An Italian Pun
First, a few digressions.
When we first arrived, barely speaking a word of Italian, we were told that puns do not exist in Italian because it is such a precise language. Well, it is indeed precise, but as I have learned more and more Italian, I have found that Italians do indeed use puns as a source of humor.
Second, a word about the mafia, particularly the mafia in large cities. While the mafia seems, or reportedly make most of their money through drugs, prostitution, and skimming government contracts, they still make a lot of money through their specialized insurance business, known in America as extortion. There have been many 'Stop the Pizzo' campaigns, particularly in Palermo, pizzo being the name that is given to the money (or piece of the profits) that the mafia collects.
As a final digression, some of you may know me well enough to know that sometimes at 3 or 4 in the morning I will wake up laughing. I wake up laughing because somehow, in my sleeping dream state, I have thought up a new joke. When this happens, I try to decide if the joke is worth keeping or not, and if it is, I write enough of it down to remember it, then I can re-judge it in the cold light of day. This is one that made the cut.
Well, there has been a fairly massive dragnet for mafiosi in Palermo. Over 100 people were arrested and put in jail in just two days. Most of the arrested were the leg breakers and car burners whose job it was to go around their neighborhood and collect the pizzo. This has left the bosses with far too few workers to get to all of the store owners for the regular collection.
So ever clever, the bosses have set up small storefronts where the business owners may come and pay their tribute each week. That is why, when you are in Palermo, you will see so many pizzorias.
When we first arrived, barely speaking a word of Italian, we were told that puns do not exist in Italian because it is such a precise language. Well, it is indeed precise, but as I have learned more and more Italian, I have found that Italians do indeed use puns as a source of humor.
Second, a word about the mafia, particularly the mafia in large cities. While the mafia seems, or reportedly make most of their money through drugs, prostitution, and skimming government contracts, they still make a lot of money through their specialized insurance business, known in America as extortion. There have been many 'Stop the Pizzo' campaigns, particularly in Palermo, pizzo being the name that is given to the money (or piece of the profits) that the mafia collects.
As a final digression, some of you may know me well enough to know that sometimes at 3 or 4 in the morning I will wake up laughing. I wake up laughing because somehow, in my sleeping dream state, I have thought up a new joke. When this happens, I try to decide if the joke is worth keeping or not, and if it is, I write enough of it down to remember it, then I can re-judge it in the cold light of day. This is one that made the cut.
Well, there has been a fairly massive dragnet for mafiosi in Palermo. Over 100 people were arrested and put in jail in just two days. Most of the arrested were the leg breakers and car burners whose job it was to go around their neighborhood and collect the pizzo. This has left the bosses with far too few workers to get to all of the store owners for the regular collection.
So ever clever, the bosses have set up small storefronts where the business owners may come and pay their tribute each week. That is why, when you are in Palermo, you will see so many pizzorias.
posted by Steve at 9:30 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home