France

French Students Terrorized by Jihadists [Updated]

Featured image In France, at least two teachers have been murdered by Muslim students, one of them beheaded. The French press reports that “death threats and threats of rape have become common among pupils.” Those threats are directed toward both teachers and fellow students. Now, students at dozens of French schools have been sent “threatening messages and beheading videos” by Islamic radicals. The story is hard to parse out, and more is, »

The French Revolution

Featured image Farmers across much of Europe are protesting against their governments’ anti-agriculture policies. In France, farmers are shutting down access to Paris: Farmers set up roadblocks on eight motorways around Paris today as they made good their threat to place a stranglehold on the capital. “The siege of Paris is under way,” said Damien Greffin, vice-chairman of the country’s biggest farming union, the FNSEA. He said the plan was to “encircle” »

Mona Lisa? Please

Featured image Left-wing activists have taken to throwing food at paintings in order to make some kind of point. The latest victim is the Mona Lisa, in Paris’s Louvre Museum: In a video posted on social media, two women with the words “FOOD RIPOSTE” written on their T-shirts can be seen throwing soup at the glass protecting Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece and passing under a security barrier to get closer to the »

The Perversity of Feminism

Featured image Birth rates have fallen across Western Europe. In France, as in a number of other countries, the birth rate is below the replacement rate. This is the reason why European countries have turned to immigration to provide workers and to support their native populations as they retire. This policy has produced mixed results, at best. So it is easy to understand why western leaders would want to encourage population growth. »

Clash of Cultures

Featured image In France, two teachers have been murdered by Muslim students. So you can’t blame educators for being a little skittish: “Teachers strike after Muslim threats over nudes in art class.” Staff have gone on strike at a school near Paris saying they fear for their lives after Muslim pupils and parents voiced anger towards a teacher who displayed a Renaissance painting of nude women. This is the painting: The teacher »

Down and Out In Paris and London

Featured image Actually, of course, we were anything but down and out. Rather, on vacation. Our plan was to spend a week in Paris, where we had never been, followed by a week in London, where we go pretty often. It didn’t quite turn out that way. Here are a few observations for those who might be interested: * We saw absolutely no political activity–no pro-Hamas demonstrations, in particular. On the contrary, »

Reporting From Paris

Featured image I have been in Paris for the last week, my first visit to this city. This is a fun time of the year to be in Europe, as the Europeans generally make a bigger deal out of Christmas than we do. Before we left, friends warned us against two things: pro-genocide demonstrators, and bedbugs. So far we have seen the same number of each: zero. Yesterday we visited one of »

Genocide Is Popular

Featured image Yesterday, many thousands of Islamofascists and leftists turned out across the globe for pro-Hamas demonstrations, celebrating the massacre of October 7 and demanding the extermination of Jews. Trafalgar Square was packed to overflowing: Hundreds of thousands turned out in Paris: Some might find the idea of a “kill the Jews” rally in Berlin alarming: And, of course, many thousands rallied to support genocide against the Jews in Washington, D.C. It »

France: Not All Bad

Featured image What with today being proclaimed an “International Day of Jihad,” and in view of events elsewhere, France has banned all pro-Palestinian protests in order to avert violence. They don’t have our First Amendment, and we couldn’t really do this. Still, some will find it heartwarming: France has banned all pro-Palestine protests. This group is now being run out by the Paris police. pic.twitter.com/s78zsqzIog — 🇺🇸ProudArmyBrat (@leslibless) October 12, 2023 »

“My Right As a Candidate”

Featured image The case of Juliette de Causans is causing quite a stir in Europe. Ms. de Causans is running for the French Senate as a candidate of the Europe Ecologie Egalite party. She put up campaign posters with a photo of her that…isn’t her: The Telegraph reports: A French politician has been criticised for “misleading” voters by using digital enhancements to give her a youthful glow in campaign posters. Juliette de »

Reflections on the riots in France (2)

Featured image Last week I quoted from Christopher Caldwell’s Reflections on the Revolution in Europe and its discussion of the 2005 riots to provide what I thought was useful background on the current riots. Caldwell also has an excellent essay on the current state of French politics in the current issue of the Claremont Review of Books. I would guess this must have been written three or more months ago, but it »

The French Riots: What Happened?

Featured image Scott wrote here about the riots that have paralyzed France for five days. Reuters reports that thousands of rioters have been arrested, rioters have burned 2,000 vehicles, 200 police officers have been injured, and more than 700 businesses have been looted, ransacked or burned to the ground. All of this was triggered by the death of a 17-year-old named Nahel Merzouk who was shot by a police officer following a »

Reflections on the riots in France

Featured image Riots have convulsed France over the past five nights. The New York Times reports, for example, in a story published in the past two hours “France Arrests Hundreds More in Fifth Night of Unrest.” President Macron scrapped an official trip to Germany in light of the riots, though not before he made it to the Elton John concert in Paris. The occasion this time around is the fatal shooting of »

Macron: Europe’s ‘greatest risk’ is getting ‘caught up in crises that are not ours’ – like Taiwan

Featured image Following six hours of talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, French President Emmanuel Macron spoke to a Politico reporter and two French journalists aboard COTAM Unité, France’s Air Force One this weekend. He discussed his concept of “strategic autonomy for Europe, presumably led by France, to become a third superpower.” Specifically, Macron said Europe’s “greatest risk” is getting “caught up in crises that are not ours,” such as a potential conflict »

Paris In Flames

Featured image If you haven’t been following the news from France, that country is being roiled by President Macron’s attempt to reform the pension system. The current age of eligibility for government pensions is 62, the lowest in Europe, and Macron wants to raise it to 64. This London Times article is as good a place as any to catch up with what is happening: An increasingly violent and radical protest movement »

A Black Victor Hugo?

Featured image A controversy has erupted in France over the renovation of a statue of novelist Victor Hugo that portrays him as a black man. The New York Times, always quick to jump on any racial angle, is on the case. And Steve Sailer has an excellent post that pulls it all together. First, the controversy, as described by the Times: The statue of Victor Hugo has loomed outside the city hall »

Europe’s Energy Disaster Worsens

Featured image This is from today’s Telegraph: In the end, it could be even worse than had been feared. Today saw the release of a new forecast for the energy price cap – and it does not make for comfortable reading. Experts predict that the figure will hit more than £4,200 in January [$5,082 for a single month]. In a new dire outlook for households, Cornwall Insight said bills are set to »