In Italy Mussolini iPhone app takes off
It is number two at the Italian Apples iTunes store, pushing a video game based on the blockbuster Avatar.
The creator calls it iMussolini, made by Fascist leader Benito Mussolini a collection of 100 speeches. In Italy, where mention of the country’s involvement in World War II atrocities still rankles, the application’s success has taken on a political dimension.
The iMussolini application is about 1,000 units per day at 0,79 euro ($1.17) a throw moving downloaded. The creator is Luigi Marino, a Naples 25-year-old programmer. He is making about $750 per day in sales.
Arguments for and against the application. are raging across Italy, offering a convenient opportunity to discuss the reconsideration of the legacy of the man Italians called “Duce:” Leader. Over the past two decades some Italians have softened their stance on Mussolini. Sixty years ago, Italians applauded when he was shot without trial and then hung on a meat hook. These days, his hometown Predappio has transformed into a sort of shrine to the man.
Marino wants to sidestep the dispute.“I want to say that this history related app does not celebrate fascism,” Marino writes in the introduction of ITunes to the app.
He said he created iMussolini for “nostalgic people or people who are fascinated by (Mussolini’s) historical figure.”For its part, Italy iPhone has tried to wash their hands of the dispute.
When commenters began display messages such as “Dux mea lux” (“Duce is my light”), they closed down the comments section. Next, they sent their own statement.
“The app isn’t a political item but one of history and concerns a person who wrote in our history an important page,” says iPhone Italy in part.
