Both your leader and article on Italy’s prime minister point out many a paradox of his rule (“Regrettable Berlusconi” and “ The Berlusconization of Italy,” May 2, 2009). As his country crumbles in the clutches of the global economic crisis, he is ever safer in his post. In almost complete control of the media, he has turned into Italy’s entertainer-in-chief. And he is a consummate pagliaccio—jester, buffoon, joker, fool, or clown—with a firm grip of his people’s soul. All the problems they face promptly evaporate in his able hands. Which is why Silvio Berlusconi is unlikely to remain an isolated Italian phenomenon. As Europe crumbles, too, many a politician will surely try to follow his example. Nicolas Sarkozy is perhaps the first among the budding jesters on the continent, but the Berlusconization of Europe is far from an unlikely prospect. As a global power, it has long become a farce, anyhow.