The people on France are not happy.

Police clash with pension demonstrators for second night in Paris.

Macron's leadership at risk amid tensions over pension plan.

While the people in Greece are feeling the same way, but for different reasons.

Greece sacks police chief after train tragedy protests.

It's not getting any better in France.

France ‘burning’ as violent pension reform protests cause fuel shortages, mass arrests.

I reckon that Macron went the totally wrong way about implementing his decision.

We are coming into the "Strike and riot" season in France. Each year they choose a different topic and for the next six months they strike and riot.

---

Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

More friction?

France-Germany tensions overshadow EU leaders' summit.

A burgeoning row between France and Germany fired by differences over nuclear energy and combustion engines threatened to spill over into a gathering of the 27 European Union leaders Thursday.

Existing strains between the European Union's two biggest players after Berlin upset some of its partners by blocking -- at the last minute -- a landmark deal to prohibit new sales of fossil fuel cars from 2035.

The ban is key to Brussels' ambitious plan to become a "climate neutral" economy by 2050, with net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.

In an unprecedented action this month, Germany intervened after the car ban had already been approved under the EU legislative process. It demanded that Brussels provide assurances the law would allow the sales of new cars with combustion engines that run on synthetic fuels.

While the last-minute block frustrated many EU capitals, Paris had in turn already irked Berlin by insisting on giving nuclear energy a starring role in European plans to produce more green technology in Europe....

Not a good look and certainly not good for the future economically.

Spain clean energy case shakes confidence in EU investment.

Renewable energy investors who lost subsidies promised by Spain are heading to a London court to try to claw back $125 million from the government — a decadelong dispute with ramifications for clean energy financing across the European Union.

The outcome will be closely watched by investors after the U.S. passed a new law offering incentives for homegrown green technology. Experts say the Inflation Reduction Act is already drawing clean energy investment away from EU countries like Spain, leaving the 27-nation bloc much less competitive globally.....

More friction?

France-Germany tensions overshadow EU leaders' summit.

Yes, more friction!!!

And it is absolutely necessary to discuss these things instead of covering them up with the typical ideological babble. First, bans and technology requirements are botch. The desired goal of CO2 savings is better and much cheaper achieved through taxation, emission certificates, price incentives, etc. In the past, it was the UK government who insisted on favoring liberal market principles over French-type state dirigisme. Unfortunately, we now lack the British corrective.
Then there is an extremely weak German chancellor who is unable to resolve internal political conflicts within his governing coalition. Instead, he watches passively as his "dwarfs" take their conflicts to the EU level and annoy 26 other governments. German politics 2023 - embarrassing.
Second, it is also not helpful from the German side to constantly ignore the French approach to consider nuclear energy as a low-CO2 technology. For many years now they are annoying the French, overlooking the topic in pique... pointing fingers pityingly at French nuclear power plants and ugh.... those dirty, nasty, obsolete technology... when at the same time Germany shuts down the previously most reliable NPPs on earth ("Konvoi"-type: 1300...1400 MW each) and instead urgently buys as much coal as possible from Australia, South Africa, Colombia... Crazy.
Energy policy in the EU isn't a matter of the EU commission but for the individual states. And the loudest opponents of nuclear energy in Europe, next to Germany, are the freeloaders Luxembourg and Austria, who simply import their electricity needs. This has to be discussed and the smaller EU states should unite and oppose unrealistic German energy policy, which unfortunately is also regularly repeated by the EU Commission (whose President, von der Leyen, is a German too).

Is another French Revolution on the cards?

Wild scenes on the streets of Paris as election looms.

France’s far-right party could be on the brink of power after winning the first round of a snap parliamentary election.

Hundreds of left-wing protesters flooded the streets and clashed with cops in Paris as they set off fireworks and flares, The Sun reports.

Incumbent president Emmanuel Macron’s party and their allies have been left dragging behind in the polls as Marine Le Pen’s National Rally scooped the first round of legislative elections on Sunday.

Le Pen crowed that Macron’s alliance was “almost wiped out” during the first of two rounds.

Her party reached 33 per cent of the vote, while the left-wing New Popular Front came in second with 28 per cent.....

Is another French Revolution on the cards?

The French revolution was supported by the broad masses of the people against a despotic ruling aristocracy. The current riots are fueled by a small minority of violent left-wing extremists and masses of migrant non-citizens. I see a big difference to a 'Revolution'.

But it is indeed striking that (some!) leftists immediately are errecting burning barricades, smashing shop windows, and destroying cars when they are unhappy with election results. They are bad losers and represent the opposite of an enlighted society.

Appeasement does not work, neither against bloodthirsty dictators nor against violence-loving anarchists. There are Olympic Games in Paris this summer. The government will have to get things in order.

Well young Vik isn't making any friends as he's off kissing PooTin's ......

Ukraine Allies Slam Viktor Orbán Over Putin Meeting.

