Tuesday, December 4, 2018

The French people bring the French government to its knees

France has been burning, with riots over pretty much the whole country and hundreds of people injured and/or arrested.  The trigger for all of this was a big gasoline tax increase - ostensibly to control "climate change" but really just another big ol' tax on the working population by the limousine liberals.

And so the country went up in flames as tens of thousands of citizens threw up barricades on the Champs-Elysées.  Seriously:



The protesters all wear yellow safety jackets, which in the last year or two were made mandatory for all drivers.  That was just one of many petty tyrannies that seem to have led up to the current explosion.  There are a LOT of protesters in yellow jackets:


All in all, 36,000 people are protesting across France, and over 5,000 in Paris alone.

Fuel tax rises which had led to weeks of violent protests in France have been suspended for six months.
PM Edouard Philippe said that people's anger must be heard, and the measures would not be applied until there had been proper debate with those affected.
The protests have hit major French cities, causing considerable damage for the past three weekends.
The "gilets jaunes" (yellow vest) protests have now grown to reflect more widespread anger at the government.
Three people have died since the unrest began and the resulting violence and vandalism - notably when statues were smashed at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris last Saturday - have been widely condemned.
"Yellow vests" are so called because they have taken to the streets wearing the high-visibility yellow clothing that is required to be carried in every vehicle by French law.
As the Lefties like to say, I guess that this is what Democracy looks like.  Remember, Donald Trump was not a cause, he is a symptom of a reaction to an increasingly aloof and disconnected ruling class. That reaction isn't limited to the United States by any means.

UPDATE 4 December 2018 11:21: It looks like this isn't enough to stop the protests.  At this point you have to start wondering if Macron's government can survive.

And this would have made Dad laugh (he was a Professor of French History):

7 comments:

  1. JessDecember 4, 2018 at 10:50 AM

    I think if they hadn't bowed to the wish of the citizens, the guillotines would have been rolled back out and sharpened.

    ReplyDelete
  2. BeansDecember 4, 2018 at 1:19 PM

    This has been a long-time coming. The government has been effective in holding down the anti-'guest worker'tensions, barely. These riots will be the straw that finally will break the long string of incompetent administrations in the last 30 years.

    Now the question is, will the current government be replaced by something better? History says "Not bloody likely."

    ReplyDelete
  3. ArcherDecember 5, 2018 at 2:33 PM

    Wait a minute:
    PM Edouard Philippe said that people's anger must be heard, and the measures would not be applied until there had been proper debate with those affected.

    You mean, they hadn't had a proper debate with those affected before enacting the tax hikes.

    Which is to say, the riots and protests are about ... "taxation without representation"?

    Where have I seen this before?

    ReplyDelete
  4. MaureenDecember 5, 2018 at 8:29 PM

    I’m still stuck on mandatory yellow safety vests in every vehicle. SRSLY?

    ReplyDelete
  5. BorepatchDecember 6, 2018 at 9:56 AM

    Maureen, I think that this is telling. It's not just the tax, although that looks like it has infuriated the people. It's also the unending petty tyrannies imposed from a remote and unaccountable capitol city.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Rick CDecember 6, 2018 at 10:23 AM

    Maureen, there are people trying to defend this without a trace of shame. "Sure, it's totally safer to get out of your car if you have a breakdown."

    Yeah, never mind that people keep them in the trunk, so if you break down on the side of the highway you still have to get out of the car and get to the trunk. Then I saw someone start talking about reflective triangles and flares, and I countered with "the last time my car broke down I was in a parking lot."

    ReplyDelete
  7. LSPDecember 6, 2018 at 2:23 PM

    Let's see how it pans out this weekend -- I'll wager the movement spreads, they smell blood. Good luck to'em.

    ReplyDelete

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