Great quotes

 

"Je me suis entretenu avec le président américain Donald Trump de la situation en Méditerranée orientale, en Libye et au Liban. Nos vues sont convergentes. Notre intérêt à la paix et à la sécurité y est commun. Nous le ferons respecter."

Emmanuel Macron

Random pictures - French revolution

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Source: 14,000 Free Images from the French Revolution Now Available Online

Search here. French Revolution Digital Archive

There's certainly 'fake news' out there...

Ever since the U.S. elections the hot topic has been "fake news." As usually in 'Russian fake news.. propaganda... kompromat... (it always sounds 'sexier' if you throw in some foreign words!) was responsible for Hilary Clinton's election loss.' For example, per Senator Mark Warner (D-Virginia) Russia was not only responsible for the prolific production of 'fake news' but also managed to "... generate news down to specific areas... were able to (affect) specific areas in Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, where you would not have been receiving off of whoever your vendor might have been, ‘Trump versus Clinton’ from the waning days of the election. But instead, ‘Clinton is sick,’ or ‘Clinton is taking money’ from some source..." and trick the Google algorithm so that "... you wouldn't get Fox or ABC, The New York Times; what you get is four out of the first five news stories that popped up were Russian propaganda..." (Note: he did throw an obligatory "reported to me" in there somewhere, but he was rather categorical that all this actually happened...)

The 'fake news' bandwagon then rolled on to star in the upcoming French and German elections. 

Being in the U.S. I certainly saw a ton of (frankly) crap in the run up to the election... Hilary Clinton faints, folks speculate about why, some with outlandish theories... Picture of Hilary Clinton being helped up some stairs? Ditto. Candidate Trump refuses to release his tax returns? Folks speculate about why, some with outlandish theories... Are we seeing a pattern here? However, after the elections everything seemed to get rolled up in the "fake news" meme. I must say I didn't see any more than the usual level of crap (note: at least 20-30 of everything out there on the 'net); but perhaps I wasn't in an area specifically 'targeted!'

So, it was interesting when I ran across this online article by "Die Welt" purporting to unmask a specific example of 'fake news.' So, according to this reporting 'fake news' was being circulated that Emmanuel Macron is gay and that (per Die Welt) this allegation (Macron being a "closeted homosexual") was 'fake news' put out specifically by "... the pro-Russian propaganda website Sputnik on Feb. 4." Strangely enough, although this was a web story it did not include a link to the Sputnik article with the "fake news." Perhaps this was a high-minded attempt not to further propagate 'fake news' (more on that later).

Well, Google is your friend (except, perhaps, when Mark Warner believes it is being subverted by the Russians!) I used Google and immediately found the Sputnik article in question: 'Ex-French Economy Minister Macron Could Be 'US Agent' Lobbying Banks' Interests.' A read of the article doesn't quite bear out the Die Welt allegation. Yes, the article references Macron being gay; however, what it reported was that this ex-minister and sitting member of the French parliament made accusations about Macron being a stalking horse for U.S. financial interests and then went on to insinuate that Macron might be gay. And Sputnik reported that the candidate had denied a rumor about being gay (along with other allegations e.g. misuse of government funds).

So, Sputnik reported (factually) that an ex-minister had made allegations and insinuations about Macron and that Macron had denied a number of allegations... and both included his sexual proclivities. I'm hard pressed to see how this is 'fake news.' On the other hand, the Die Welt's article certainly misconstrued (at best) or lied (at worst) about Sputnik's article! In this particular case I would have to say that of the two articles, the Die Welt article claims the title of  'fake news.' So, very likely Die Welt not linking to the Sputnik article was not some high-minded attempt to prevent the further propagation of 'fake news,' but an attempt to make it harder to see that their article was the one stretching the truth the most!


P.S. It is to be noted that the Macron campaign refused to accredit Sputnik and some other news outlets on the grounds that they were illegitimate and purveyors of 'fake news.' And when Marine Le Pen asked Macron about off-shore accounts, which was followed by some fake documents "proving" the same the Macron campaign again fingered Sputnik... In response the editors of Sputnik wrote the Macron campaign an open letter pointing out that they had reported no stories about this item and  asking  for a dialog. Oh, and apparently "... The provenance of the latest conspiracy theory isn't clear, but there are hints tying the faked documents to far-right circles in California."

