When will those people realize that the only reason Italy exists as a nation is to pay as much money as possible to the big German banks and the IMF? If individual Italians wanted more than that out of life, they should have gotten themselves born as the sons and daughters of bankers. What do the Italian workers and middle class expect, a decent standard of living or something? I mean, really!

I think another vote, provided it's fair and unbiased, would be just the thing for the Italian people.

More elections probably suit him fine. It is only politicians that fear elections.

The last one in Italy would seem like just that sort of election.

It's not as if any coalition government is in place which has even put forth an agenda. How can people know what a theoretical agenda they could possibly be voting for would be like?

I understand that someone could vote for a government and then regret their vote when that government doesn't function as they'd planned, but when there is no government at all, by what metric can they alter their vote? They're forced into a prisoner's dilemma.

So depending on how they feel about that, more of them might vote for Grillo, or less.

The votes aren't cast one-by-one so that each voter can see exactly the influence on the outcome his or her vote will have.

For those people, it is a prisoners dilemma indeed. For everybody else, it's a win.

Beppe Grillo at a meeting in Rome.

Last Monday, for the first time in my memory, nobody celebrated after a general election. No celebration from the Democrats, who were the projected winners but came out sore losers. Nor from the seven million voters (down from 13 million in 2008) who still chose Silvio Berlusconi and then became invisible – almost no one admits to having voted for the disgraced former prime minister.

In short, the quasi-winners did not seem too enthusiastic or hopeful; the losers were puzzled; and the path to a new government remains an enigma. Many Grillo voters already disagree with him and want him to support a minority cabinet with a short-term reform agenda led by a leader from the Democrats. Many former Grillo-haters show sudden admiration for his stamina and his success. However, our economy is not getting any better; but, along with a post-election Grillo hangover, we are at least now having an interesting – if scary – national conversation. No, we're not Greece. We're much bigger, and weirder.

In Rome, we are without a prime minister (and pope); and with a president (the very worried Giorgio Napolitano) and a mayor (the much-criticized Gianni Alemanno) in the last weeks of their mandate. There are scarce hopes of political stability in the near future.

Grillo has been attacked for his right-leaning outpourings about immigrants, women and trade unions. But among the 162 newly-elected 5 Stelle MPs there are 62 women; and the Grillini are, for the most part, young former left-wingers, environmentalists and local activists...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/mar/02/italy-general-election-grillo-turmoil

It does look like new elections have to be coming soon. Otherwise Italy will have no government. I wonder if Berlusconi will get 7 million 'invisible' voters again.

I don't see how there can be so much opposition to it when the results of current systems lead to situations like this and what the UK faced in their last major election.