[Esmeralfaf]

If it might interest you:

There's a reason the police doesn't intervene then : the government is trying to have social peace.

There are many hints of a very, very tense climate among the workers right now. There are several recent cases of very rough strikes, as factories said they were closing and leaving France.

This tension comes from several factors :
- The workers have been asked for years to make sacrifices so that their factory can stay in France. They've often heard promises by the employer, which are broken.

- The crisis is seen with a feeling of unfairness : the French working class didn't get benefits from the pre-crisis years. At the same time, some spectacular bonuses and boss severance packages embodied the fact that the workers produced wealth for the wealthy.

- Many of the companies that suffer from the harshet worker's movements are foreign-owned. Before jumping to a conclusion of racism, you should know that much foreign investment was motivated by "rationalizing" the French production. Many foreign-bought companies cut costs drastically, increased pressure on the workers, with no tangible benefit to them.
An additional problem with foreign-owned companies is that the actual people in charge are distant (duh) and won't actually get in contact with the workers. This distance increases frustration, which gets focused on the powerless local exec.

- Unlike some hard strikes in the 70's (which were much rougher than what we have now), those workers don't try to keep their workplace and their working dignity. They just try to pry as much money as possible from the ******* bosses. It denotes a change in the way people see their company : rather than being an important element of daily life, it's something you must pry as much money as possible from. This can be observed among all classes, though the French people still overwhelmingly try to pry that money through legal means.

- And especially, what fuels those hard strikes is despair. The people who get involved with it have no trust at all in negociation, in unions, in politics, and in the future. To them, force is the only option to get money now, for they feel they won't ever find another job that will bring a stable income in the family.


This feeling is widespread among workers right now. The arrogance among the employers only worsens it. The unions are powerless at calming this.
If the government doesn't want to put oil on the flames, it has to play it quiet. Exactly like the government does when farmers riot. The govt is right : we just had a general strike in Guadeloupe for a few months, which could have seriously become a full-scale insular riot. This event is quite inspiring.

But don't worry guys, the govenment will probably backstab them as soon as things calm down (queue the smileys )

[DesautocaD]

If it might interest you:

There's a reason the police doesn't intervene then : the government is trying to have social peace.

How do you encourage an enviroment where social peace blooms by turning a blind eye to an enviroment of violence, kidnapping, and a burgeoning protection racket?

[Fsfkkkjz]

police actions have been decisively politicized during the last 10 years, all over western europe

if violence comes from left-wing activists (pro-establishment in EU), it isn't really violence and the "demonstrators" need to be only overlooked.

or, in other words:
There's a reason the police doesn't intervene then : the government is trying to have social peace.

[weO1bVp1]

I guess Europeans don't even bother paying lip service to the idea of "equal protection before the law."

[bMc8F9ZI]

What do you expect? Somebody posts a fairly incredible abrogation of responsibility by the French judicial system and dannubis comes out with an argument to indicate that no criticism coming from any citizen of a nation with arguably flawed judicial precedents in the last few years on a wholly distinct subject can be accepted as legitimate.

Calling him a moron is the most productive thing we can do to him. His post was so blatantly ridiculous that no more reasoned response is worthwhile.

Intellectual honesty

[ResistNewWorldOrder]

Or in short : we do pay lip service. We just do it when convenient. France

[bactrimtab]

It's about avoiding a bunch of isolated riots (right now, what happens is fairly tame compared to what we have seem, and what some activists push for. We could most definitely have riots if things get pushed).

So violence, terrorism, and kidnapping are a-OK with the French government and as long as they keep it below a certain level such activity will have the implicit sanction of the state. Is that what you are saying?

[weO1bVp1]

Note to self, do not work as middle management in France. They are not people, they are playthings for angry union employees.

Are the families of the managers not upset by what's going on? If my mother, father, or sister were kidnapped because some knucklehead wanted better pay and the government didn't do anything about it I would redefine union busting.

Maybe that's the problem. France needs more private gun ownership.

[prmwsinfo]

Maybe that's the problem. France needs more private gun ownership.

Oh yeah, then the middle management would be really safe.

[justashonglefan]

So violence, terrorism, and kidnapping are a-OK with the French government and as long as they keep it below a certain level such activity will have the implicit sanction of the state. Is that what you are saying?

I disagree with the words "a-OK" and "implicit sanction of the state".

The French government is right wing. It's a staunch advocate of capitalism, and intends to "moralize" capitalism (and you and Iwill agree on it being pure PR crock since capitalism is amoral). So the government doesn't like at all that capitalists are getting threatened. They are also using stern words.

Unlike most posters in this thread, however, the French government also uses a healthy dose of pragmatism. There are many tensions existing nationwide, which are still quiet for the time being. A crackdown on the spectacular actions might very well inflame them.

As long as the hard strikes are marginal and appeasable, businesses have a much easier time to do business as usual. A crackdown would increase class consciousness, something big business and the government definitely don't want.

[TEFSADDERFISA]

I disagree with the words "a-OK" and "implicit sanction of the state".

What are we supposed to make of a complete abrogation of the duties of the police and the state to provide for the safety of its citizens? No punishment of these actions is the same as thier being accepted and supported by the state.
So the government doesn't like at all that capitalists are getting threatened. They are also using stern words. Who gives a **** about capitalists beign threatened, Spiffor? People are being threatened and with the permissive attitude the State has toward this its only a matter of time til this escalates further as the OP is showing.

[tuszit]

As long as the hard strikes are marginal and appeasable, businesses have a much easier time to do business as usual. A crackdown would increase class consciousness, something big business and the government definitely don't want.

It might increase class consciousness among backwards people who still think that way but it would definitely help remind people who are thinking of committing crimes that if you do the crime then you do the time.

[saerensenatljn]

I am sorry Spiffor, but your first post in this thread summarized everything that is wrong with the French workers and why they have no leg to stand on legally or otherwise. They are a bunch of whiny thugs.

Care to elaborate about the "whiny" part?

if you do the crime then you do the time.

[bestformaldress23]

I was laughing at the belief of a systematic link between doing a crime and actually being punished. I wonder if there's any place in the world where it's true.

[Lgcjqxlw]

I've known of incidents nearly as bad in the US. Back in the 1980's my brother was shot at while driving a truck for one of the coal companies being struck. He showed me the bullet hole ( in the truck ).

I worked as an Occupational Physician for a munitions plant for a few years. I was involved in a disability determination for a foreman who had been injured during a strike. He had temporarily been assigned to a non-managerial position, i.e., he was scabbing. Some workers entered the plant property and beat him unconscious. As part of the settlement of the strike though the workers were not charged with a crime and were re-instated, but the foreman, who was unable to work due to his injuries was fired and not even allowed workman's compensation since he was technically doing a job outside of his job title. As a foreman though he had "risen through the ranks" and had performed the job before becoming a foreman, so he was quite qualified. The company allowed him to be hung out to dry to set an example for potential future scabs. As a reward for his loyalty to the company this guy was put out on SSI in his early 50's.

Why weren't criminal charges pursued you might ask? The incident took place at a US Army ammunition plant. The land there was technically Federal land and therefore outside of state and local jurisdiction. Since the company was acting on behalf of the US Army neither the Adjutant General nor the Federal government were inclined to press charges.

[dHXaE2h9]

I was laughing at the belief of a systematic link between doing a crime and actually being punished. I wonder if there's any place in the world where it's true.

How many bone fide "gangstas" do you think actually make it to 25 without spending serious time in the penitentiary, getting seriously wounded or even dying? I'm willing to bet not many.