Italian Food Scandal

I wonder if Michelangelo would like a Big Mac and fries from the Golden arches. Hmmm It may sound like a strange wondering, but I have reason to ponder the idea. According to Italian media, after a Mc Donald's restaurant opened right outside of the Vatican City Walls, the Catholic Church lost its appetite for fast food.  A lawsuit is being filed to block a McDonald’s from continuing to operate there.  Even though there are a number of little trattorias around the Vatican where you can get classic Roman dishes like carbonara or cacio e pepe, the neo classic dish "Big Mac Italia".

So Michelangelo, the guy who helped design the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica, if reincarnated would today be able to view the design of the Golden Arches. But the classic Italian eateries that have surrounded the Vatican for generations feel that fast food behemoths like Mc Donald's should be excommunicated from the area. For four generations Manuel Tosti’s family has had a restaurant across the street. “McDonald’s is producing a lot of problems,” Tosti said. “It’s a multinational that has the same food everywhere – whereas we do pasta – that’s famous around the world and typical Roman dishes.”

Wow! What happened to the Catholic concept of diversity and brotherhood? In an interview with Italy’s La Repubblica, Cardinal Elio Sgreccia  agreed with Tosti and called the arrival of the fast food chain a “disgrace.” Pope Francis  rants about the excesses of big business, but when he lived in Bolivia once used a Bolivian Burger King to change into his religious vestments. I suspect Burger King is no less an infidel than Mc Donald's, so what does  Pope Frances think about fast food and the vatican?

Italian media says that the Vatican is a secret supporter of Mc D. It is said to be receiving more than $31,000 a month in rent from the Vatican based McDonald’s because Mc D is it's tenant there. To further muddle the issue of whether a huge fast food chain should be located next to the Vatican, the Hard Rock Café opened a store on the boulevard which leads to St. Peter’s Square.

To bring some sense to this Italian political correctness a Vatican priest has told Italian media, “I think there are more serious problem in the world. “There are greater scandals”

I wonder if he is referring to all those Vatican sex scandals involving its priests and little boys?