France just fucked itself

[Malbert]

The residents of France are going to be sorry in about 5 yrs. when their newbie leader can't deliver on anything he promised and they all run out of money. The rich people they want to tax 75% will just move out of the country.

[Voodoo Billy]

If you lot bought more of their Freedom Fries it might help.

[Malbert]

I don't think that's going to help much.

[JackT]

If you lot bought more of their Freedom Fries it might help.

Let's not forget the Freedom Ticklers.

[withahip]

I was going to to France and visit Freedomland.





Most of his campaign pledges—such as a boost in welfare benefits at the start of the school year, an extra 60,000 teaching jobs, and a partial reversal of the retirement age from 62 to 60 years—involve extra spending. Yet in France public spending already accounts for 56% of GDP, and the overall tax take is also high. And the IMF is forecasting a deficit closer to 3.9% for 2013. Mr Hollande will have very little room to manoeuvre. Winning the election was one thing; the hard part is about to begin.

[fat cherry]

have they got any oil?

[crystal89]

I don't think that's going to help much.

Sarkozy didn't deliver much either. Apart from rising unemployment.

[Voodoo Billy]

have they got any oil?

Only sunflower. Once their american friends discover how to run their 'trucks' on it there'll be F1-11s over the Eiffel Tower.

[Umberto Biro]

Sarko took it up the shitter from Merkel for the last two years. Where'd it get the Frenchies? Nowhere other than stuck up the Cherman arses so much so that they could barely see the sun.

Be thankful that the little squirt has gone and see the French embrace some progressive ideas, along with the tidal wave of change across the rest of Europe.

[the ghost of guitarplayer]

I wonder if they will still plan to build that Napoleonland theme park now with a change of government. I was hoping to go on the double cheese-eating surrender monkey big dipper ride, departing by eurostar from St Pancras via Waterloo station, obviously.

I also feel sorry for Carla, mostly as we won't see her on television anymore. The good news for all you Carla fans out there, well me anyway, is that she might be resurrecting her.. ahem... singing career.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvyMG0z0FZY[/youtube]

[Malbert]

the tidal wave of change

Sounds like Obama. And no, I'm not a fan.

[withahip]

Only sunflower. Once their american friends discover how to run their 'trucks' on it there'll be F1-11s over the Eiffel Tower.

Or we can send in the CIA for British Petroleum like we did in Iran. And then BP can have a major spill in the English Channel.

Hows soon the Brits forget . . .
Plans to exploit Iraq's oil reserves were discussed by government ministers and the world's largest oil companies the year before Britain took a leading role in invading Iraq, government documents show.

Whereas BP was insisting in public that it had "no strategic interest" in Iraq, in private it told the Foreign Office that Iraq was "more important than anything we've seen for a long time".


http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/po ... 69610.html

[fat cherry]

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/07/opinion/krugman-those-revolting-europeans.html?_r=3&src=me&ref=general

not that i know anything, but this is probably right wrt the euro.

[withahip]

Do Europeans feel the Euro has failed?
Do they want (more often than not) to return to their own currencies?

[fat cherry]

what? the 'man in the street'? No idea really but comments on Robert Peston's blog (BBC correspondent) might give you an idea. But strapping very diverse economies together seems a barmy idea to me. I htink the germans and possibly the french (governments) see it as a thing that cannot be allowed to fail. Read something in the times a while ago that the german in the street resents supporting failing economies but merkel et al wont let it go. I think the brits saw losing the currency as a major issue, poorer countries as an opportunity maybe. Trouble is theres loads of countries want to join the 'community' and if they all want the currency its going to be a nightmare.

Some of peston's stuff

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17202429
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17110089
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16580224

His journalism is OK I find but the bloke's got one of the most irritating voices on the telly (or radio)