Cantona proposes a run on the banks.

 Eric Cantona the 'enfant terrible' of French football and sometime movie star has given an interview which has caused quite a stir.  He suggested that rather than protesting the pension reforms on the streets the French would be better off removing their money from the banks, thereby causing a run on the banks that would bring the whole system down.  His comments have led to the creation of a campaign urging people to remove their money from the banks on the 7th of December.  He has also been criticised as irresponsible by various commentators.
However I think that most people are missing the point.  It is not realistic to expect people to really remove their money from the banks.  In the first place banks won't give us our money just like that.  Then there is the fact that most of us owe the banks more than we owe them, through our mortgages and other credit.  Personally, I think Catona was making a comment on the inutility of protests against a system into which we are all tied.  While it sticks in the craw that our governments bailed out these banks to the tune of billions and are now cutting back on services, it cannot be denied that if these banks fall so does our society.  A bank collapse would lead to events unseen since the 1930's and which only saw a recovery after a global conflict which killed millions.  What Cantona was saying is that if people are serious about change then we must be prepared to accept the consequences.  A run on the bank is perhaps the only way to really change the system but do any of those protesting in the streets really understand the consequences of such a run.  It's much easier to shout and smash up a few McDonalds or Starbucks than really attack the system and see our lifestyles radically transformed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzJplZccaWQ

Sarkozy and 2012

At the moment, the French press is obsessed with the reshuffle of the government, more obsessed it seems than most French people.  According to them it represents a shift to the right in preparation for the election in 2012, and especially for Nicolas Sarkozy's re- election.
In my opinion, however, that the media has missed the point.  Sarkozy is an extremely wily and accomplished politician.  He has pushed through some unpopular, but necessary, reforms which most people and the media associate with him.  All anger and hatred is poured on his head to such an extent that the public has forgotten he represents the UMP.  The tidal wave of vitriol against this one man is astounding, his name is almost a swear word.  In addition we have forgotten he promised to only stand as President once.  The fact that he has allowed the fire to be directed at him drawing it away from his party, giving them the opportunity to be re-elected in 2012 seems to have escaped the media.
People scoff at this, saying that Sarkozy is obsessed with power.  Personally, I believe that he feels he has achieved that which he set out to do and is ready to move on to bigger things.  It is hard for many French people to understand that there could be anything more important than the President of France.  Sarkozy will stand down as President in 2012, and the job offers from international organisations or multinationals will pour in.  At the same time, like Blair and Bush, he'll write his memoirs and start off on the lecture circuit.  President of France?  Been there done that.
Sarkozy has achieved the impossible, he has changed France. Furthermore, he has managed to avoid tainting his party.  People blame the man and not the government; look at the popularity of the Prime minister François Fillon.  In this he is helped by the divisions on the left.  The election in 2012 will be between a united UMP, a divided and policy absent left and the spectre of the National Front; Sarkozy will have moved on.  It's time the media realised this and moved from personal attacks on Sarkozy and analysed the programmes and promises of the candidates for 2012. If they can do this I for one will switch my radio back on, and Sakozy won't be so smug and how he has duped the press.

Football mania

I'm not a football fan; scenes such as Marseilles fans smashing up the town because they won puts me off.  However, there has been a spate of football related adverts which seem strange to me.  As the excitement builds up to the world cup, a number of adverts have proposed televisions with up to 100% discounts if the French team wins the world cup.  Now, it seems a little disloyal on the part of the TV retailers to offer such a large discount.  It suggests they are pretty confident that the French team will not win.  This can't being doing much for the players moral, unless they feel motivated enough to leave these same TV retailers with egg on their face by actually winning.  I suppose the argument could be that all those who buy the TVs will be spurring the home team on to win.  I'm no expert, but it looks like they'll need all the support they can get, as few commentators are giving them much chance in the competition.
In the meantime, we've got the scandal of certain players alleged relations with under- aged prostitutes, to keep us amused.  Once again, I'm surprised by the fuss the relevations have caused.  Okay, they should be role models but give young, not too bright men way too much money and what do you think they'll do?  And as for the young lady in question she seems to have achieved exactly what she wanted, riches and fame, appearing on the cover of Paris match.  She's not some Eastern European or Chinese teenager forced into sex with strangers to pay off her journey to France.  This is a savvy, high class hooker looking to make money out of rich celebrities.
I don't like football because it is no longer about football but the money and celebrity that goes with it.  That's why I will not be buying a new TV and not watching the world cup.  Unless of course England makes it to the final, and even better if they're playing France!

A film worth seeing

This is an interesting, if heavy film, that will make you think about the way we treat our land and the food that we eat.

