More than a whiff of corruption

I WAS highly relieved by Domenico Pacitti's proof that the Mafia mentality is in the Italian system rather than in the blood ("Bolognese flavoured corruption", THES, July 10). I was sure to have been born "Mafiosa" because of my Italian chromosomes and I was living in the fear that a "Mafia gene" could be discovered any moment.

Anyhow, some curiosity remains: what dreadful and shocking experiences may have driven Pacitti to work in an Italian university and even to try to become a colleague of such disgusting people as described in his article? There are certainly better jobs and better places elsewhere in Europe and in the world.

Margherita Plassa

Via Induno 20/A Turin, Italy