that the fall of fascism brought, the PCI's leader, Palmiro Togliatti, employed attendismo tactics, calmly hoping for a fruitful alliance with the right-wing Christian Democrats (DC), which he hoped would bring the much-needed reform. Togliatti's passivity was a colossal mistake. While the Communists were focusing their energy on other issues, the Christian Democrats were working on strengthening their support base, becoming "ever more firmly the representatives of those forces in Italian society for whom the concept of progressive democracy was total anathema" (Ginsborg 1990: 83). Interestingly, even when DC decimated PCI's position in the Italian government in 1947, effectively establishing itself as the controlling force in Italian politics for decades to come, the Communists continued to adhere to the policy of attendismo, hoping for an international Communist revolution. This consequently eliminated any possibility of constructive social reform on behalf of their constituents.
             The idea of quasi-action, which has been crucial i
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