Random chart - threats

Source: Poll: Arabs See U.S. as a Threat

Random pictures - tank

 

Source: This Puny French Vehicle Was the First Great Tank

Random charts - economies

 

 

 

 

 

Source: Purchasing Power Parities and Real Expenditures of World Economies Summary of Results and Findings of the 2011 International Comparison Program (104-pg PDF)

Random picture - Tour de France

Source: Tour de France 101st edition (The Big Picture) Go there for the full picture, and many more...

Random chart - North & West Africa

Source: The Guardian

Random picture - The Tour

Source: Tour de France 2012: part one at The Big Picture - go there for the full picture and many more...

Random picture

Picture Credit

Aerial view of a system of trenches dating from World War I, recently uncovered in eastern France near the town of Carspach.

From The 'Pompeii' of the Western Front: "The bodies of 21 German soldiers entombed in a perfectly preserved World War One shelter have been discovered 94 years after they were killed... French archaeologists stumbled upon the mass grave on the former Western Front in eastern France during excavation work for a road building project... Many of the skeletal remains were found in the same positions the men had been in at the time of the collapse, prompting experts to liken the scene to Pompeii... As well as the bodies, poignant personal effects such as boots, helmets, weapons, wine bottles, spectacles, wallets, pipes, cigarette cases and pocket books were also found..."

Eh?

According to the Washington Post, France agrees to two decades of support in Afghanistan, despite attack on its troops. Reading the article the only date referenced with respect to France's involvement comes in the sentence "... French troops will continue to train their Afghan counterparts well beyond 2014..." We also learn that "... Britain’s partnership agreement, which will last through 2022..." and "... Italy’s agreement, which also focuses on the country’s economy and security forces, was described as “long-term past 2014” in a statement from Karzai’s office.."

OK, so the British agreement actually does appear to go out another decade, and I supposed you could called it two decades if you count backwards to 2011... However, France agreeing to "two decades" of support doesn't seem quite supported by the body of the article (as opposed to its headline).

Great quotes

"Le monde entier s'apprêtait à contempler à la télévision des massacres commis par le colonel Kadhafi, heureusement, le président a pris la tête de la croisade pour mobiliser le Conseil de sécurité des Nations unies et puis la Ligue arabe et l'Union africaine".

- French Interior Minister Claude Guéant, see Libye : Guéant se félicite que Sarkozy ait "pris la tête de la croisade"

Random charts

Source: Internet, reseaux sociaux... et Twitter

Misc follow-up

Picture source: Wikipedia

The October 24th, 2008 blog entry 'Bonne anniversaire Astérix et Obélix' noted the celebration of the 50th anniversary of Astérix and Obélix, created by Goscinny and Uderzo...

Now we read that the French 'fisc' sent Uderzo a small bill. Claiming that Uderzo was the illustrator and not the co-author of the series, they have billed him for 203,000 Euro in unpaid back taxes (back to 2007).

Uderzo has denounced «la brutalité et le manque de respect avec lesquels, cinquante et un ans après la création d'Astérix, le fisc se réveille et me dénie le droit d'être le co-auteur de mon cher petit Gaulois. Voilà une déchéance que je n'accepte plus à mon âge ! J'ai engagé un avocat spécialiste en droit fiscal et je vais me battre une nouvelle fois !»

Let's hope that he prevails...

Great quotes

"I’ve had better cooperation from Syria than some of the EU countries."

- Serge Brammertz, 2006

Wikileaks: Bellemare “has no case” against Syria

"... In a 2006 discussion with former US Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman, UNIIIC Commissioner Serge Brammertz is said to have lamented burdensome UN processes which were hindering his investigation.

.....

Turning to the issue of international cooperation with investigator’s requests, Brammertz alleged that France – a long-time vocal supporter of the probe into Hariri’s death – had been particularly “flatly non-cooperative.”

“After Brammertz asked this country’s ambassador in Lebanon for access to interview a suspect in that country’s territory, the ambassador came back with all kinds of conditions about how the interview would take place, how the testimony could or could not be used, in order to comply with EU standards. Brammertz said, ‘I told him, if you were Syria, I would write in my report that you refused to cooperate with the investigation. He was shocked, of course, but it’s true. I’ve had better cooperation from Syria than some of the EU countries.’”

