There was an arresting headline on the front page of Le Figaro last Saturday, which summed up the end-of-tetherness of Johnny Frenchman these days. “Grèves, manifestations, blocages: les Français en ont assez.” Strikes, protests, blockades: the French have had enough. We should take no pleasure in this, because we should be wondering how long it will be before we read such headlines here.
The French, as we know, are protesting about the modest proposal to raise the retirement age to 62. It is advanced as an example of our civility and reasonableness that we have not batted an eyelid at the prospect of ours being raised to 66. Our response to the removal of child benefit from a swathe of the middle classes has been to push Labour an inch or two ahead of the Tories in the opinion polls. The prospect of higher university tuition fees has been taken on the chin. Unlike our Gallic neighbours, it seems we can’t have enough.
Further down the food chain, of course, matters are not quite so stoical. London is sporadically disrupted by pointless strikes on the Underground orchestrated by the new incarnation of brutalist militancy, Bob Crow. Firefighters say they will strike on Bonfire Night to make a point about their terms and conditions of service. The trade union movement generally is seeking to mobilise on account of the public spending cuts, and seeks the support (so far lukewarm) of the Labour leadership for doing so. Nothing really nasty has happened yet; but winter has not yet drawn on, and people are manifestly less happy than they used to be.
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O/T but I’m trying to get my spam problem under control. It is considerable and so for the next while (until the spambots bugger off — they will eventually give up) I am going to require that people who comment regularly here sign in. You can continue to use the online name you normally use and which all regular visitors are familiar with.
Take that short minute to help me out.
It will stop the problem in it’s tracks and that helps me a lot.
Thanks in advance.
Update:
I’m right. The bullshit has stopped because because robots can’t handle this situation. We’ll see how it goes but I’m optimistic.
Back on topic.
Watching the news as I do everyday I think Simon Heffer and Colby Cosh (in an earlier entry) are correct. The “Left” as propounded by the Star, the Globe and many others across the net are into a huge problem.
It has to do with a “Lefty Dreamworld” and taxpayers who are looking at their wallets and screaming “what the f**k?”
“Who are these idiots?”
Rob Ford won big in Toronto yesterday but it would appear from QP today (which I watched) that the numphies have yet to get the message.
The average voters point:
“Keep your f**king hands off my wallet or you lose!!”
I totally agree.
Wake up or lose. You can take that to the bank.
Test reply … from Maui, just to give JacksNewsWatch an international flavour (or is that flavor?)!!
Aloha
WCT are you on a pilgrimage to track Obama’s roots? Don’t turn you back on the waves…LOL
this is a test, jack. if it makes it. thanks
Jack:
Plugins are already in place and login is no longer required (since early this morning). If you aren’t seeing any problems then I guess it worked
Thanks, Cy.