#i've got a little under a dozen from november

[beardedmrbean]

I'd be slightly more charitable towards the "the Israeli invasion of Gaza is a genocide" crowd if they didn't immediately flip-flop between that and "but forcibly driving the Jews out of Israel wouldn't be".

"Anti-colonizers" are fucking morons, man.

Can't colonize your homeland, Jews never left, they've been there 3,200 years on the official record depending on how you interpret the Merneptah Stele, which even if it is only mentioning a "people" that would be Isaac son of Abraham which honestly the Islamic crowd probably hates that even more since they claim that Arabs are the "true" children of Abraham through ishmael the kid Sari's handmaiden had with him, never get any mention though and honestly Arabs are indigenous to Arabia anyhow which is to the east of the Levant where "shocker" Saudi Arabia is.

The Mizrahi never left, or at least they've been there since before the Greeks showed up, still a small number of Samaritans as well, they're from the northern kingdom after Israel split following Solomon's death. Genetically at least the 2 European branches of the Jewish family are undeniably more closely related to the folks that never left than they are to any European genetic group.

But ya, the whole genocide thing is ridiculous. I'd be more inclined to believe people actually cared about genocide if they actually looked around the world where that kind of thing is happening in a major way.

inb4: muh fox news.

It's not like the information isn't out there, NYT thing is the only one that's more than a week or so old, so why after this has been going on for years is it still mostly crickets from the peanut gallery.

It shouldn't be a competition though I know, but you'd think this kind of thing would at least rate a mention from the noisy people on the internet.

Gaza situation it's gonna be hamass doing the genocide both ways anyhow, you install a military installation under, in, or in extremely close proximity to civilian structures any deaths that result from taking those structures out are on the people that turned them into military targets in the hopes that the PR would sway people and they wouldn't get called out for using civilians as human shields.

Not to say that Israel is by any means innocent, they screw up and the IDF screws up and innocent people die, some of whom were undoubtedly murdered and I hope the people that have done these things are held to account for them.

But again it's telling that I've seen a half dozen or more posts about palestenian children and it being international children's day and well did you know that November 25 is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women as decreed by the un, got to see pieces about all kinds of stuff for that day and almost nobody mentioning all the women who were raped and murdered on 10/7

There's people on here that I respect that have a differing view on the situation than I do, different ways to resolve the situation and end the bloodshed none of which involve genocide, so them I can take seriously on some of this stuff.

The screaming lunatics that have decided that of all the ethnic and religious minorities in the world that Jewish people are the ones that aren't allowed to decide what is and isn't derogatory and that anything short of something like 'gas the jews' has layers and nuance instead of listening to what the Jewish people have been saying for years and years and years that both 'infatda' and 'from the river to the sea' are calls to genocide, they don't get much respect.

As for the apartheid claim, why would any country let non citizens vote in their elections or any of the other nonsense people are trying to claim like 'segregated' communities because apparently the concept of 'little' Italy, Havana, Saigon or any of the various districts like the Chinatowns where different groups have congregated to be their own community within a community aren't things that form organically or anything like that I guess.

[financefista]

Tesla Delivers About a Dozen Stainless Steel Cybertruck Pickups as It Tries to Fix Production Woes

I'm really excited. Tesla, the famous electric truck company, just started giving people their cool, new Cybertruck pickups. They handed out about twelve of them.

This is a big deal for Tesla. They've been working hard to fix problems with making trucks and start selling this super new electric one. Everyone has been super excited about the Cybertruck since they first showed it because it looks like it comes from the future and is supposed to do really well on the road.

The Cybertruck's Bold Promise

I first saw the weird Tesla Cybertruck in November 2019. Elon Musk, the big boss of Tesla, showed it off. It's made of steel that doesn't bend and is all pointy, and this grabbed people really hard; loads and loads wanted to buy one, therefore they signed up before it even started being made.

Key features of the Tesla Cybertruck include:

Stainless Steel Body:

Tesla says their Cybertruck's outer shell can really take a hit and not scratch or dent. Now, funny enough, it's made from this super-tough 30X steel kind that I've never talked about before – you know, heretofore. It's pretty wild.

