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Waterloo—You Know, Like in the ABBA Song

Italian exec with loose grasp of history becomes YouTube hit

By Greg Atwan,  Newser User

Posted Apr 8, 2008 11:04 AM CDT

(Newser) – An telecom exec came up short in a motivational speech to employees when he called the battle of Waterloo a victory for Napoleon. Now clips of the animated Italian manager urging his staff to "go ahead and score like Napoleon at Waterloo" have become a YouTube hit, the ANSA news agency reports.

"Everybody wrote him off," the unwitting revisionist said of the Little General. But because of "strategy, clarity of ideas, determination, and power," Napoleon was able to make the 1815 battle—which became synonymous with shattering, career-truncating defeat—his "masterpiece." Luca Luciani, a 39-year-old star at Telecom Italia, has apologized for the gaffe. No word on whether he'll move to St. Helena.

Napoleon met defeat -- not victory -- at Waterloo.
Napoleon met defeat -- not victory -- at Waterloo.   (Magnum Photos)
Luca Luciani
Luca Luciani   (NapoleToneLuciani (YouTube))
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NAPOLEON MADE HIS MASTERPIECE IN WATERLOO   (mekawar (YouTube))

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