LA VIE EN ROSE

France Vows to Continue Deporting Roma – NYTimes

France is at it again, or more specifically Sarkozy. He’s playing with fire. Discontent that Justice and Daft Punk have given people a reason to appreciate the French, and realizing that a general disagreeable nature and a timeless pomposity were no longer a solid enough basis for attracting hostility, the 23rd President of the French Republic has taken it upon himself to provide the world with more solid grounds for disliking the French and thus making sure they remain on the global shit list. In a move that can really only be qualified as true to himself, “Sarko” is expatriating (bribing) 850 Roma (all from EU countries) as a gesture to the right-wing voter-base, precisely, and more somberly, the far-right, a detail most of the press omits. Mr. Sarkozy forgets that, despite his smoke screen quest of fighting crime, a considerable portion of the French population, notably much of its youth as well as the “third generation” citizens to whom Sarkozy has so often demonstrated prejudice, will not disregard this neglect for republican principles of equality on which the country should be based. Then again, what does he have to fear, besides a little berating from the foreign press? Sarkozy has developed a somehow cult, unwavering opposition since his first days as Minister of the Interior but it more often than not consists of a demographic that is either young/too few or don’t/can’t vote.

Avoiding a specific analysis of the current scale of xenophobia in France which would inevitably arrive to an abstract conclusion, the clash of cultures and communities has always been a handicap for French society, and it has always been the government’s unspoken policy to sweep the issue under the rug. Alternatively, and comparatively just as foolish, Sarkozy’s calling card has been an increasingly undiplomatic tendency to fan the flames. As a chronic reminder of a tension that he cannot manage to quell, Paris and her surrounding suburbs burn every full moon. The French ghettos, designed to segregate and alienate, hold the ideal parameters for breeding criminal/delinquent activity. Instead of extending an empathetic hand Sarkozy’s policies ruthlessly pursue coercive measures, actively seeking adult punishments for minors, in a corner of French society that, as he is well aware of, his voter-base does not consort with. The actual portion of Sarkozy’s voters actually seduced by such tactics is unknown, but it is an alarming speculation. In the end, a more appealing trait for a leader would be the acknowledgment of a double-edged sword that exists in French society which has many citizens of foreign ascent turning to “delinquency” in a hostile environment, inauspicious to positive development, which the government itself conceived in hopes that the attractive idea of a “rich and free” country would forever be enough to suppress their ambitions while retaining the desire to provide the nation with cheap labor.

It seems unlikely that Sarkozy will ever have to answer for his actions, after all his eloquent, demagogic diatribes will unfortunately garner enough fan base in time for the next elections. It is a worrisome assessment of the current state of mind governing the country. One can only hope that his critics, so vocal in musical form and in the twilight streets of progressive Paris, will represent themselves in the election urns. Only then perhaps can we go back to just being narcissistic romantics.

Note-worthy: “On Wednesday, several dozen people arrived in Bulgaria, where last week there was an uproar after the local news media reported that some of those deported on Friday were actually ethnic Turks.”

 

How you fall doesn’t matter, it’s how you land

 

AMERICANS SHOW THEIR GUNS IN PUBLIC

Activists Take Fight on Immigration to Arizona Border – NYTimes

It is pretty much a world-wide consensus that the United States has nothing to bring to the culture table, and most people around the world will snicker the word “McDonald’s” with a grotesquely imitated American accent, usually an attempt at a southern accent, when asked about American culture. It is therefore such a beautiful thing to witness my fellow Americans demonstrate that there are reasons beyond artificially enhanced foods that push our people to congregate, namely xenophobic instincts and the difficulty to turn down adherence to any angry mob, especially if the latter is armed to the teeth.

Political motivations aside, border control is a legitimate concern, although the question of whether or not any of these sawed-off-packing activists would hold any kind of nuance between a trafficker and a single mother when gazing down their barrel sights does come to mind. And forget casting aside political motivations. Seizing another opportunity to make someone else look bad, conservative political candidates attending the love-meet asserted that anyone not in attendance was obviously incompetent, didn’t care or was just a pussy for not wanting to come to a gun rally border security rally. Unfortunately, having to wait and see if Obama’s new measures will actually have ameliorative effects would mean speculating that the incumbent president, who after all garnered 53% of all votes cast in the 2008 election, could potentially do something right, and not being able to take one’s 38. caliber out for a Sunday stroll.

The urgency of the issue lies in the threat posed by drug, human and gun traffickers from which much of the stigma of dangerous immigrants originates.  These demonstrations hold a duplicitous nature though in that most attendees are advocates of the recent, partially passed Arizona immigration law, which exercises a questionable abuse of power of which consequences will end up being the targeting of specific people based on their appearance. It is unclear what the common denominator is which brings these Americans together: security or a general distaste for that which is foreign? In any case, something must be done for the safety of border states. However, it is equally essential to send the right message. Besides, if antagonism toward your foreign neighbors floats your boat, perhaps we should transfer our  attention to the Atlantic and our European counterparts. Their accents are far thicker and they are way more likely to steal your women.

Note-worty: “She added: “We don’t like illegals hiding under bushes when our kids wait for the school bus. This border needs to be secure.””