Jean Ferrat, RIP

"... Jean Ferrat? Des chansons au drapeau rouge, diraient les uns. De grands poèmes gréés de mélodies vastes comme le cœur de la France, diraient les autres. Potemkine et La Montagne, Aimer à perdre la raison sur les vers de Louis Aragon et Un air de liberté dans lequel il croisait le fer avec notre confrère Jean d'Ormesson... Un air de Fête de l'Huma et des refrains immortels, des mots de tous les jours et tous les drames de l'Histoire convoqués au détour d'un refrain..."

Jean Ferrat est mort
La mort de Jean Ferrat
Jean Ferrat, un homme en colère
Le chanteur Jean Ferrat est mort à l'âge de 79 ans
Le chanteur français Jean Ferrat est décédé à l'âge de 79 ans


Le Bilan

Ah ils nous en ont fait avaler des couleuvres
De Prague à Budapest de Sofia à Moscou
Les staliniens zélés qui mettaient tout en oeuvre
Pour vous faire signer les aveux les plus fous
Vous aviez combattu partout la bête immonde
Des brigades d’Espagne à celles des maquis
Votre jeunesse était l’histoire de ce monde
Vous aviez nom Kostov ou London ou Slansky

Au nom de l’idéal qui nous faisait combattre
Et qui nous pousse encore à nous battre aujourd’hui

Ah ils nous en ont fait applaudir des injures
Des complots déjoués des dénonciations
Des traîtres démasqués des procès sans bavures
Des bagnes mérités des justes pendaisons
Ah comme on y a cru aux déviationnistes
Aux savants décadents aux écrivains espions
Aux sionistes bourgeois aux renégats titistes
Aux calmniateurs de la révolution

Au nom de l’idéal qui nous faisait combattre
Et qui nous pousse encore à nous battre aujourd’hui

Ah ils nous en ont fait approuver des massacres
Que certains continuent d’appeler des erreurs
Une erreur c’est facile comme un et deux font quatre
Pour barrer d’un seul trait des années de terreur
Ce socialisme était une caricature
Si les temps on changé des ombres sont restées
J’en garde au fond du coeur la sombre meurtrissure
Dans ma bouche à jamais le soif de vérité

Au nom de l’idéal qui nous faisait combattre
Et qui nous pousse encore à nous battre aujourd’hui

Mais quand j’entends parler de "bilan" positif
Je ne peux m’empêcher de penser à quel prix
Et ces millions de morts qui forment le passif
C’est à eux qu’il faudrait demander leur avis
N’exigez pas de moi une âme de comptable
Pour chanter au présent ce siècle tragédie
Les acquis proposés comme dessous de table
Les cadavres passés en pertes et profits

Au nom de l’idéal qui nous faisait combattre
Et qui nous pousse encore à nous battre aujourd’hui

C’est un autre avenir qu’il faut qu’on réinvente
Sans idole ou modèle pas à pas humblement
Sans vérité tracée sans lendemains qui chantent
Un bonheur inventé définitivement
Un avenir naissant d’un peu moins de souffrance
Avec nos yeux ouverts et grands sur le réel
Un avenir conduit par notre vigilance
Envers tous les pouvoirs de la terre et du ciel

Au nom de l’idéal qui nous faisait combattre
Et qui nous pousse encore à nous battre aujourd’hui

Mon pays était beauMon pays était beau
D'une beauté sauvage
Et l'homme le cheval et le bois et l'outil
Vivaient en harmonie
Jusqu'à ce grand saccage
Personne ne peut plus simplement vivre ici

Il pleut sur ce village
Aux ruelles obscures
Et rien d'autre ne bouge
Le silence s'installe au pied de notre lit
O silence
Tendre et déchirant violon
Gaie fanfare
Recouvre-nous
Du grand manteau de nuit
De tes ailes géantes

Mon pays était beau
D'une beauté sauvage
Et l'homme le cheval et le bois et l'outil
Vivaient en harmonie
Jusqu'à ce grand saccage
Personne ne peut plus simplement vivre ici


Jean Ferrat 80 J'ai froid
Jean Ferrat 80 Pour être encore en haut de l'affiche
All Jean Ferrat on YouTube

Quick update...