Hungarian Prime Minister and newly assumed Council of the European Union President Viktor Orbán's unannounced visit to Russia on Friday has sparked a wave of condemnation from European allies of Ukraine.

Orbán met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday morning to discuss peace proposals for Moscow's ongoing war in Ukraine. The visit, part of what Orbán calls his "peace mission," comes just three days after he made a trip to Kyiv and urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to consider a cease-fire.

The European Union and the United States remain strong allies of Ukraine, sending weapons and supplies to the country while sanctioning Russia for the invasion Putin launched in February 2022. Orbán, meanwhile, is widely regarded as having the closest ties with Putin among EU leaders and has attempted to halt EU efforts to support Ukraine. However, in a recent post on X (formerly Twitter), he called for putting "the disputes of the past behind us" while acknowledging his strained relationship with Ukraine.

Orbán's visit to Russia has drawn public criticism from some EU officials, who emphasized that he does not represent their country's or the EU's position.

An EU official told Newsweek in an email Friday, "Prime Minister Orbán did not inform of any trip to Moscow. There were numerous attempts to establish contact and confirm reports of PM Orbán possible visit to Russia, these were unsuccessful."

The official continued, "If PM Orbán had asked, President Michel would have strongly advised against such a visit," in reference to the president of the European Council, Charles Michel.........

My gosh, but these far right wingnuts are certainly delusional and out of control these days. :-(

My gosh, but these far right wingnuts are certainly delusional and out of control these days. :-(

But why?

Putin controls some information (kompromat) about all of them that makes them crawl at his feet. Just watch older footage of Trump in Putin's presence; like a submissive puppy. It's terrifying. Orban is no different. You only have to think about Trump's relation with Epstein for a moment and the worst becomes imaginable if you add the tried and tested methods of the KGB.

La Bic's French Revolution falls short.

France's Far-Right Suffers Blow in Election.

A left-wing coalition has won the most seats in France's second round of legislative elections, dealing a blow to the far-right which had hoped to build on gains in the first round of the ballot.

No one got an absolute majority in the 577-seat National Assembly, but official results put the leftist grouping New Popular Front in first place with 180 seats, ahead of the 160 seats of the centrist alliance of President Emmanuel Macron, who called the snap ballot a month ago.

One expert in French politics told Newsweek that the election has "deepened polarization" in France, while another said that Macron has been left "weakened."

In third place was the far-right National Rally and its allies at 140 seats, which while its best ever showing, fell well short of the 289 seats needed to control the parliament.......

The far right morons are crawling out of the sewers these days and 1 big moron is enabling their violent movements by giving them a voice.

UK slams ‘deeply irresponsible’ Musk ‘civil war’ comments.

Especially when fake B.S. is being allowed to spread on his service unheeded.

Travellers warned, PM slams ‘far-right thuggery’ as UK rocked by worst riots in 13 years.

England’s worst rioting in 13 years has continued to escalate after disturbances linked to child murders and involving far-riot agitators flared across the country.

Unrest related to misinformation about a mass stabbing that killed three young girls at a Taylor Swift dance club last week has spread to multiple towns and cities, with anti-immigration demonstrators clashing with police.

The violence is posing a major test for Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who was elected only a month ago after leading Labour to a landslide win over the Conservatives.

He has promised those involved will feel the “full force of the law”.....

Where are those far right morons at now?

Incredible sight as counter-protesters take to streets after week of riots in the UK.

Britain is teetering on the edge of fresh chaos as tens of thousands of anti-racism protesters take to the streets to disrupt 100 far-right rallies planned to take place.

The country has been gripped by days of violent anti-immigration riots in multiple cities, whipped up by online groups of an apparent misinformation campaign, leading to significant property damage and injuries.

Far-right groups had planned dozens of rallies at immigration centres, hotels housing refugees, and the offices of migration lawyers and charities.

Thousands of police have deployed to expected hotspots across the United Kingdom, in one of the largest public order operations in modern history..........

It's all felt very strange. We're no strangers to street violence in the UK, but usually the pressure builds up gradually around a specific issue. This on blew up suddenly, out of the blue.

I think First Dog on the Moon summed it up best:


Last noght was quieter - thank god - but I wouldn't say we're completely out of the woods yet.

The French government coalition collapsed yesterday. Opposition backed a no convidence vote and toppled PM Barnier. It is a result of the snap elections this summer; carelessly called by President Macron. Since then, there has been a destructive opposition majority of the extreme left and right; a stable government currently can't be formed. New elections are not possible until next summer.

Why France's turmoil is grave concern for Europe

For France, there's no real end to the political instability in sight.

Together with Germany, the continent's two largest nations are currently without a functioning government able to pass laws. With one difference: in Germany, snap elections could be called at any time with 60 days' notice, if only the Chancellor (and President) considered it urgent.

