"Ughh, che giornata lunga!" Welcome to another medieval issue of "Only In Italy".

Hi! Do you by any chance do cookbook reviews? Thanks. Cheril

We're so sorry. We don't do cookbook reviews, Cheril.

Quite frankly, who in their right mind would want our insane staff to do a cookbook review? Give us a bowl of "Pasta con le Sarde" and homemade wine and we'll be thrilled. However; we would be more than happy to collaborate with any of our readers who is interested in writing a book about "baccala".

By the way, we're referring to salted codfish and not the "Bay Area Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse" (BACALA) in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Rome - January 30, 2007 - An Italian high school aviation teacher earning 1,200 euros ($1,500) a month became a minor celebrity in Italy on Tuesday by slipping through a fake plan to buy ailing Alitalia as a protest against years of mismanagement.

"This was a provocation. It was my way of making a citizen's protest," said Fabio Scaccia, who teaches aerodynamics and aircraft design at a trade high school in the city of Frosinone just south of Rome.

When Italy's Treasury Ministry announced the 11 expressions of interest to buy struggling Alitalia on Monday night, even the most well-connected business journalists were stymied by the number three entry: "Fabio Scaccia (individual)".

No one knew who he was, perhaps because, in their high-flying world, he is a nobody.

"I read the papers. I saw the tender document on the Internet. I saw the address (of the financial advisors) and sent in my expression of interest," he told reporters by telephone.

He said no one made any checks on his credentials, even though the Italian Treasury has said anyone expressing interest must have assets of at least 100 million euros.

So, the penniless professor found his name along with the likes of private equity powerhouse Texas Pacific Group and Italy's No. 2 bank UniCredit on the Treasury's list.

He said he did it to express his rage about how the company, a national symbol, had been run for years and was bitter that it risked bankruptcy several times in the past.

"I've followed the Alitalia crisis for the past 20 years," the 46-year-old Scaccia said. "I wanted to show that a company like Alitalia should not be allowed to remain in a state of crisis for so long," he said.

Critics have said Alitalia, which for most of its existence has been state-owned, was often run more as a political tool, a place to give cronies top jobs, rather than a real business.

"We all have to make economic sacrifices. But there are people at the Treasury Ministry who waste millions of dollars a day and have not lost their jobs," Scaccia said.

The Treasury, which has a 49.9 percent stake in the airline, is looking to unload most of that stake.

"I make 1,200 euros a month as a teacher and I think I could run Alitalia for the same salary. I'm not in it for the money," he said.

Alitalia's CEO Giancarlo Cimoli, by comparison, takes home 225,000 euros ($294,000) each month.

"A company that loses more than a million euros a day is alarming," he said.

So, what would Scaccia do if he did have the money to buy Alitalia?

"I would concentrate on maintenance, invest in new aircraft and center all the activities around a single hub in Rome (instead of having a second hub in Milan)," he said.

He thinks the big money boys with whom he rubbed virtual shoulders with for a brief fleeting moment of fame should listen up.

Rome - January 26, 2007 - Unions representing Italy's gas station operators on Friday announced 14 days of strikes to protest against a government move to deregulate their sector. The first, 48-hour stoppage will take place on February 7-8, the three unions said.

"The government is forcing an entire category of workers into an extremely tough response" they said after Thursday night's cabinet approval of a deregulation bill. Gas station operators are particularly angry at plans to allow shopping centers and supermarkets to distribute gas.

They also oppose the planned abolition of minimum distances between petrol stations and the extension of opening hours. The unions said they were "not prepared to be sacrificed to do a favor to the powerful gas distribution lobby".

They said the bill would result in the closure of stations and force car owners to travel further for non-gas services.

Consumer groups have applauded the plan, however, arguing it will reduce prices through greater competition. According to the unions, gas distribution has already been deregulated in Italy, since 1998, and there is no justification for a further liberalization. Big gas distributing chains have far less of the market in Italy than in other European Union countries. Italian gas prices are among the highest in Europe.

Earlier this week, Italy's anti-trust authority launched a probe into nine oil companies suspected of price fixing. Thursday's deregulation bill contains a raft of measures including streamlining business start-ups and getting rid of fees for mobile phone top-ups. Praised by consumer groups, the packages seek to rid Italy of the red tape and market rigidities that have made its economy one of the EU's worst performers over the past decade.

Cagliari - January 26, 2007 - An Italian Robin Hood who stole from a bank and gave the money to the Church has been turned in by clergymen.

The thief took £8,000 in a bank robbery in Cagliari, but later went to a church where he handed over a sack full of cash to a priest and ran off.

But Father Francesco Matta called police, who realized the notes were stolen from the serial numbers.

Officers tracked down and arrested the Robin Hood, using a description given by the priest.