Solutions locales pour un désordre global

Open farms and the first of May

The paradoxes of France never cease to amaze me even after 10 years.  Take for example this weekend,  Saturday was the first of May, workers day and as French socialist tradition dictates nobody is supposed to work.  If the 1st May falls on a weekday it is a public holiday, and if it is a Tuesday or Thursday many people have the bonus of a 'Pont'.  This is literally a bridge between the public holiday and the weekend, giving you a four day weekend.  Unfortunately for most of us this year the 1st May fell on a Saturday, however it was good news for those who normally work on Saturdays.
The paradox for me was that this weekend the 1st and 2nd May was the 'Bienvenue à la ferme' (Bienvenue à la ferme ) weekend in our region. On these two days partner farms open their doors to the public to present what they do, and sell their produce.  It seems strange that while the rest of the country is celebrating workers day the farmers are at work, I suppose it could be argued they work all year anyway.  At least the shoppers denied their saturday pleasure have something else to do.
We visited two sites, a vineyard in the Savoie and a dairy farm in the Chartreuse mountains (The chartreuse region/).  The vineyard was more interesting from an adults point of view as we were able to taste and buy wine.  Many French wine connoisseurs sneer at the mention of Savoie wines, but I find the Reds light and easy to drink, and the whites great with cheese.  Our second stop was for the kids and provided something of a surprise.  The ferme Habert is tucked away at the Northnmost extremity of the Chartreuse.  The location is stunning, as you drive up to the farm the moutains close around you in a semi- circle.  The farm raises Tarantaise cattle for their milk to produce cheese.  It is, in fact, a farm that operates to help people with psychological problems re-integrate society.  We were given a tour by a lady who was obviously part of the permanent staff before being handed over to a young man who clearly had some mental difficulties.  It was good to visit this type of structure for the kids to meet people that our society normally tries to hide away.  Everybody was very friendly and the kids particularly enjoyed the calf who decided to eat my raincoat.  We finished with a cheese tasting and splashed out on some cheese.
This type of event takes place every year in May and, despite the fact that this year it was the first so the farmers couldn't take their day off, it is a great way to discover the region and its produce.

Teaching English in France

One of the biggest sectors of employment for English speakers living in France is teaching English. There are various possibilities, from private language schools teaching business English, through to associations, universities and management schools. All have their advantages and disadvantages: one of the principle disadvantages, common to all, is the precarious nature of the work. The Mecca for many is a post within the 'Education Nationale'. Although the pay isn't great, this offers a secure job for life with long holidays. The problem with this solution is the dreaded 'CAPES', the French equivalent of a British PGCE. Despite the fact that qualifications across Europe are supposed to be harmonised, the French require Englishs speakers to take the 'CAPES' regardless of qualifications or experience. I would recommend the following book for anyone contemplating taking the 'CAPES'. It is a semi- fictional account of one American's attempt to take the exam. It is a great eye opener on the French education system and French attitudes to foreigners trying to enter their civil service. It had me tutting and muttering explitives after every chapter!

The 'Saints de Glace'

The last few days have been very warm, and no doubt the gardeners among you have been itching to start planting. But beware the 'Saints de Glace'! My first year of planting a vegetable garden provided a salutary lesson for me. The first weeks of April had been warm and the crafty garden centres were full off tomato plants. I bought six and eagerly planted them. Then in early May there was a drop in temperatures and two nights of frost finished off my tomato plants. It was then that my neighbour leaned over the fence to tell me you shouldn't plant before the 'Saints de Glace'. Nice of them to tell me before!
The 'Saints de Glace' is the 11, 12, and 13 of May, and the Saints referred to are St. Mamert, Pancrace, and Sevais whose Saints days fell on these dates. In the past farmers prayed to these Saints in the hope of preventing the cold snap which fell during this period. In 1960 the Vatican changed the Saints to crush this, as they saw it, pagan practice. The saints are now Estelle, Achille and Rolande. Despite this the idea of the 'Saints de Glace' lives on.
In fact, the rule does not apply to all plants. More hardy vegetables such as spinach, leeks and carrots can be planted earlier. If you are lucky enough to have a greenhouse, even tomatoes can be planted before early May. In general, it is the sun loving such as tomatoes and peppers that cannot be planted in the open ground without risk.
Today, I tend to watch what my neighbours are planting and do the same. They've been here for longer and can read the seasons better than me. As for the garden centres don't fall into the trap of buying their healthy greenhouse grown tomato plants yet or you may find your self shelling out for more plants in May.

Happy New Year

As the New Year came in, my mobile phone beeped and my e-mail box filled up as messages of good will for 2010 arrived. The French put a lot of store by wishing each other a 'Bonne année', however only until the 31st of January, after this date it is bad luck. It is crucial to greet acquaintances with this formula, and being an anglo- saxon, I almost always forget. It's a little like having to say 'Bonjour' to everyone we meet. In my early days in Grenoble, I would enter the bakers or get on the bus and launch into what I wanted. The person behind the counter would interrupt me with a pointed 'Bonjour', and I would realise with shame that I had, once again, committed the 'faux pas' of not greeting properly. The same rule applies to work, where it is considered rude to scuttle to ones office without saying 'Hello' to colleagues. This culture of greeetings underlines a difference, for me, between Anglo- saxon culture which tends to get straight to the point and Gallic culture that prefers a more humane approach. I must admit it grows on you and despite the occasional gaff I do now greet people first.
Another tradition at this time of year is the 'galette des rois', literally the Kings' cake. At Epiphanie, the arrival of the Three kings honouring Jesus, the French eat a puff pastry tart filled with marzipan. The tart contains a 'feve', a small object often a figurine, the lucky finder of this object gets to be king, and wear the cardboard crown which comes with every 'galette'. My wife has just reliably informed me that the word 'feve' means bean, and is used because originally a bean was placed in the tart, the finder was supposed to plant it for a good harvest. It is not uncommon for people to invite you to their house to share a 'galette des rois', and work colleagues may sometimes share one. Often the figurines come in series and people collect the Asterix or Tintin series. At the moment the bakers and supermarkets are full of these tarts, with prices ranging from the reasonable to the scandalous.