Some words about Paris protests (“Yellow vests” / “Gilets Jaunes”) (1)
I have received messages from several of you wondering if I was fine. I’d like to thank you for your thoughts. I am fine so as my family and friends.
And here are some of my thoughts about what’s going on in some parts of Paris :
The protests are very spectacular but take place in confined neighbourhoods of Paris only. (They take place in many other locations all over France too)
Most of the city, most Parisians, though really concerned (alike me) by the current (violent) events, can carry on with their everyday life in a quiet atmosphere.
I feel as a citizen and can’t be indifferent to what’s going on. I feel committed in what’s going on in my city, my country, and in the rest of the world too
But so many media have already communicated about these events already…. What could I say more ?
… But finally, I chose to write a few words about all what’s going on… The media are showing and focusing on what’s worst and are making the world think that the whole city is on fire and that everything in Paris is destroyed…
Which is not the case… at all…. Though I would never minimize the violence… which is real.
This protest movement which at the start, was meant to be a social protest, finally looks quite antisocial to me. This protests are supported by the far right that try to highjack the protest for political purpose
Infiltrated by far right people, by people causing material damages, engaged in looting. Shops are destroyed and looted. People , protesters (and police too…), are put in danger.
Owners, and small and medium sized business owners are going to face huge expense to rehabilitate the place. The city of Paris (several million euros) and others French cities and locations too. Some companies and shops will just close down and numerous people, the same that are suffering for the same reason than the protesters, will soon be unemployed. It’s the defamation or the representative democracy.
A leaderless protest, some fighting one another, no main thrust, no representative, a protest with no banner. Difficult to negotiate and communicate with a heteroclite group with no banner… However, a few individuals have wanted to negotiate with the political representatives.
The people who has expressed the willing to encounter members of the government as to express their claims have been harshly threaten by other protesters.
Now that they have obtained the suppression of fuel taxes, some express the will of the president’s demission (sometimes asking even worse…). Finally, the claims are going off in all directions, under the banner of no one, associated to the far right with acts of destruction and looting…
Not that I support Macron ‘s politics. We could have surely expected better and not that I’m happy with the tax policy. France have (among ?) the highest taxes in whole Europe. And many people and companies are suffocating. But it’s not something new… It is not an issue that only goes back a few years.
The group phenomenon (started on social media) has generated a public hysteria, Macron’s inappropriate words has probably participated at crank up the conflict. The media too, too often primarily concerned with their audience … I wouldn’t support this hysteria…
Jacques Lacan (2) , French psychoanalyst once wrote : « Ce que vous aspirez comme révolutionnaires, c’est à un maître. Vous l’aurez ».
” What you aspire to as revolutionaries is a master. You will get one.”
This was in 1968 and at this time people were fighting for their ideal, for more liberty and a less patriarchal society, and they were not looting… However, I hope we won’t have this master. This is what may happen if the majority of the public opinion (and this is what’s seems to be…) carries on supporting these “protests”… No Master please. Better people educated as to make them citizens, thinking people, not followers. No obedients/followers.
Thank you for reading these few words and I apologize if my writing is too clumsy (which actually is another proof that I’m French…!). And thanks again for following my Facebook posts
Writing this article was not my first project after such a long time without writing any article (my previous plan was to write an article about Bookstalls in Paris !!) but … the events helping…
Below, some photos of Paris’ quiet neighborhoods, as they were this weekend, including my neighborhood (Paris 14)
(1) I guess that if some French read by chance this note, I may not be complimented nor get some new French friends…… !
(2) Jacques Lacan was a French psychoanalyst and psychiatrist (1901 – 1881), who has been called “the most controversial psycho-analyst since Freud”. 