Outstanding Performance:

Depending on the variant, the Cybertruck offers impressive acceleration, with 0-60 mph times ranging from under 6 seconds to just over 2.9 seconds for the high-end tri-motor version.

Electric Range:

You already know Tesla's electric trucks go far. The Cybertruck is just as good. Even though the moon looks closer at night, the best Cybertruck zooms past 500 miles without needing a new charge.

Towing Capacity:

I'm amazed, no joke, by this super cool truck's muscle. It can pull unbelievably heavy things, like over 14,000 pounds! It's made to be handy, not just for families but for work stuff too.

Production Challenges

I couldn't wait to see Tesla's new Cybertruck hit the streets, but making something so huge out of stainless steel turned out to be way harder than they thought. And trying to fit its wacky look into how they usually build cars caused more headaches. Now its arrival is going to be way later than anyone guessed.

I heard that Tesla is starting to send out a few Cybertrucks. They're doing this to learn from the first ones they make. By only sending out a little at first, they can make tiny tweaks along the way, check that the trucks are really good, and hear what the first drivers say about them, thereby making their future trucks even better.

The Significance of the Delivery

You're getting those first Cybertrucks from Tesla and, believe it or not, it shows that they won’t let tough problems stop them from making new things that no other car company made before. It’s a big deal because it makes people think hard about how electric trucks and cars can change the whole car making game. And while the big car makers are starting to make more electric cars and trucks, Tesla is way ahead, always doing wild new stuff and coming up with smart ideas. This is a pretty big moment.

Looking Ahead

I just got a really cool surprise. Tesla is making electric trucks, and they sent out the first twelve Cybertrucks. This is like a peek at what's coming next for their big truck thing. People really want smart trucks that don't need gas, and sending these trucks out shows Tesla can make what folks are after.

We're not quite at the whole making-tons-of-Trucks stage yet, but it’s starting. No doubt getting these first few trucks out is huge, and for me, unpacking all this is still unbelieveably awesome. More than just trucks, you know, it’s a big step toward the future of how we might all drive around.

You get this? The electric truck called Cybertruck, by that car shop Tesla, just gave out almost 12 trucks; it shows they're moving forward after some tough snag with making a lot of them and it stresses how the shop really sticks to launching new ways for cars to move without gas. A ton of cars pulling away from oil and turning electric is the new way, and that fancy and different truck Tesla made; might just shake up how we all get around big time, huh?

[bookwyrminspiration]

Mat gets all my love and kindness!! I will never understand how he does the things that he does /pos

Also I just found out what /lh means!! I was so confused whenever you used it so I finally looked it up and 'Light-hearted' makes so much more sense whatever I was reading it as

I will give Matt all the hug gifs I can find if I ever get into contact with him, and that is a promise

Hahahaha i am in the middle of them if I'm guessing what finals are!! We just have external exams and internal exams, and external exams are the ones at the end of the year so I'm assuming that's what they are. My next exam is on Thursday for English!! I can wait to get it over and done with, I feel like you would enjoy unfamiliar (basically just unpacking the 3 texts given but you don't know what they are before hand), but it does get annoying because to pass you have to identify some techniques in the text, but if you forget about them but kmow they were there, then you fail

You take care of yourself too!!

And yeah, it's totally fine to post them with my blog!! I never figured out how to send in the Anon submission and when I tried it. Didn't have the option. So maybe I'm just in my un observant time but for thhe meantime I'm too lazy to check again and redo the submission because. I don't remember what was in there.

Actually converting time in new Zealand is pretty easy!! We don't really think about the rest of the world unless it's a show/movie coming out in a streaming service so we just take a day off, most of the time it'd be coming out at around midnight anyway

Oh god, I don't think I could deal with even more daylight savings....

Unrelated but I am proud of myself!! I just drew my first passable child!! And it's mermaid!! And it's in a side profile!! I am!! So happy!! It's intended to be my blog header

-Heathen

Okay so please forgive me for not answering this one for a while--I had already confirmed Matt was okay and this seemed like it was veering more into conversational territory so I could put it off and focus on more pressing things in the moment. But now I have the time!!

