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April 10, 2026
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"How the Democratic Party could have voted for a motion that equates Nazi-fascism and communism is one of those mysteries of faith that deserve to be explored. The position of the right wing, which has been dreaming of imposing this fanciful equation for half a century, is easy to understand. And one can understand the vote of the poor, the forgetful, those who were not there or who have never opened a book, a few simple-minded fools seeking light or glory. However, the history of the 20th century, like it or not, is different, and it certainly cannot be rewritten by a few small-time revisionists momentarily involved in a school trip to Brussels or Strasbourg."
"I have interviewed Giovanni Rana no more than three times in my life. But once – in 1998 – for various reasons, I spent a whole day with him and his son Luca in San Giovanni Lupatoto, in the heart of the family's industrial empire. To describe them, this image, which I will never forget, would suffice: Giovanni recalls his early days as an apprentice in the family's artisan pasta factory, while Luca looks on admiringly. Shortly afterwards, he gets up and shows me how the entire company has grown up around their family home: a house-factory, a life physically intertwined with the idea of work."
"(On criticism of possible control by multinationals over Expo 2015) Yes, McDonald's is sponsoring it, but in exactly the same way as it sponsors the stadium."
"(About Expo 2015)This place is full of non-GMO cultures. Just look at the Coldiretti stand, which is an important supporter and is always full."
"(On the role of interns) How can you not realise that being here at Expo [2015] right now gives you access to a world of relationships, contacts and cultures that no internship or work experience in the Italian job market can offer?"
"(Concerning Expo 2015) There is everything, but also the opposite of everything: the world of vegans and carnivores, Israelis extolling genetically modified cherry tomatoes and GMO corn, and Coldiretti explaining and describing the value and importance of being GMO-free."
"What will happen after Expo [2015]? Maroni and Pisapia had both talked about campuses, but there is still nothing on the horizon. If everything has to be planned to optimise costs, then let's decide now! Also because tomorrow it will all be dismantled. The mistake is that everything obviously had to be designed with an awareness and understanding of what should come next."
Young though he was, his radiant energy produced such an impression of absolute reliability that Hedgewar made him the first sarkaryavah, or general secretary, of the RSS.
- Gopal Mukund Huddar
Largely because of the influence of communists in London, Huddar's conversion into an enthusiastic supporter of the fight against fascism was quick and smooth. The ease with which he crossed from one worldview to another betrays the fact that he had not properly understood the world he had grown in.
Huddar would have been 101 now had he been alive. But then centenaries are not celebrated only to register how old so and so would have been and when. They are usually celebrated to explore how much poorer our lives are without them. Maharashtrian public life is poorer without him. It is poorer for not having made the effort to recall an extraordinary life.
I regret I was not there to listen to Balaji Huddar's speech [...] No matter how many times you listen to him, his speeches are so delightful that you feel like listening to them again and again.
By the time he came out of Franco's prison, Huddar had relinquished many of his old ideas. He displayed a worldview completely different from that of the RSS, even though he continued to remain deferential to Hedgewar and maintained a personal relationship with him.