Whither Italy?

From Zero Hedge

Italian 10 year yields have moved above 6%, the theoretical "breakpoint" at which a country's debt is thought to be unsustainable. When Greece, Ireland and Portugal crossed this 6% mark, they were forced to seek support from the Troika (IMF, ECB and EU). Will this happen to Italy, or is this just a blip up over 6% for their bonds, waiting for the end game on Berlusconi to play out (he is still refusing to resign)? Tomorrow he faces a vote on the debt program and we will see if he has the votes.

Italy is too big for the Troika to bail out, using the same mechanism they employed for Greece, Portugal, and Ireland. If Italian yields don't drop below 6% on their own, when the Berlusconi melodrama has played out, the ECB will have to step in as a regular, continuing buyer of BTPs' (Italian bonds - Buono del Tesoro Polenniale). The ECB, under new leader Mario Draghi, desperately wants to avoid this. He argues that such debt monetization is specifically prohibited under the Maastricht Treat. Angela Merkel and the Bundesbank are equally ferocious in opposing such a move: the German High Court says it would violate the German Constitution and right now, Merkel must get a full vote of the Bundestag before committing further funds to new bailout money.

But it's the only way if Italy needs help.

Are we approaching crunch time??