Garbage from Outer Space!

The Garbage. Yes, there does seem to be a garbage collection problem in Naples but it's not as bad as I'd been led to believe- then again, it's supposed to be worse in the suburbs. It goes back decades with the trash- I've been told- and it's cited as one of the factors that brought down the government of the guy before Berlusconi in the 90s. There's much carping about it in the press. As to the source or root of the problem- there's no shortage of theories/explanations. There's no more room in the landfills- that seems clear. It's not the result of a strike- although there was a public outcry after the government announced the location of a new landfill. Protesters prevented the trash from being collected, this was just this past September/ October, which only exacerbated the problem. There's also conspiratorial speculation about Comorra- the mafia in this region- which supposedly controls collection, incineration and the dispersal of the trash to the landfill sites. They've allegedly been illegally importing trash from all over Europe- Germany mainly- and dumping it in the landfills around Naples... who knows? And everyone is angry at the government- which is allegedly corrupt, in bed with the mob and unable to resolve the crisis. Who knows? Personally, I was surprised to find this happy robot- so cute- tossed out in an alley and I was tempted to take it home- until I remembered that I don't have a home. He looks like good company but where did he come from? The future? Are aliens from outer space dumping on the south too. This photo might be incendiary... as is the garbage ha ha- which burned in the street on this occassion- cough hack!)