Written By:
Bill - Date published:
2:49 pm, April 23rd, 2017 - 49 comments
Categories: class war, elections, International, Left, political alternatives, Politics -
Tags: electins, france, liberalism, Melenchon
The political landscape in France broadly mirrors that of other western democracies. The parties who claimed to be the parliamentary expression and flag-bearers for labour’s left sentiments abandoned any pretense of supporting even sorely compromised shades of socialist ideals some years back, and jumped in bed with liberals, and markets, and finance on the pretext that there was no alternative.
Now in France as elsewhere, the chickens look like they are coming home to roost. People have had enough of the bullshit and are abandoning politic’s banal centre ground. That abandonment’s essentially a death knell for those parties that first of all sold out, and that now seek to cling to the ground, no-one except idiots of mainstream media outlets want to occupy.
So, just as I’d hoped that as a first step towards decency and something better, people would lend Sanders support in the USA; back Podemos in Spain; Syriza in Greece; Cunliffe in NZ; the SNP in Scotland; UK Labour in England and Wales and push Trudeau in Canada lest he embrace the cynicism of the Liberal’s election strategy – so I hope that a majority in France give Melenchon the big tick of approval.
It’s time to take that first step – to choose to move on. The two minute video below is quite fantastic and part of a series of similar productions. If you listen to what is being said, and if you then dare compare it to the messages coming from NZ’s self proclaimed parliamentary left, you might weep for whatever time we might still have to spend being subjected to the pointless politics that’s occasioned by their stupid stumbles in the dark.
(h/t – mauī)
In the years of our immediate future, battles will be lost and potential gains squandered or stolen away (eg – Cunliffe, Syriza). But when we choose to move, it’s not as though our unstoppable force will be encountering any immovable objects. And people are moving.
The current rise of populism challenges the way we think about people’s relationship to the economy.We seem to be entering an era of populism, in which leadership in a democracy is based on preferences of the population which do not seem entirely rational nor serving their longer interests. ...
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Excellent overview of French election here.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-04-22/your-complete-guide-sundays-french-presidential-elections-first-round
And here are a couple of charts.
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user5/imageroot/2017/04/19/france%201.jpg
For President-election we see the centre-left (Hamon) in last place and the right (Le Pen) and centre (Macron) neck and neck at the top with the centre-right (Filon) and far-left (Melenchon) fighting it out just below.
For voters choice we see Le Pen in first place with the centre-right just below. And about 20 points below them is the centre and far-left with the centre-left in last place.
Left rising? Technically, yes, but still far behind.
“Ignoring something is not the same as being able to handle them. If you don’t listen to people on the net, then you wind up in a echo chamber that is not useful.
We eject the people who violate our rules.”
The hard right (and in a few places extreme left) appear to be rising in most mature democracies except New Zealand, Australia, and Canada. The old world is shrinking fast, and the extremists are winning.
The right is in power in Australia and the number of cretins who like Pauline Hanson is rather disturbing.
They deny climate change is a problem; asylum seekers and refugees are criminals in Peter Dutton’s book and he thinks their human rights don’t exist; Turnbull wants to take $30 billion in funding from Australian schools .
Problem is Labor are not a lot better. They are similarly screwed on refugees and asylum seekers.
And neither seem able or willing to give New Zealanders a fair path to citizenship.
He has a good turn of phrase.
His actual policies, in summary form:
http://www.euronews.com/2017/04/14/jean-luc-melenchon-what-do-we-know-of-his-policies
– Renegotiate EU membership, or leave it.
– Renegotiate the use of the Euro.
– Reject the CETA agreement.
– Withdraw from NATO
– Withdraw from World Bank.
– Develop closer ties with Russia.
– Join ALBA, a Cuban-Venezuelan alliance.