Yes, Matt gets all the love! He's incredible and I love being friends and talking to him (though I forget to respond to messages a lot, but he's patient). And such a creative mind!! All the au's and the ways he thinks about characters and does something new with them in all the stories and writings...immaculate!! Show stopping!

also congrats on discovering that specific tone indicator! I use them fairly often, but mostly the common ones (/j /s /lh and /gen) though I do occasionally venture into other tone tags as needed. I try not to overuse them though, so you may see older posts that have tone tags in unnecessary places because I was playing around with when I liked to use them.

I don't think I've sent Matt a hug gif recently, but now I want to.

Also I hope your exams went well! I've never heard them called internal and external, but either way exams are annoying to take. I don't remember exactly what I had to do for my exams during the time you sent this ask, but I passed all my classes and exams so I don't think it really matters. I might enjoy the unfamiliar exam, or however you would call it, but then again exams and time limits are icky. I usually do fine in English exams, I just overthink things and that's where I get stuff wrong because I create a bigger problem in my head than what it's asking me to answer. I don't have english this semester though! Then again I think I have the SAT this semester and that's. basically a giant english and math test. I haven't even looked at my psat scores yet, even though those were made available on december 6th. I simply am ignoring them until I can't anymore.

also good!! I know i have posted those things in question as of answering it, but thank you for the confirmation. I try to be very careful about posting things people send that aren't on anon, as I never know whether or not it was supposed to be. There are a few people who consistently send me asks off anon, so I'm not worried about them--but for the people who are usually on anon who suddenly aren't I always like to ask, give people other options to protect their identity if they so choose.

As for the anon submission thing, I'm pretty sure I've enabled that. I've sent myself a test on anon and it worked. You need to either be logged out or on incognito in order to do the things you need to to send the submission. it's the same as what you would do visiting my account if you didn't have a tumblr. I know it's possible, but apologies that it's giving you so much trouble.

Interesting that converting time is easier for you! I get so annoyed at converting between time zones because I try and remember off the top of my head but I never know just how many hours to change and in what direction, and then I always doubt my math the entire time. When I attended Shannon's online event I was wound up for like 2 hours before just like "oh fuck oh fuck I hope I mathed the time right." I did and was panicking over nothing, but still!! Anxiety really beat my ass that day--got a lot of information out of it though so it's chill.

I don't remember what the daylight savings conversation was talking about but if it involved more daylight savings I don't want it. I don't like daylight savings at all--either of them!! I don't care if I get an extra hour, because it's the same as the time zone thing and the entire day I'm like "wow sure hope everyone else is doing this daylight savings thing" as if I am somehow the only person in the world who has changed times. I always worry if I got the day wrong despite my phone updating automatically.

Congratulations on the mermaid!! I haven't drawn anything in a while but I distinctly remember that profiles were always really hard. It was just so much easier to do things facing forward or slightly to the side. Everything about profiles changes how you have to approach them, so kudos to you!! I think the profile drawing I'm most proud of is this Marella one which is actually one of my favorites of all time. It's an old one with several elements I'd like to change, but I still love it.

As of answering this I haven't checked to see if the mermaid is your blog header, but if it is then nice!! drawing profiles is always so satisfying when you finally get it to look right

[aangelinakii]

HIIII I absolutely LOVE your account!I've been thinking about this one scenario a lot lately with Mitch from TWDG. The reader and Mitch only have known each other for 2 months but they both developed feelings for each other (btw this happens one month before the events of the fourth season happen). SO one night they go to the bell tower to watch the stars together and Mitch FINALLY confesses. If you don't wanna do it,then that's ok!I hope you have a wonderful day ^_^.

