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2015
December 16, 2015

On the Road to Naples I Discovered Why Italian American Politicians are their Own Worst Enemies

Jerry Krase
Jerry Krase
This is a Naples Bike Lane. My Neapolitan friend said the European Union gave funds to promote biking and the local authorities painted these so they didn't have to send the money back. In five days of walking, four or more hours a day, I didn't see one person riding a bicycle. There's a political lesson to be learned here but I don't know what it is.

Italian American politicians adhere to a corollary given by the 6th century BCE Chinese general Sun Tzu who wrote the Art of War. It was uttered by Michael Corleone in The...

August 9, 2015

Part II -- The Unfortunate Pilgrim*: Or You Can’t Get There From Here

Jerry Krase
Jerry Krase
The shortcut to Laurino, we thought (La scorciatoia a Laurino, abbiamo pensato).

Finding her roots in the almost mythic hometown of my wife's father, Anthony Charles Nicoletti, wasn't as easy as we thought it was, but it was well worth the effort. To...

July 17, 2015

Part I -- The Unfortunate Pilgrim*: Or You Can’t Get There From Here

Jerry Krase
Jerry Krase
A Cangelosi wedding circa 1935. My mother Martha Rose is the beautiful bridesmaid in the upper right corner. She didn't marry a Sicilian. Therefore the reason for this story.

*With apologies to Mario Puzo this essay in three-parts will demonstrate why, as to reconnecting to or even finding my Sicilian/Italian ethnic roots, "you can't get there from...

January 2, 2015

Between Columbus and Cuomo

Jerry Krase

With the sad announcement of the death of Mario Cuomo on the same day of the inauguration of his son Andrew for the second time as Governor of New York State, people, like myself...