The July 15th, 2008 blog entry, 'La nouvelle union,' commented on the inaugural meeting of the new UPM (Union Pour la Mediterranée), or Mediterranean Union. At the time this blogger wondered why the French felt that they would be able to 'run' the 43-member organization, and if the bizarre hand-shake between Sarkozy and Mubarak (see above) would end up being more of a 'bras de fer' between the two...

Fast forward approximately sixteen months and all is not so well... Egypt has caused the cancellation of next month's meeting in Istanbul of the Foreign Ministers from the 43 members, and an European Union diplomat has said, "We are risking the death of the Mediterranean Union just after being born. The Union is in complete shambles and no progress has been made since its launch, both on the structure of the organisation and its seat." Quelle surprise (not)!

Palestine Causes Mediterranean Disunion
Sarkozy Seething - Mediterranean Union Barely Breathing

Random chart...

In France the masses take their vacation pretty much at the same time, and there is a mass migration of northerners to the sunny south, etc.. As you might imagine the traffic can be pretty bad when everyone is traveling the same roads to the same destinations! Luckily there is the Bison Futé.

From the web site: " In 1975 more than 600 km of traffic jams on the N10 were recorded, between Paris and Spain. This led to the creation of an extensive communication campaign for road users: Bison Futé, the reference for traffic forecasting was born. To begin with, Bison Futé only provided information on certain main roads, suggesting alternative routes in the summer for the main getaway periods. It would gradually extend its influence over the whole of the road network, all year round, to become the reference for public traffic information in real time today.

Le Bison Futé

Random picture

Without comment...

Bailout/handout

Photo credit: NYT

OK, so the drama at Republic Windows and Doors in Chicago is well documented (e.g. see links below). Somehow this relatively small operation hit the country's current zeitgeist and became emblematic of a number of concerns, including the economic downturn, possible loss of jobs, hints of outsourcing, bailing out the big vs. bailing out the small, etc., etc. And of course the usual suspects piled on - the unions, Rainbow/PUSH and Jesse Jackson; soon followed by a horde of politicians e.g. Representative Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL), State Attorney General Lisa Madigan, and Governor Rod Blagojevich (thought these last two ended up being distracted by another, unrelated small matter i.e. the arrest/indictment of the Governor).

What this blogger is interested in is the role of Bank of America. The company had a line of credit from this lender, which it had maxed out. Apparently the business was not viable - it had been shrinking, etc. and the owner discussed shuttering the factory. Faced with this prospect the bank refused to extend further credit to the company. After closing the factory (perhaps in violation of a rule requiring a 60-day notice to workers) the owners told the workers they would not pay them severance, for their accrued time off, etc. The owner craftily attempted to shift responsibility, blaming BofA.

The workers readily bit on this - most coverage has copious quotes from effected workers re how they weren't getting the severance they were due because of the bank! And, having daily seen news re the TARP and the "bank bailout" for the past couple of months, it wasn't long before the "billions for the banks, nothing for the workers," and "you got bailed out, we got sold out" placards, sound bites, and remonstrations started. BofA finally caved under the political pressure and "loaned" Republic USD 1.35 million to make the severance payments to its workers, who have claimed "victory"...

OK, so these folks are in a very hard spot, not surprising that they would clutch at any and all straws available. However, this blogger would like to know what the politicians' excuse is for their stupidity... The moneys received by the banks are "ostensibly "loans," and the politicians insist that these be paid back so that the people/government eventually are made whole. One might suppose that this implies that the banks should use these monies wisely (or at least more wisely than they did in the run up to the crisis). Making a USD 1.35 million "loan" to a shuttered company knowing that the money will not be paid back (in fact they are unlikely to get back the USD 5 million loaned earlier!) hardly fits the definition of wise! So, we arrive at the non-sequitir pushed by some politicians that since the banks received billions they should blithely do the equivalent of pouring the money down a rat hole! Great, these are the folks that the public is counting on to turn around the current financial crisis!

Republic Doors and Windows Shuts Down Operations
Statement from Republic Windows and Doors
The 1930s Really Are Here Again: Workers Occupy Chicago Window Plant
Workers at Republic Windows continue sit-in after company closes
Even Workers Surprised by Success of Factory Sit-In - NYT Dcc 12th
Talks Fail to End Sit-In at Closed Factory - NYT Dec 8th
In Factory Sit-In, an Anger Spread Wide - NYT Dec 7th
After Layoffs, Workers Stay at a Factory in Protest - NYT Dec 6th