PUT YOUR HEAD ON MY SHOULDER

in which mitch confesses under the stars

season : four

character : mitch

song : put your head on my shoulder , paul anka

date : 7th november 2021

note : thank you so much !!! btw this request is so soft and sweet and cute and everything i want in life

when you'd first turned up at ericson's doorstep, you weren't in good shape: covered from head to toe in blood (no one could figure out whose it was), unable to stand up on your own, and multiple untreated wounds all over your body. the children who inhabited the school was unsure what to do with you, but it appeared that mitch was set on making sure you stayed. (his excuse was, "look at them! does it really look like she'll be able to survive out there? we have the supplies to treat her, so why not do so?")

so they did treat you, cleaning you up and bandaging your wounds, giving you a bed to sleep in to recharge your strength. but they were only planning to do so until you got better, then they would tell you your time was up and let you off to find shelter elsewhere.

but that never happened.

currently, you're two months in, and on good terms with all the people who had originally wanted you gone. mitch, however, was someone who stayed by your side the whole way; but every time you asked why he was dismissive and defensive. so you never found out the reason.

perhaps all the time spent with mitch created some feelings that would be better off untold. mitch had proved himself to be kind, proud, supportive and a great friend — everything you looked for in a person. despite not always seeing eye-to-eye, he respected your opinions, and was always supportive of your choices.

after meeting each other, the two of you developed hobbies and interests that you only realised your love for upon becoming friends. one of those shared interests being the sky, more specifically at night, when the moon and stars are bright and tell the stories of long ago. there was nothing more the two of you wanted than a telescope to set up at the bell tower and peer up at the dazzling sequins in the sky.

and that's where mitch found you this one fateful night; up the bell tower, gazing up at the stars and identifying constellations.

the silence of the night was disrupted by the sound of footsteps, and you pushed yourself up onto your elbows, turning to see who was joining you. they perched themselves next to you and let out a breath, and you knew exactly who it was.

"couldn't find you," mitch chuckled, glancing over at you before craning his neck up and gazing at the universe above.

you returned a short laugh. "i'm always here."

after that, a silence settled over you, allowing you to bathe in the darkness and essence of each other.

in the endless abyss of sky, a dozen stars clustered together in a pattern, and another smaller one a little bit away. a gasp passed through your lips. "do you see those?" you asked aloud, leaning closer to mitch and pointing up into the air. "ursa minor and ursa major. you always see them together."

mitch was quiet for another beat as he followed your gesture, and then he let out a noise of approval. "so they're like us, huh?"

a smile playing at your lips, you shuffled back to your old position with a shrug. "i guess they are. who would be who?"

"well, we all know i'm the most macho, so obviously i'm ursa major," mitch announced, really trying to play into the whole macho thing.

"yeah, right," you laughed, swaying in the light wind.

your chorused laughter continued for a moment more before dying down, the humour still hanging in the air, threatening to throw you into more fits of laughs and gasps for air.

when mitch spoke again, he'd lost all humour in his voice, now sounding slightly solemn. "would you ever watch the stars with someone else?"

you nudged him slightly with your elbow. "what? of course not! this is our thing." his question was definitely out of the blue and sudden, and you weren't really sure how to reply. one moment you were having a laugh, the next he's going into the deep stuff.

out of your peripheral, it seemed as though mitch nodded, and he murmured under his breath somewhat approvingly. he brought a hand up to scratch at his sideburn awkwardly. his mouth hung open, and his head hung low. this wasn't watching the stars.

"i really like this," he spoke up, again rather abruptly. "like, us. and our thing."

your lips pulled up into another smile. your shoulders tugged up to your jaw and fell as you exhaled contently. "me too. i don't know anyone else here i feel as comfortable with as i do with you. i don't think i'd ever be able to stargaze with louis."

at your last sentence, the two of you let out a dry chuckle.

"i feel the same way," said mitch, placing his hands on his thighs and looking up at you. "i feel..."

but the end of the sentence never came. in the dark it was difficult to make out his features. during the day you were able to read him easily, and it was absolutely jarring that the one time you were eager to know what was on his mind, there was no way to tell. "you feel?"

"unsure," mitch finished. "i feel unsure. but i've been contemplating for so long i should probably be straight-up and just say it." but he wasn't very straight-up.

you allowed a few beats to pass, waiting for mitch's grand reveal. but it never came.

