tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post1327839134994499452..comments2024-03-28T07:52:07.647-04:00Comments on venezia blog: Love For Sale, Part 2: Crime & Self-recriminationSteven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-69529139922998759212013-03-30T16:09:37.105-04:002013-03-30T16:09:37.105-04:00Yes, I'm sure you're right--though it was ...Yes, I'm sure you're right--though it was nicer when I could imagine each of them stocking up in the big store on the mainland where everyone here goes to buy cheap items (which I've never been to and whose name I forget). Steven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-76104496519013458682013-03-28T04:24:56.937-04:002013-03-28T04:24:56.937-04:00I'm sure these guys' presence at the bridg...I'm sure these guys' presence at the bridge was discussed and agreed upon somewhere, it's hardly a...private commercial initiative. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-83293910735877614662013-03-24T16:06:15.670-04:002013-03-24T16:06:15.670-04:00We will be badly outnumbered, Francesco, but we ca...We will be badly outnumbered, Francesco, but we can try! Steven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-6412620609376257722013-03-20T17:41:03.182-04:002013-03-20T17:41:03.182-04:00Steve, we may guard the bridge together at Easter!...Steve, we may guard the bridge together at Easter!Francesconoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-33773027095656367122013-03-20T15:36:04.179-04:002013-03-20T15:36:04.179-04:00I think you're right, I should find out what t...I think you're right, I should find out what the law is about the locks themselves. I suppose you can't expect tourists to think long-term about the place they're visiting or consider questions about who exactly will remove all these locks some day & who will pay for it--but it would be nice if they did.<br /><br />I also thought the vendors were simply sympathetic to other sellers--or that, as I've heard about here in Italy, much of a small village might have been brought to a foreign country to work (as, for example, an entire village from Emilia-Romagna was brought to the US to mine coal in the early 20th C by a coal company). But I don't know what the actual situation is. Who is the "boss" of these sellers? In the case of the African purse sellers I've heard it's the Mafia. Steven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-14684781224526371782013-03-18T06:35:57.945-04:002013-03-18T06:35:57.945-04:00I can't blame you, Steve. It's so hard to...I can't blame you, Steve. It's so hard to speak rationally to these people when you are so incensed. You should be able to find out what the legal situation is. Then, at least, you can tell them they <i>will</i> be breaking the law if they attach a lock - no point telling them after. OR you could invest in a pair of bolt-cutters. I hear that scrap metal is very valuable these days, especially brass.<br />Yes, you can find 'gangs' (in the nicest possible sense) of these men (never women) who sell bags, sunglasses, toys etc taking a rest in quiet areas of Venice. You would think that they'd be in competition with each other, but I think that they are all in the same boat, so they help each other. The police could round them up in an instant if they wanted to, but they seem to prefer to give them a head start and chase them and pick up the bags that they drop.Berthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04432970663201300004noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-42296352122774050052013-03-17T14:34:00.565-04:002013-03-17T14:34:00.565-04:00I'm curious about the guys who sell those thin...I'm curious about the guys who sell those things now: I always assumed each was an independent operator, but having recently passed through Campo Maria Formosa & seen what appeared to be a convention of those guys I realized all of them may be working for someone else. How does that work, I wonder?<br /><br />When I wrote the caption that "someone should stop them" I was actually thinking about the tourists from buying them, as no one seems willing to stop people from selling them. But I suppose no one will stop either group from doing either.Steven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-89259011738668482952013-03-17T14:27:49.830-04:002013-03-17T14:27:49.830-04:00You meant "those shirking authority"? Or...You meant "those shirking authority"? Or "profiting by shirking authority"?Steven Varni, aka Sig. Nonlosohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10066672605318740533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-80114850648576853442013-03-16T15:42:11.763-04:002013-03-16T15:42:11.763-04:00I just realised "those in authority" is ...I just realised "those in authority" is an oxymoron ...<br /><br />Yes, it's Cranky-pants again.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151589473709505648.post-66298893377406154032013-03-16T15:40:20.116-04:002013-03-16T15:40:20.116-04:00Those fellows are out there 'loud and clear...Those fellows are out there 'loud and clear' carrying on what is no doubt an illegal activity, and nothing is done about them. Another blind eye is turned. What in heck is the matter with those in authority? <br /><br />Sad, sad, sad.<br /><br />Crank-pantsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com