Hear, hear! You are not a Socialist Democrat, Messr Sarkozy! And for that, the world will be a better place.
The victims of Soviet communism would find it hard to understand, but a giant yellow banner was unfurled in the centre of Paris last week, bearing portraits of Lenin and Stalin. "Only socialism can save the world" it proclaimed in black ink. Welcome to the annual May Day rally in Paris... The march, which attracted 60,000 people under flags emblazoned with the hammer and sickle, was a reminder of how different France is to other European countries with its lingering affection for ideas jettisoned long ago elsewhere in the world... Seldom has an election generated so much excitement or expectation of change: turnout in the first round of voting on April 22 was at its highest since 1974 and Sarkozy's clash with Segolene Royal, his Socialist rival, last Wednesday night was watched by more than 20m people, almost as many as followed the country's fortunes against Germany in the World Cup final of 2006... [Royal's] last-minute appeals to voters, however, took on an almost desperate air as she sensed the electoral arithmetic turning against her. On Friday morning she warned that France could slide into violence if Sarkozy, a famously divisive figure, won the election. She said she was "issuing an alert" that his victory could "trigger violence and brutality across the country. His candidacy is dangerous. That is why I am asking voters to think twice"... One of Sarkozy's first priorities was to introduce a law by July to curb the power of organised labour. The unions responded by turning their May Day parade last week into a giant protest against "Sarko"... One of the protesters hoisted aloft a placard that said "Sarkozy = Napoleon". Another marcher shouted into a loud-speaker, "Arrest Sarkozy, free the sans papiers" – a reference to those without documents who face expulsion following Sarkozy's crackdown on illegal immigrants when he was interior minister.
Brennt Paris?
Hmmm, where have we heard that before?
The Times wrote a lenghty piece about Sarko and the Muslim suburbns without ONCE mentioning the word Muslim. Considering the subject matter, that took some dancing around to do.
“he will go on a retreat for a few days to prepare himself, like a boxer ahead of the big fight, for the challenge of running the world’s fifth largest economy. “
I thought California had the world’s fifth largest economy.
If they want war give it to them. The left is a poison in the world that weakens both social structure and personal responsibility. Everyone should see leftists of all stripes not as just well meaning political opponents but as grave a threat to the free world as Islamic Terrorists are now and Communism and Fascism was which came before.
Ok, I gotta ask -
Were the sausages free?
Kind of ironic that Europe seems to be turning right while we are turning left.
This article was obviously written by a socialist — oh, I see, Time Magazine, same thing.
Sarko sounds GREAT to me. Thugs are thugs. And a 35-hour-work week and retirement at 55 with others paying for it, sheesh. Do the math, Time.
I wish our president was even half as aggressive in confronting his opponents as Sarkozy appears to be.
It will be interesting. France is turning slightly right (face it, both candidates were “far left” compared to our outlook), while all indications are that 2008 will lurch us farther left.
At some point, the US may be more liberal than France.