"say what, mitch?" you asked, a hint of heavy aggravation in your tone. "you're killing me here!"

another beat.

"when you first turned up here, under all that grime and guts, i knew you were beautiful," the boy next to you finally admitted. "i just knew. and the way you behaved, like you were guilty for coming to our doorstep in pieces, i knew you were beautiful on the inside as well. the others didn't like you — you knew that, too — but i fought for you. i don't know why but i always have; fought for you, i mean."

"what i'm getting at, y/n, is that i think i might be in love with you."

in your chest, your heart both stopped and raced at the same time. never before had you ever heard those words told to you. never before had someone ever described you like that. never before had someone looked inside of you, considered you really.

this time, it was your turn to initiate the silence. mitch could practically hear the words processing in your head, the cocks turning.

your hand met his, interlocking fingers, and you turned your head. in the moonlight, mitch's face was a deep blue, so deep and so blue it was almost impossible to even see whether it was him. but it was him, and you were sure, and you were sure about this. and you leaned in, becoming one as your lips merged together softly.

[helshades]

Hello, I've been reading you on Mélenchon these days and would be interested in your opinion on his treatment of the bonnets rouges movement. I find some appeal in his political views but am detered by his unequal interpretation of social movements. I credit it to his somewhat jacobin/nationalist upbringing, and would like to have your thoughts on what his legitimate or not to him. Thank you, have a good day.

Hi! Quite a good question, as I don’t think too many journalists have taken the time to scrutinise the similarities and differences between the ‘Red Caps’ of yesteryear and the current ‘Yellow Vests’, even after Prime Minister Édouard Philippe, during a ‘Questions to the Government’ panel at the Assembly, drew that parallel to promise that his government would not be intimidated by the protests—at that time, the movement was only three days old:

‘Let us remember the Red Caps. Confronted with social difficulty that collided directly with their engagements [during the presidential campaign], the previous government [P.M. Jean-Marc Ayrault’s] chose to step back. Our goal is entirely different: we would keep the line that we proposed during the presidential and legislative elections.’

—20 November 2018.

Here, I have to make a long-ish pause to explain to whomever is reading this outside of us both and doesn’t know who the ‘Red Caps’ were, well, who the ‘Red Caps’ were, precisely.

So, back to 2013, in the north-west of France, in the Brittany region. On 18th June, a collective of thirty local company leaders call Bretons and the French for action against a special tax that is scheduled to be applied to all heavy goods vehicles circulating on some state-financed and locally financed roads in the country starting from 1st October, colloquially known as ‘HVG eco-tax’.

The thirty company leaders, who are gathered at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry at Pontivy, are asking for the eco-tax to be suppressed, for (employers’) taxes in general to diminish, and for ‘administrative constraints’ (for employers) to be reduced. Amongst them are notably: Jakez Bernard, president of certification label ‘Produced in Britanny’, Alain Glon, former food-processing industry honcho, now president of a regionalist think-tank, Olivier Bordais, who manages a local supermarket, Jean-Pierre Le Mat, president of a big employers union (C.G.P.M.E., aimed at small & smallish business owners), Jacques Jaouen, president of the Brittany Chamber of Agriculture.

Soon they are joined by two big union federations: the National Federation of Farmers Unions, Finistère (one of Britanny’s départements) branch (the F.D.S.E.A. is pretty right-oriented) and the Force Ouvrière (‘Workers Force’, a big Trotskyist union) union branches for the big slaughterhouses Doux (chicken) and Gad (pork). This changes everything, as it allows for a massive, noisy joint demonstration on 2nd August—during which the protesters infamously destroy a drive-through unit meant to detect eco-tax-ready lorries installed in Guiclan.

It doesn’t change much. Months pass. And then, in early October, the Rennes Commercial Court declares that the Gad Inc. slaughterhouse in Lampaul, in Finistère, which works pork meat, must be shut down, whereas others in the same group may remain active; Gad employs 900 people in Lampaul, but their branch has been hit hard by European concurrence. As a matter of fact, while production is being transferred from Lampaul to Josselin, a hundred of interim employees arrive from Romania, paid less than 600€ per month; fixed-term contracts at Josselin are no longer being renewed as a new European directive is about to pass on posted workers. On 21st October, 350 ex-employees from Lampaul invades the Josselin abattoir: according to police reports, 400 Josselin employees exit the factory to fight them.

