December 14th had several faces in Italy. Silvio Berlusconi, the prime minister, kept his conservative government alive by narrowly winning votes of confidence in both houses of parliament. There was an ugly riot in Rome and student protests in several other cities. How far these events were linked will doubtless be the subject of heated debates in Italy over Christmas dinner tables. But one thing is clear: December 14th was not a great day for Italy's parliamentary democracy.
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