This is an article written by Monica Maggioni, a veteran journalist and the CEO of RaiCom, a division of Italian public television, published in the Washington Post today, titled “In Italy, we live in silence, die in silence — and wait”.

It is a melancholic, superbly-written but heart-wrenching letter which, in a few paragraphs, paints a multi-layered picture of the situation in Italy, how they got there and a perspective on the future. The letter has obvious relevance to our own situation here and contains some cautionary hints about what lies ahead.