This all happens during a three-week movement organised by agricultural syndicates on 14th, 21st and 28th October, the protesters aiming at another eco-tax drive-through unit in Pont-de-Buis. They are farmer unionists and the ‘Committee for Convergence of Breton Interests’ (C.C.I.B.), which was created in Pontivy on 18th June as an interprofessional organisation uniting business representatives and academics, aiming to make propositions concerning economy and employment in the region.

On Saturday 28th October, several hundreds of protesters destroy the unit at the Pont-de-Buis motorway toll. The rather heated crowd wear red caps inspired by the 1675 ‘révolte des bonnets rouges’, which under Louis XIV’s reign protested an increase in taxes, and which took place in the west of France but was fiercest in Lower Brittany. That same day the Pont-de-Buis unit is destroyed, F.D.S.E.A. Finistère president Thierry Merret calls the protesters to gather at a regional meet-up on 2nd November in Quimper, capital of the Finistère département.

There were two big demonstrations in November: the one in Quimper, and the one that took place on 30th November in Carhaix-Plouguer (former county town of Breton Cornwall). The latter was organised by left-wing collective ‘Live, Decide & Work in Brittany’, created by Carhaix mayor Christian Troadec, Thierry Merret, worker & union representative for Force Ouvrière at Gad, and Corinne Nicole, union representative for the General Confederation of Labour at big chicken abattoir Tilly-Sabco in Guerlesquin (a family business which provided lot of work in town but got hit hard by international concurrence). In Quimper, the demonstration gathered up to 15,000–30,000; in Carhaix, around 17,000–40,000 (numbers vary because unions and the police have had trouble agreeing on them, traditionally). The collective comes up with a ‘charter’ for the good bonnet rouge, in reaction to the worrisome, extreme-right additions to the Quimper crowd.

The eco-tax was imagined in 2007 during a ‘Grenelle’ for environment, and unanimously voted in 2009, which had already ired many business owners in Brittany, over a thousand of whom had manifested on motorways; united in a ‘Collective of Breton Actors of Economy’, representatives for the National Federation of Agricultural Holders’ Union(F.N.S.E.A.), the National Federation of Road Transport (F.N.T.R.), the Chamber of Commerce and Industry… as well as ‘le Médef’, the largest employer federation in France, to which adheres the richest business leaders in the country, very powerful, and not very friendly to labour rights in general. The collective obtained a 50% tax allowance on the eco-tax from the government.

By taxing 800,000 heavy goods vehicles that circulate on the free portion of French motorways, the government aims to collect public transport and railway freight, amongst other things—since they won’t tax the rich. Except since 2012, too many businesses have gone bankrupt in Brittany. Liquidations follow ‘restructuring plans’ and hundreds are getting fired. The eco-tax would mean a drastic rise in the prices of goods.

By spring 2013, all has been made ready for the system to start on the first day of 2014: 200 units equipped with cameras have been installed, a lucrative contract has been concluded with Ecomouv’, a private company charged with the task to collect the tax, which it is already doing on Italian and Austrian motorways. The French government hopes to collect one billion euros per year with the eco-tax.

On 16th October, after two days of heated protests, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault launches meetings to ‘dialogue’ with the population for a ‘Pact on the Future of Brittany’, announces financial measures and a special aide for the food-processing business. All along November, the revolt is reaching the rest of the country, where dozens of road blocks are organised, speed cameras are destroyed, as well as a few other eco-tax drive-through frames. The Prime Minister arrives in Brittany on 13th December to sign his Pact for Brittany—two billion euros.

