by Irene Bianchi

In the good old times, when romanticism wasn’t outdated yet, whenever a gentleman wanted to seduce a lady, he had to work hard at it, by means of love letters, flowers, chocolates, until he got maybe a closed lip kiss. Likewise, these days, candidates are trying their very best to seduce voters. They walk the streets and slums, don’t mind getting muddy, talk to neighbours, kiss babies and grandmas, promise miracles, smile with brand new, dazzling teeth, over-acting their characters, playing the good, caring guys to the limit. In my town, local workers almost vacuum and wax your sidewalk if you ask them to. As the Spanish saying goes: «Cuando la limosna es grande, hasta el Santo desconfía».