"I have never failed to maintain the promise, made to myself . . . not to take part in the process of demonising Berlusconi. Yet I cannot conceal from readers the dangers represented by his allergy to the truth, by his unnecessary and sensual predisposition towards lies and by the natural ease with which he tells them . . ."
These words come from a front-page comment in last Sunday's authoritative Milan daily, Corriere Della Sera.
They were written by a 91year-old journalist, Indro Montanelli, a man whose professional past crossed paths with that of the centre-right opposition leader and probable next prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi.
With seven weeks to Italy's general election, the campaign is beginning to heat up, driven in part by the virulent reaction provoked by the controversial figure of the media tycoon, Mr Berlusconi.
Ostensibly, the disagreement between Mr Berlusconi and Mr Montanelli concerned different versions of how the two had parted company in January 1994, when Mr Montanelli resigned as editor of Il Giornale, the independent paper he had founded but which had been subsequently bought over by Mr Berlusconi.
In essence, Mr Montanelli argues that he knew "two" Berlusconis.
First there was the entrepreneurial tycoon who rescued his paper and who allowed him total editorial freedom.
Second, much later, there was the tycoon who had "taken to the field" of politics in 1994 and who demanded total, unquestioning support from his newspaper in his political battles. The second Berlusconi is, according to Mr Montanelli, "someone who is unaware of the fundamental A-to-Z of democracy".
For that reason Mr Montanelli resigned as his editor seven years ago, and for that same reason he says he will vote centre-left in the May election.
Given Mr Montanelli's past, that declaration of voting intention has not passed unnoticed.
A former editor of Corriere Della Sera, he has long been on the right of Italian politics. A hate figure for the Italian left in the 1970s and 1980s, he is famous both for once inviting his readers to "hold your nose and vote Christian Democrat" and for being the victim of a Red Brigades shooting.
Since choosing to publicly contradict Mr Berlusconi last weekend, however, Mr Montanelli's telephone line has been busy (notwithstanding the fact that his number is not in the phone book), with anonymous callers, showering abuse on him for having "betrayed" his side.
The anger generated by Mr Montanelli may have a lot less to do with his alleged "betrayal" of the right and more to do with the fact that his version of events concerning Il Giornale ties perfectly with that told by another of those involved, namely journalist Marco Tre vaglio, whose recently published book about Mr Berlusconi, L'Odore Dei Soldi, questions not only the origins of Mr Berlusconi's wealth but also his alleged links with the Mafia.
In particular, the book deals with the figure of Vittorio Mangano, a convicted mafioso, who worked as a "groom" at Mr Berlusconi's Arcore estate near Milan during the 1970s. It also contains extensive transcripts from trials (one of them ongoing) concerning Mr Berlusconi's close business associate and current Forza Italia MEP, Mr Marcello Dell'Utri.
Mr Dell'Utri is currently on trial in Palermo on charges of Mafia association or collusion.
In their formal accusation, prosecutors state their conclusion that investigations have revealed that Mr Dell'Utri functioned as a line of communication between the Mafia and the Milan financial community".
Mr Berlusconi has dismissed all of the accusations in Travaglio's book as slander and libel, and has always argued that the dozen or so trials against him over the last decade (for corruption, fraud, tax evasion, false accounting etc) have been politically motivated. In keeping with that line, he criticised the Constitutional Court last weekend, suggesting it had a "leftist" bias. He has also called the state broadcaster RAI "an arm of the left".
He is partly right. Both the Italian judiciary and RAI are hopelessly politicised. Both contain left-wing sympathisers and activists, and just as many, probably more, sympathisers and activists of the right.
As the campaign continues to warm up - and it is probable that we ain't seen nothing yet - Mr Montanelli's call not to "demonise" Mr Berlusconi is more than valid. Equally valid have been repeated calls to all parties from President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi to tone down the factional bickering and conduct a dignified campaign. All the signs are that neither call will be heeded.