There still are 140 units left almost intact in French tolls, since, as the Minister for Transports remarked, once the electronic equipment removed, regular check-ups to make sure they won’t crumble cost much less than actually taking them to pieces. This is what is left of the ‘eco-tax’. As for the Red Caps, well, they evolved into a bunch of collectives, some of which still exist to this day to promote various operations, including demonstrations, that concern Brittany. They never forget the gwenn-ha-du, the ‘Black & White’, the flag of Brittany… Yes, Brittany has a flag. Brittany has a language. Brittany thinks it’s Wales, which is a little silly considering Breton is a Brittonic language like Cornish, not a Gaelic one, like Welsh. Anyhow, Breizh dreams of independence. One day, it will throw bombs at the government, when it has discovered how to make them from cow dung. (I actually, genuinely love Bretons. They’re utterly fruitcake, but they protest like nobody’s business.)

All of this to provide some cultural context to what I am about to translate. So, this is Jean-Luc Mélenchon fulminating back in 2013, before his current La France Insoumise movement was created, when he was co-president of its predecessor the Front de Gauche, a coalition of radical left parties: socialists, and communists who shared anti-capitalistic, anti-liberal, Euro-sceptic views. The FdG was created in 2009 as alliance between the French Communist Party and Parti de Gauche, which Jean-Luc Mélenchon co-founded with people who, like him, quit François Mitterrand’s Parti Socialiste which was veering more and more towards (neo-)liberalism. The alliance aimed to ‘constitute a left-wing front engaged for another Europe, social and democratic, against the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty and other current European treaties.’

Yes, it wasone tasteless farce, that bonnet rouge affair. For sure, the eco-tax reallywasn’t the panacea of any good ecological politics! It’s actually, mostly, alure, as it’s not really targeting the motives behind massive livestock transportationvia road transport. It will always be more profitable to transport 45,000 pigsa year on European roads in appalling conditions rather than kill them here,for as long as Europe will allow for dumping social to take place, which forinstance permits to take advantage of profit with German abattoirs. Thegovernment doesn’t give a damn about this. Anyhow, it doesn’t care for anythingthat can be planned ahead, because of ideology and of self-delusion both. See.The eco-tax was supposed to encourage road transport to convert to fluvialtransport and railway freight. Yes, except no plan for freight development wasset in motion to regulate the ever-increasing flow of lorries on the roads.Quite the opposite, I’d say. The government is at the disposal of the EuropeanCommission, very slavishly indeed, and the Commission was very demanding onthat point. In exchange for two years delay at best, so as to reach theobjectives of deficit reduction, the Commission demanded that the liberalisationof the network increase. The liberal reform, consequently, was presented duringthe Ministers’ Council on 16th October. As for fluvial transport,one of the very first measures of the Ayrault government was to abandon the Seine-Nordcanal project. In other words, it was half-assed, as always with thisgovernment.

This takesnothing from the fact that the government’s climb-down on this point is a giftto the bosses. Under the guise of defending employment, it is in fact the freedomto go on producing further and further away from wherever the goods are to beconsumed that is being protected. Bruno Gentil, president of federation FranceNature Environnement, said something very right about this: ‘This isdeplorable, there’s no political courage here. A measure that was voted by theleft as well as the right is called into question as soon as a bunch of peoplebreak some public equipment. Unfortunately, I don’t think this will solve breeders’problems… Environment has become the scapegoat for economic issues. We are gettingthe financing of the energy turnaround very wrong’.Indeed, afew hundreds of bosses and militants from the FNSEA farmers’ union manifestingsome violence were enough for the Ayrault government to back down. Those whoordinarily have no complacency for a worker’s teensiest egg throw weren’tremotely scandalised to see FNSEA and MEDEF throw stones at the CRS. We’restill awaiting the ground-shattering swagger of the immense Manuel Valls, kingof the braggarts! Sure, even when he’s from the right, a Breton boss is atougher customer than a Roma kid on a school bus! The anti-poor warfare isill-equipped to force those who are used to be obeyed to respect public order.

