French elections
There's a presidential election in the old country next month. I never voted, never registered and never participated in the political process in that way. I believe this gives me more of a right to criticize than anybody else.
I have my reasons - as a trained historian, I know for a fact that voting and representative government were devised to prevent the expression of the popular will. Throughout the past two centuries, in Europe and North America, voting has been consistently used to disenfranchise the majority while preserving and furthering the interests of the owners of the means of production. By the way, this is no secret or anything, look no further than the Federalist Papers, or Siéyès' writings for instance. Besides, representative government is 18th century political technology - time for an upgrade, no? (To be perfectly fair, there is another side to that story - i.e. the gradual appropriation and extension of voting by underrepresented populations. Plus, this is an issue specific to the core, Europe and America. I've always supported the Chileans' or South Africans' right to vote.)
So here's a pictorial prediction regarding the future of France. The photo was taken in February. Employees of Alcatel-Lucent were demonstrating against layoffs at the transatlantic telco conglomerate. It so happens that Sarkozy's right wing party's headquarter is located across the street from Alcatel-Lucent Parisian offices. The riot police - tellingly deployed just in case demonstrators got angry - is hanging out underneath Sarkozy's campaign slogan "let's imagine France after" (meaning, after Sarkozy is elected - strange slogan, by the way, given these guys have been in power for the past five years - does it in fact mean "more of the same," so as to reassure shopkeepers and investors?)
The picture says it better than a thousand words. Sarkozy's afraid of the French, and the French are afraid of Sarkozy. That's why they are a match made in heaven.
Let's imagine France after... I can't wait.