Tempus fugit...

The U.S. Secretary of Defence as well as the U.S. Vice President explained in clear, unambigous terms at the MSC conference in Munich last week the broad lines of the future US foreign policy, which represents a break with the previous policies of three decades. The concept of "America First" was already proclaimed in Trump's first term in office and must have been clear to everyone in Europe for a long time. Instead: an startled outcry, outrage, raging rejection. Now, the US administration is setting about implementing this quickly and bringing about changes. (Don't want to rate Trump's policies here...)

What is Europe doing? It is meeting on a small scale with the "perceived" big ones (DE, UK, FR, PL); forgetting the extremely determined and powerful "small ones" (Baltics, Czechia, Romania), which have so far supported Ukraine effectively with everything they could provide. There is a lot of palaver but no common line.

Instead, a cacophony:

• the Empire wants to quickly station troops in Ukraine. (I thought the British Rhine Army was withdrawn from DE and disbanded in ~2003; probably hidden in the mountains of Wales, they were "Welsh Guards", right?).
  
• the Sun God in the Elysée Palace (recently thrown out of all of West Africa) wants shared European debts first, in order to then arm itself (only with French arms industry of course).
  
• the little man in Berlin, who no longer reaches the perceptual horizon of US officials (probably not helpful that the Federal President publicly scorned Trump a "hate preacher" while the Vice Chancellor told the US Vice President yesterday: "It's none of your business"), well, the Berlin dwarf considers all discussions about protecting a possible peace in Ukraine to be totally inappropriate and completely premature. Instead, we must wait and see (just not take any position and avoid any commitment).
  
• Italy is Trump's best friend on the continent and only cares about it's own interests in Libya (denuclearized gas junkie since 1980s). Russia? Ukraine? Far behind the horizon...
  
• Hello Spain?
  

This morning I heard on the radio the German government could possibly imagine a small German Federal Police force to secure a peace agreement in Ukraine. This worked well with the "Minsk" agreements within the OSCE framework.

I then turned the radio off.

It seems that young Viktor has a growing problem with his subjects.

Budapest LGBTQIA+ march swells into massive anti-government demonstration.

Tens of thousands of protesters have marched through Hungary's capital as a banned LGBTQIA+ rights rally has swelled into a mass anti-government demonstration.

In a major show of opposition to Prime Minister Viktor Orban, crowds set off across one of the main bridges, waving rainbow flags and with some people carrying signs mocking Mr Orban.

Eszter Rein Bodi, one of the marchers, said: "This is about much more. Not just about homosexuality … This is the last moment to stand up for our rights."

One sign read: "None of us are free until everyone is free."......

The mayor of Budapest, a left-wing activist, redefined the banned LGBTQIA+ parade as a commemoration of the withdrawal of Soviet occupation troops, a pure civic event. Orban was a student leader in the late 1980s and publicly advocated for the Soviet withdrawal from Hungary, which earned him nationwide admiration. He couldn't stop this event. Clever, this mayor of Budapest.

The woke urban bubble in the capital is showing its contempt for the corrupt conservative president. More protestors than last year crowded the streets of Budapest.

But that doesn't mean a majority of the population approves this 'colorful', urban parallel society. The Hungarian flag is still red, white and green, not rainbow colored.

Orban could learn, it's adviced to ignore unwanted political protest instead of banning it, which will always backfire.

French parliament ousted the PM; government collapsed.

Macron's PM Bayrou lost a confidence vote this evening, as was expected since days. Monsieur le President now has to appoint another PM; but who? Macron's "Besoin d'Europe" list lost its majority in parliament already in the previous snap elections in July 2024.

1980s... 1990s Italian vibes... every year, another PM... No... five PMs in less than two years.

Some have speculated that Macron would turn now to a leftwing prime minister, having failed with the conservative Barnier and the centrist Bayrou. However, the PS [Partie Socialiste] has said it wants a total break from Macron’s pro-business policies.

3.4 trillion euros liability; French debt soon reaching 150% of GDP.... but today's Partie Socialiste (in former decades a reliable left-wing government party that provided longtime President François Mitterand (1981-1995), and François Hollande (2012-2017) at least with a full five years term) now aims at what? Socialism? Communism?

This party urges to end Macron's "pro-business" policies in order to tackle France's existential debt burden. Sounds about right, isn't it?

President Macron appointed incumbent Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu as next PM. Lecornu is a close companion of Macron; a former member of "Les Republicains". He joined Macron's political movement "République en Marche" in 2017.

Macron tasked the PM to consult with all political blocs in parliament to adopt a state budget for 2026. That's almost a Mission Impossible in a parliament that's divided between three almost contrary blocs: Leftists, Centrists and Right-Wing without a majority in sight.

The PM supposedly will postpone proposing a new government until after the adoption of a budget.

So again, France is preoccupied with its domestic political disunity for the time being.