The wholeaffair was a farce through and through. All the while they’re firing workers indroves in Brittany, the bosses have found a dream opportunity to pose as defendersof employment. That might have impressed a couple answering machines inmainstream media. But over there, it’s a whole other story! Employees’ unions wereno dupes. CGT, Sud and FSU in Brittany released a joint statement to distance themselvesfrom the event. In it they denounce ‘the hijacking of the authentic discontentof a large part of the population to political ends, which questions theingenuousness and the independence of the employees who get enlisted in a fightthat isn’t theirs.’ For these unions, ‘the torturers are leading the manoeuvreand they are using their victims as shield and battering ram at once. They wouldemployees to forget that they have always supported the neoliberal politicsthat caused the current crisis, and that their ‘Breton agricultural model’today is an economic, social and environmental failure. The manipulations rundeep, as the old lords are now wearing the red cap against the people.’ It can’tbe said better.

The statementaims right. Particularly where the denunciation of productivism is concerned.It calls employees for refusing to participate in the demonstration organisedin Quimper on 2nd November around the bosses, productivist farmers and someBreton regionalists from the extreme right. The employees will demonstrate withtheir own demands!What arelief! That call to a separate protest sheds some light on a really confusesituation. The alliance of some farmers with the same large-scale foodretailing that chokes them continuously, for example, never ceases to surprise.Politically, it’s even worse. The right, which had proposed the eco-tax in thefirst place, is now demanding that it be suppressed. The PS, which also votedits implementation, now decides to suspend it… As for Le Pen, she’s calling todemonstrate with the red caps! Maybe she didn’t see the colour?

— 1st November 2013.

I don’t particularly want to be known on Tumblr as the Mélenchon defence committee but… well, he had a point. A couple, actually.

The chief particularity of the Yellow Vests movement is that even if it was started as a protest against a significant rise in gas prices and one could draw a parallel in theory between this and the anti-eco-tax movement, its basis was always popular, and focused not on production and profit, but standard living conditions for poor and impoverished people.

I don’t like the term ‘legitimate’ very much, me. Every protest is legitimate, inasmuch as demonstrating is (yet) a constitutional right. The legality of things is not what should concern us, and evidently, not what concerned Jean-Luc Mélenchon back in 2013. If there is one illegitimate element here, it would be the current government: elected with only 10% of the electorate, the most hated president in the history of the Fifth Republic is ending armed forces every week to mutilate tens of thousands who are still supported, according to the least favourable estimates, by over 60% of the population—and who still show up for the next protest, week after week.

Speaking of things I’m not too comfy with, there’s also the terms ‘jacobin’ and ‘nationalist’. I suspect you are Canadian, as you seem to conflate the two (?) and the nationalist-versus-federalist opposition is, I believe, uniquely Canadian. Over here, when talking about jacobin things, one is usually referring to a radical approach to politics, unless one would be referring to the historic opposition between the Jacobins, who ended up supporting deeper financial and political reforms, and the Girondins, mostly wealthy bourgeois, who were more moderate, and remained so throughout the revolutionary period—they won, in the end. The People didn’t—although both branches initially were a part of the Jacobin Club and in favour of constitutional monarchy.

Where nationalism goes… Well, Marine Le Pen is a nationalist. Us leftists are souverainistes, my dear. Quite frankly, I don’t get how you can support democracy without defending a nation’s right to govern itself. Only, if we can call this nationalism in the case of colonised countries aiming to free themselves from imperialism, and in the case of certain regions that promote autonomy within a given State, this is not what is at stake here. More often than not, ‘nationalism’ refers to an ideology, and it is synonymous to chauvinism, with considerably less amusing undertones. Again: it is not nationalist to favour, for instance, local employment, when displacing foreign populations leads to systematic exploitation of their work force. Environmentally, it is also much more responsible to prevent goods from being carried across great distances. And, last but not least… supranational institutions are designed to remove as much power as possible from the populations that could unite and reject locally what was decided globally. Getting democracy, literally, on a smaller scale is about gaining back control; it can’t be decided remotely. If we call this ‘nationalism’, not only do we lose our way to denounce actual xenophobia, but we lose sight of other types of opposition as well. Europe is not a country, and the way the European Union is designed, it is essentially a bank, and it aims to make entire countries its debtors… So, yes, yay for souverainism!