In his social notebook, Felice Accame looks back at Kant, while in his “smoke signals”, Carlo E. Menga quotes Gramsci, “every state is a dictatorship”, as he applies his pen/keyboard to the subjects of Actimel yogurt, health warnings on ads and other miscellaneous matters.

Massimo Ortalli’s “Ritratti in Piedi” looks at the events surrounding the massacre of the Teatro Diana in Milan on 23 March 1921, with writings by Giuseppe Mariani, Errico Malatesta, Armando Borghi, Luigi Di Lembo and Luce Fabbri, from her biography of her father.

“Fatti e misfatti” has the moving text read by Patrizia “Pralina” Diamante at the funeral of her partner Horst Fantazzini, who passed away in December of last year. There is also an article by Franco Melandri, “The Left and the two freedoms”.

Monica Giorgi discusses a complex, subtle “Diotima” seminar delivered at the University of Verona by Luisa Muraro on symbolism and silence, the market and me. “Not even Bush and the Taliban put together threaten our freedom as much as the paucity of our relations and the stupidity of our politics”.

Nadia Agustoni finds herself reading “The Diary of Anne Frank” in Afghanistan, prompting associations and reflections.

The issue closes with a letter from Franco Melandri on the church and clericalism, a poem dedicated to Pinelli, by Antonio Abbotto, and a reprinting of 4 Lance Henson poems, which had been put together erroneously in the previous issue.

translated by Leslie Ray