Responsibility

“Responsibility is being aware of the consequences of your actions.”

This simple phrase, written by Concita De Gregorio in her latest book, relates to most of the evils of our time.

Reality violently demonstrates our inadequacies. I use the word “our” on purpose, because we can’t just blame the politician on duty. Politicians have enormous responsibility because, today, they live in a parallel world that rarely meets that of the vast majority of people. They have the power to manage and govern, so excuses won’t be accepted. Ever! Except human ones. For example, the Mayor of Genoa will carry the burden of the deaths in her city. With the greatest respect, she administrates a city that has been mortally wounded, but not only last Friday, as similar disasters keep repeating over the years.

It is no longer a question of the right or the left. Genoa has always been run by progressive politicians, but it has been no protection against disasters. It is comical to hear the secretary of the most important centre-left party blame Giovanni Alemanno for a flood in Rome, but then make an excuse for Genoa. There are no words to describe the governor of Lombardy as he tried to justify the appointment of some regional councillors, whose only qualities were having a certain surname, or being close to Silvio Berlusconi.

This is politics today. The politics of the G20, who, by day, discuss how to save the world’s economies, and by night, sleep in hotels costing €30,000. It reminds me of Princesa, the Brazilian transsexual, about whom Fabrizio De Andrè also wrote a song, in which he told of the insults that Italian men hurled at her by day, only to go out and look for her by night.

When prostitution reaches the halls of power, it is time to rethink everything.

But the question is not only one of politics. A friend was wondering about the tragedy in Genoa, about the possibility of at least saving the children. Underneath there is a mixture of anger and fatalism. The former is understandable, the latter is not.

It is not fate, destiny, that causes death. It is a society that has lost its sense of responsibility; a hypocritical and cynical society that pretends to be sensitive, that cries at the sight of dead children, but then, the next day, acts as if nothing had happened.

For Genoa, why don’t we make a precise list? Who produced the plans? Who gave the building permits? Who carried out the work? Who did the inspections? Who turned a blind eye? Etc, etc.

The responsibility is everyone’s, yes, everyone’s. If we examined phenomena, such as the disappearance of responsibility, we would discover that, with the complexity of the challenges of our day, everyone is thinking of himself.

Some will say this has always been so. Some will say that each transitional phase in history brought imbalance and problems. And it’s true. But now, we have different means and wealth to respond. At the same time, it is true that speed does not help. Just as the riverbeds failed to contain the fury of the water in Liguria. This is why everyone must be more responsible, beginning with the smallest gestures.

Then, to any incapable and incompetent ruling class, there is only one thing to say. “Go home!”