– 173m Euro public spending increase
– Incomes over 400,000 Euro a year taxed at 90%
– 16% Minimum Wage rise to 1,326 Euro net per month based on 35 hour week
– Abolish Hollande’s labour reforms
– Limit executive pay
– Lower retirement age to 60 with full pension
– Separate investment banks from other banking operations
– Make the right to housing a constitutional right along the lines of the right to property
– Compulsory national service
– Nationalise utility companies
– Ditch all nuclear power and go sustainable
– Legal status to undocumented migrants who have work
There’s a few more in there, but that’s some highlights.
So he wants France to withdraw from NATO and join a Cuban-Venuezuelan alliance . I mean Venezuela, the Zimbabwe of central America, and Cuba, the place that never left the 70s. I never thought I’d say this about any politician but he makes Corbyn look like a political genius.
“Ignoring something is not the same as being able to handle them. If you don’t listen to people on the net, then you wind up in a echo chamber that is not useful.
We eject the people who violate our rules.”
I know people rarely cast their vote on policies these days, but it’s always good to see what their stated policies are anyway. Takes a fairly small search about Melenchon to figure that there is good debate about his policy positions.
In the interests of robust debate would you be kind enough to explain, in your opinion, how aligning with Cuba and Venezuela will help the left to rise?
“Ignoring something is not the same as being able to handle them. If you don’t listen to people on the net, then you wind up in a echo chamber that is not useful.
We eject the people who violate our rules.”
I would not have a clue.
Yourself?
I have no idea either which is why if I was a left winger and French I would not be voting for Melenchon.
“Ignoring something is not the same as being able to handle them. If you don’t listen to people on the net, then you wind up in a echo chamber that is not useful.
We eject the people who violate our rules.”
Not sure the point of repeating your quote there.
Is there something you want to get off your chest?
RightWingAndProud
Are you a parrot?
Or just a moron?
Whats with the continual quote as if that is some sort of established pearl of wisdom that we all have to be grateful for that you have dispensed from on high to us lesser mortals ?
You really are a drongo , mate.
No-one has claimed that it would. But joining ALBA could be very useful from the perspective of the few remaining French colonies in the Caribbean, no?
It’ a bit of a mixed bag as a set of ideas, to be kind.
I can’t even remember the last French President who proposed denationalizing anything. I think it was Mitterand?
Ad, do you mean renationalising anything?
thankyou for the correction there.
Not meaning to be pedantic. I was just a bit confused about why a strong leftie would be denationalising anything.
I guess you mean nationalising. Well, leaving aside the ideological left/right perspectives, if we’re going to do a damned thing in preparation for global warming/climate change, then a a lot f infrastructure is going to have to be scrapped, moved, retro-fitted, built from scratch – and all very quickly.
Can you envisage ‘the market’ getting up off its butt and doing anything other than exploring how to keep extracting record levels of profit?
I can’t.
I’m no statist, but if electrical capacity is going to have to be increased by 3 or 4 fold in the space of a decade or two to cope with the expected demand coming from a huge shift to non-fossil energy….
That’s one small step for statism,
One giant leap for mankind.
heh – and on that note, I’m gone 🙂
Ummm… the government can still spend on infrastructure without having to own the businesses that carry out the infrastructure work. Unless you think the State should control any business providing services to the State. Is this what you think ?
It’s very difficult to get key infrastructure work done when a company owns the infrastructure. Much easier if the state owns it.
Your view is based on what? Certainly not evidence nor logic it seems.
Evidence , fool.
The USA doesn’t like these countries very much. Isn’t that a good enough reason.
Nut
Melenchon’s great speech above was played the other day and how resonant it is. Won’t forget it in a hurry and it is so credible.
It has been really interesting following the MSM’s take on the French election, they couldn’t seem to get enough dirty thrills from the possibility of a far right fascist like Le Pen in government (although strangely the coverage hasn’t been all that negative) and so have consequently given her the lions share of ink, while Melenchon has pretty much been ignored until a few days ago.
Now that Melenchon has surged in the polls, the establishment is really freaked, check out The Herald..
“Nightmare scenario’ could be looming as France heads to polls”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11843364
Yes the possibility of upsetting the markets is a true nightmare to the editors of The Herald..not having a fascist racist xenophobe in the seat of power, it says volumes about the principles and moral codes at the Herald if nothing else.
