Grandpa, the Monster

I suppose that if I were the grandchild of a dictator, I would also "clutch at straws", trying to say something positive about him. This must surely be the case of Mussolini's granddaughter, who is running for Parliament in Italy. According to her, dear old Benito did some good things, like clean the swamps infested with malaria near Rome. (We always hear about his getting the trains to run on time.) To her credit, she does recognize his "monstrous errors", such as the anti-Jewish laws, the dictatorship and the violence that went with it.

In view of which, cleaning the swamps looks pretty lame...

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