Matteo
@fitwinenerd.bsky.social
Italian born, citizen of the world. I have worked in Italy, Maldives, USA, UAE, China. Wine trader, educator, space & science enthusiast, sport addicted :)
Living abroad isn’t a guarantee of perspective. But when combined with curiosity, language skills, and careful sourcing, it allows you to see reality. That skill is not just useful for personal knowledge; it’s essential in a world where narratives are carefully curated, censored, and manipulated.
I’ve lived in five countries.
I’ve lived in five countries, and it taught me something uncomfortable: people who leave often understand their home country and elsewhere…
medium.com
January 29, 2026 at 12:22 PM
Living abroad isn’t a guarantee of perspective. But when combined with curiosity, language skills, and careful sourcing, it allows you to see reality. That skill is not just useful for personal knowledge; it’s essential in a world where narratives are carefully curated, censored, and manipulated.
We think the lack of civic education, the collapse of long-form journalism, the disappearance of public forums, is just “bad luck”. But no — it benefits a very specific type of political actor. When people don’t understand institutions, laws, history, or basic media literacy... Well. We are fucked!
Political Illiteracy: Opinions Without Effort
I watched an episode of StarTalk just now, and then The Prof G Pod, where guests like Adam Becker and Anne Applebaum talked about…
medium.com
December 8, 2025 at 6:15 AM
We think the lack of civic education, the collapse of long-form journalism, the disappearance of public forums, is just “bad luck”. But no — it benefits a very specific type of political actor. When people don’t understand institutions, laws, history, or basic media literacy... Well. We are fucked!
I can't believe I am meeting people who would like to see more Dictators running countries.
Wtf !
Political illiteracy combined with fake and misleading news (and AI) with the usual bad actors are indeed hurting all of us.
#politics #illiteracy
Wtf !
Political illiteracy combined with fake and misleading news (and AI) with the usual bad actors are indeed hurting all of us.
#politics #illiteracy
November 24, 2025 at 8:19 AM
I can't believe I am meeting people who would like to see more Dictators running countries.
Wtf !
Political illiteracy combined with fake and misleading news (and AI) with the usual bad actors are indeed hurting all of us.
#politics #illiteracy
Wtf !
Political illiteracy combined with fake and misleading news (and AI) with the usual bad actors are indeed hurting all of us.
#politics #illiteracy
What the actual fuck ?
Donald Trump agreed to attend Davos in January after organisers gave assurances that overtly ‘woke’ topics would not feature prominently at the annual Alpine gathering, people familiar with the talks said. on.ft.com/48rnCa8
November 21, 2025 at 8:19 AM
What the actual fuck ?
This is something I kept thinking for a very long time tbh. I always felt like videogames, specially the PVP were the mirror of what people could do if left unchecked and .... Somehow a mirror of reality medium.com/@matteocecch...
What Videogames Can Teach Us About Inequality and Toxiticy
Back in the day — around 2008 or 2009 (maybe even 2007, but let’s stay conservative here) — I used to run, together with a bunch of online…
medium.com
November 19, 2025 at 2:16 AM
This is something I kept thinking for a very long time tbh. I always felt like videogames, specially the PVP were the mirror of what people could do if left unchecked and .... Somehow a mirror of reality medium.com/@matteocecch...
I think the USA is going through a very dark period with Trump right now. It's just unbelievable how many stupid things he can do every single day.
#trump
#trump
I don't know why the "Piggy" thing is bothering me so much. It's one more unforgivable thing in a list of 20,000 unforgivable things, but I've been mad about it for like 12 straight hours.
November 19, 2025 at 2:12 AM
I think the USA is going through a very dark period with Trump right now. It's just unbelievable how many stupid things he can do every single day.
#trump
#trump
"But as a wine professional, I say: let’s embrace it.
Let’s teach people how to enjoy a good drink responsibly, with friends, while relaxing."
medium.com/@matteocecch...
Let’s teach people how to enjoy a good drink responsibly, with friends, while relaxing."
medium.com/@matteocecch...
Wine, Millennials, and Money: Understanding Today’s Drinking Trends
A few days ago, I was having lunch with an importer in Shanghai. We were going through the usual “next steps — what to do, what not to do”…
medium.com
November 15, 2025 at 9:34 AM
"But as a wine professional, I say: let’s embrace it.
Let’s teach people how to enjoy a good drink responsibly, with friends, while relaxing."
medium.com/@matteocecch...
Let’s teach people how to enjoy a good drink responsibly, with friends, while relaxing."
medium.com/@matteocecch...
But what’s missing is accountability. Plato assumed that reason alone — in the hands of a small, enlightened elite — would lead to justice. Modern political experience shows that power without accountability always corrupts, no matter how noble the intentions.
