Rome Mayor Mistakes Another Arena For Colosseum, Sent To Lions

For the Romans, there's no other choice but the mortal (though virtual) thumbs down for their mayor.

Yes, online commentators (and no doubt offline elders around the Italian capital) are sending Mayor Virginia Raggi to the proverbial lions for mixing up the Colosseum — the one (and only) built in Rome nearly 2,000 years ago that's the first and biggest open-air amphitheater ever built — with some other, smaller ancient arena in a much smaller city almost not worth mentioning by name. But alas...

In a video presentation this week to tout the Italian capital's selection as host of the 2023 Ryder Cup golf tournament, Raggi showed a footage of what was supposed to be Rome's signature landmark… but was instead the arena of Nimes in southern France.

Italian daily La Stampagathered some of the Romans' reactions: "Tell me it isn't true," wrote online commentator Simone N, after seeing the video. "What you see in the first three seconds is the Arena of Nîmes, which is in France. IN FRANCE. What the hell does that have to do with the city of Rome? The Colosseum is the Colosseum."

For those outside Rome, it may seem like an honest mistake, after all the French arena was built shortly after the Colosseum and is one of the best preserved ancient amphitheaters in the world. But for Romans, you might as well have substituted in the Yankee Stadium or the Wembley arena. Beyond stupido for the mayor.

"The mayor of Rome can't recognize the Colosseum?" asked one. Another added: "I could cry... a mistake that not even a kid in elementary school would make. Mixing up the symbol of Rome."

La Stampa reports that Raggi's staff has pulled the erroneous footage out, and blamed the gaffe on the Italian Golf Federation, which had included the wrong images in a video that the city of Rome borrowed for its presentation.

There was at least one defender of the error, several hundred miles to the north. Xavier Duais, deputy maire of Nîmes and responsible for tourism, tweeted a message to Raggi: "Thank you for the wonderful showcase you've given our arenas. Errare humanum est !" That's Latin for: To err is human. Sure, and to tear apart the fools is Roman.

WHAT THE WORLD

Police reports, plot twists, weird stuff ... from everywhere.

LA STAMPA

La Stampa ("The Press") is a top Italian daily founded in 1867 under the name Gazzetta Piemontese. Based in Turin, La Stampa is owned by the Fiat Group and distributed in many other European countries.

Rome Mayor Mistakes Another Arena For Colosseum, Sent To Lions

For the Romans, there's no other choice but the mortal (though virtual) thumbs down for their mayor.

"The mayor of Rome can't recognize the Colosseum?" asked one. Another added: "I could cry... a mistake that not even a kid in elementary school would make. Mixing up the symbol of Rome."

WHAT THE WORLD

Police reports, plot twists, weird stuff ... from everywhere.

You've reached your limit of free articles.

To read the full story, start your free trial today.

Get unlimited access. Cancel anytime.

Exclusive coverage from the world's top sources, in English for the first time.

Insights from the widest range of perspectives, languages and countries.

Society

mental health

What To Do With The Complainers In Your Life — Advice From A South American Shrink

Argentines love to complain. But when you listen to others who complain, there are options: must we be a sponge to this daily toxicity or should we, politely, block out this act of emotional vandalism?

Photo of two men talking while sitting at a table at a bar un Buenos Aires, with a poster of Maradona on the wall behind them.

Talking in Buenos Aires, Argentina

Nathana Rebouças

Martín Reynoso*

BUENOS AIRES — Argentina: the land of complainers. Whether sitting in a taxi, entering a shop or attending a family dinner, you won't escape the litany of whingeing over what's wrong with the country, what's not working and above all, what we need!

We're in an uneasy period of political change and economic adjustments, and our anxious hopes for new and better leaders are a perfect context for this venting, purging exercise.

Certain people have a strangely stable, continuous pattern of complaining: like a lifestyle choice. Others do it in particular situations or contexts. But what if we are at the receiving end? I am surprised at how complaints, even as they begin to be uttered and before they are fully formulated, can disarm and turn us into weak-willed accomplices. Do we have an intrinsic need to empathize, or do we agree because we too are dissatisfied with life?

Certainly, agreeing with a moaner may strengthen our social or human bonds, especially if we happen to share ideas or political views. We feel part of something bigger. Often it must seem easier to confront reality, which can be daunting, with this type of "class action" than face it alone.