ABSTRACT
A reasonably working balance in the relationship between citizenship and governance is by definition directly dependent upon the recognized structuration of legitimacy and the attendant exercise of rights, obligations and responsibility on both sides of the spectrum. This chapter reviews the sociological implications of a situation in which for several years Campania, including world-famous tourist resorts, has been periodically swamped with enormous amounts of uncollected rubbish during the summer months, raising serious problems of public health. The Italian political system is heavily influenced by the electoral implications of a particularly weakening form of proportional representation. This is one of the key factors that explain why, since World War II, when the new Constitution was drafted and the new political system structured. Throughout Naples and the province public space was swamped with neatly tied-up black rubbish bags, most of which were ripped open by stray dogs and cats and by an ever-growing number of sewer rats increasingly unafraid of human beings.