The NZ Herald and it’s owners only care about the rich and how much they can steal from everyone else thus any swing to actually becoming sustainable and ensuring that everyone can have a reasonable standard of living is anathema to them as it’s threat to that ongoing theft.
C’est vrai. Vive la révolution!
Yes aligning yourself with successful’ economies like Venezuela and Cuba will really ensure a sustainable future for France. At least the French people will lose weight.
You left out Zimbabwe ..
Tell us about successful economies and counter party risk, go on
You know nothing first hand of the nations you refer to, including France or the people of France
They’re much smarter than you are, and one of the most left leaning nations
It matters not the outcome of this election, because France is left and it’s going to rid itself of the parasites
French people know who they are, and they know who the parasites are..
What is the unemployment rate in France especially amongst youth?
Asking questions in a silo, no context and no equivalence
As I’ve already said, the people of France are man woman smarter than you…and you know little to nothing other than the lines you’re given to run with which you can gleam from Wikipedia etc
France has led the way before, and Iceland are leading the way now..France will come after the traitors, they are acutely aware who those responsible are..
Take your lack of understanding, your agitators instructions sheet and run along..
The French people are sufficiently dissatisfied with what their politicians have done that they are seriously considering voting for someone we would regard as fascist. Yeah they are hugely clever /sarc.
No the French people have decided that establishment elites are the foremost problem hence Bye Bye IYI.
https://medium.com/incerto/the-intellectual-yet-idiot-13211e2d0577
Le Pen is not a ‘fascist, though her father may have been. He has been ousted, and Marine seems to have moved the party closer to the centre.
I think the description here is apt: under Marine Len Pen “the Front National remains firmly anchored on the far-right: xenophobic, authoritarian, not so much modernised as deodourised “.
http://www.euronews.com/2017/02/09/what-do-we-know-about-marine-le-pen-s-policies
It’s more likely to do so than aligning with the wastrels in the US and UK.
https://www.jacobinmag.com/2017/04/france-elections-melenchon-france-insoumise-european-union-sixth-republic/
Melenchon
Yes he’s out.
looks like it, thats a pity IMHO
What about all the ‘Russian interference’..
“What about all the ‘Russian interference’..”
about as effective as our “security services” here .
they would have a lot of catching up to do to compete with the CIA in the interference stakes
http://linkis.com/hubpages.com/politic/uoPn4
Russian interference = deflection by the US/UK etc
Hamon and Fillon are calling on their supporters to vote for Emmanuel Macron to block Marine Le Pen.
https://www.neweurope.eu/article/fillon-hamon-ask-voters-support-macron-second-round/
I love the global analysis of the left -right – centre patterns you’ve presented here, Bill. Apart from the idiotic trolling comments – I think you’re onto something here.
Incidently – DON’T FEED THE TROLLS – please ignore them – DON’T ANSWER THEM – no matter how much you’re tempted.
It’s clear that the vast majority of people can see that neo-lib and neo-con policies do not work. Only the watchers of the Kardasians and readers of Murdoch still remain self-deluded. When I read David Cunnliffe’s speech, I was very much heartened as he articulated what we Standardists have long known. Having almost finished a review of Labour and Greens background policies leading up to our next election, these policies seem to fit in well with the general trend of the “traditional” left re-asserting itself as a credible alternative.
However, like France and Britain, I see the real problem as how to get these across to ordinary voters who are (a) blinded by MSM talking heads (who are mere overpaid propagandists), and (b) by and large know no other economic system than “market economy”, that a vote for the right is slow suicide. How do you articulate that simply and effectively?
I confess i’m at a loss.
Sadly for France they’re now left with the choice of Globalism or Le Pen.
You just have to look at Macron’s background at a glance to see that’s he’s a tool of the global financial elite.
No need to comment on Le Pen…
That said, Macron may take the presidency but les republicains will likely take the house, therefore control of domestic policy.
New Zealands lucky strike – Gerry Brownley our next Trump for sure.