The Myth of Greek Democracy: Plato Was Never a Democrat.
I have a problem with people taking Plato as an example of what democracy should be, quoting him as if he were some kind of defender of the…
medium.com
November 8, 2025 at 3:59 AM
But what’s missing is accountability. Plato assumed that reason alone — in the hands of a small, enlightened elite — would lead to justice. Modern political experience shows that power without accountability always corrupts, no matter how noble the intentions.
Much like Lawrence’s Gilead, Fascism arose from a real crisis (economic, moral, demographic), but the proposed “cure” became worse than the disease
But the regime quickly evolved into a cult of obedience, turning its founding ideals into dogma and its violence into virtue
medium.com/@matteocecch...
But the regime quickly evolved into a cult of obedience, turning its founding ideals into dogma and its violence into virtue
medium.com/@matteocecch...
October 28, 2025 at 3:48 PM
Much like Lawrence’s Gilead, Fascism arose from a real crisis (economic, moral, demographic), but the proposed “cure” became worse than the disease
But the regime quickly evolved into a cult of obedience, turning its founding ideals into dogma and its violence into virtue
medium.com/@matteocecch...
But the regime quickly evolved into a cult of obedience, turning its founding ideals into dogma and its violence into virtue
medium.com/@matteocecch...
Maga cu(n)lt members would say that also Obama spent 300 million Dollars to redesign some lines on the tennis court to a basketball court 🤣🤣. Americans, you are living in scary times if this orange guy can just illegally tear down an historical building without ripecussions.
#trumpisacunt
#trumpisacunt
October 26, 2025 at 3:03 AM
Maga cu(n)lt members would say that also Obama spent 300 million Dollars to redesign some lines on the tennis court to a basketball court 🤣🤣. Americans, you are living in scary times if this orange guy can just illegally tear down an historical building without ripecussions.
#trumpisacunt
#trumpisacunt
I just read this and I think I am going to pay a visit to their accounts, and probably report the accounts too .
#trumpismisdead
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/u...
#trumpismisdead
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/u...
October 19, 2025 at 11:46 AM
I just read this and I think I am going to pay a visit to their accounts, and probably report the accounts too .
#trumpismisdead
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/u...
#trumpismisdead
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/u...
🤣🤣🤣 get the popcorns ready 🍿😅🤣
October 10, 2025 at 1:16 AM
🤣🤣🤣 get the popcorns ready 🍿😅🤣
--> I do think that the Taiwanese living in China suffers from Stockholm Syndrome.
That's the only explanation.
#chinataiwan
That's the only explanation.
#chinataiwan
Something interesting happened the other day: I asked an educated Taiwanese if she feels Chinese or Taiwanese. She replied, ' I am Chinese ', so I asked why; she replied , ' well, because Taiwan was on and off as a part of China, and so we shared the same values at one point',.
-->
#chinataiwan
-->
#chinataiwan
October 5, 2025 at 4:22 PM
--> I do think that the Taiwanese living in China suffers from Stockholm Syndrome.
That's the only explanation.
#chinataiwan
That's the only explanation.
#chinataiwan
Something interesting happened the other day: I asked an educated Taiwanese if she feels Chinese or Taiwanese. She replied, ' I am Chinese ', so I asked why; she replied , ' well, because Taiwan was on and off as a part of China, and so we shared the same values at one point',.
-->
#chinataiwan
-->
#chinataiwan
October 5, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Something interesting happened the other day: I asked an educated Taiwanese if she feels Chinese or Taiwanese. She replied, ' I am Chinese ', so I asked why; she replied , ' well, because Taiwan was on and off as a part of China, and so we shared the same values at one point',.
-->
#chinataiwan
-->
#chinataiwan
When employees feel heard, guided, and supported, they innovate more, stay longer, and deliver results that benefit the entire organization.
medium.com/@matteocecch...
medium.com/@matteocecch...
Lead Like Mandela: Presence Beats Power
I was sitting in a coffee shop the other day, working on a business proposal, when a good friend of mine walked in and ordered a coffee. We…
medium.com
October 3, 2025 at 4:28 AM
When employees feel heard, guided, and supported, they innovate more, stay longer, and deliver results that benefit the entire organization.
medium.com/@matteocecch...
medium.com/@matteocecch...
I am sitting in a coffee bar, in Shanghai. I lived here for 8 years and I need to move on and out. This is a great country, but the government needs lots of reform and I am afraid they will come .... not in an orderly way
#china
#china
September 30, 2025 at 2:22 AM
I am sitting in a coffee bar, in Shanghai. I lived here for 8 years and I need to move on and out. This is a great country, but the government needs lots of reform and I am afraid they will come .... not in an orderly way
#china
#china
Mandela’s message is clear: democracy survives only when citizens are awake, educated, and unwilling to surrender their voice. Freedom isn’t self-sustaining — it’s a daily responsibility.
Democracy Dies Without an Informed Electorate
Long Walk to Freedom, by Nelson Mandela.
I just finished reading one of the most amazing books I’ve ever come across.
I honestly don’t…
medium.com
September 28, 2025 at 3:24 PM
Mandela’s message is clear: democracy survives only when citizens are awake, educated, and unwilling to surrender their voice. Freedom isn’t self-sustaining — it’s a daily responsibility.
The bigger threat is that they stop believing any truth exists at all. When everything looks like “just another opinion,” reality itself collapses into relativism. That’s when authoritarian figures thrive — they offer certainty and simple narratives in a complex world
#informationbias
#informationbias
When People Can’t Process Reality
I am quite scared of the era we are living in now.
Not because of the wars spreading around the world, nor even the effects climate change…
medium.com
August 31, 2025 at 1:55 PM
The bigger threat is that they stop believing any truth exists at all. When everything looks like “just another opinion,” reality itself collapses into relativism. That’s when authoritarian figures thrive — they offer certainty and simple narratives in a complex world
#informationbias
#informationbias
August 30, 2025 at 3:28 AM
I am not surprised.
Not
At
All
Not
At
All
August 24, 2025 at 5:38 PM
I am not surprised.
Not
At
All
Not
At
All
At the end of the day, wine teaches me that honesty, heritage, and curiosity are non-negotiable. You cannot have a great wine without knowing its terroir, its maker, and its story — and you cannot have a healthy democracy without knowing the same about your leaders.
medium.com/@matteocecch...
medium.com/@matteocecch...
From Terroir to Trust: How Wine Explains Democracy
Wine is a lot of things: a social glue, a disruptor, a good mediation tool, a toxic friend.
But the one thing I am starting to realize is…
medium.com
August 16, 2025 at 7:39 AM
At the end of the day, wine teaches me that honesty, heritage, and curiosity are non-negotiable. You cannot have a great wine without knowing its terroir, its maker, and its story — and you cannot have a healthy democracy without knowing the same about your leaders.
medium.com/@matteocecch...
medium.com/@matteocecch...
The official narrative of “no homeless in Shanghai” is not a reflection of reality, but rather of how the state manages visibility and information
medium.com/@matteocecch...
medium.com/@matteocecch...
Why You Never See Homeless People in China
In short: when someone says “there’s no homeless in Shanghai/China”, it’s not a cause for comfort — it’s a sign that visibility has been…
medium.com
August 13, 2025 at 10:38 AM
The official narrative of “no homeless in Shanghai” is not a reflection of reality, but rather of how the state manages visibility and information
medium.com/@matteocecch...
medium.com/@matteocecch...
Trump causing more damage than a global pandemic 🤣😅.
Sure, make America great again 🤣.
Can we all stop this big Black Mirror (or SNL sketch, depending on how you feel) season please ?
#trump
Sure, make America great again 🤣.
Can we all stop this big Black Mirror (or SNL sketch, depending on how you feel) season please ?
#trump
August 5, 2025 at 4:25 AM
Trump causing more damage than a global pandemic 🤣😅.
Sure, make America great again 🤣.
Can we all stop this big Black Mirror (or SNL sketch, depending on how you feel) season please ?
#trump
Sure, make America great again 🤣.
Can we all stop this big Black Mirror (or SNL sketch, depending on how you feel) season please ?
#trump
I have friends who supported Trump in the election and now they are laughing at him saying 'well, that's the real face of America !'.
Also, they are anti-europe and think that NATO is a criminal organization.
WTF is going on ???
#stupidity
Also, they are anti-europe and think that NATO is a criminal organization.
WTF is going on ???
#stupidity
July 30, 2025 at 3:41 PM
I have friends who supported Trump in the election and now they are laughing at him saying 'well, that's the real face of America !'.
Also, they are anti-europe and think that NATO is a criminal organization.
WTF is going on ???
#stupidity
Also, they are anti-europe and think that NATO is a criminal organization.
WTF is going on ???
#stupidity
In 6 months, Trump destroyed the USA reputation like never before. This time the 'never seen anything like this' (spell it out with HIS voice ) sounds more true than ever 😅 #trump
July 20, 2025 at 2:40 AM
In 6 months, Trump destroyed the USA reputation like never before. This time the 'never seen anything like this' (spell it out with HIS voice ) sounds more true than ever 😅 #trump