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You are here: Home » Politics + Society » Archive » December 2007-4
POLITICS AND SOCIETY NEWS AND EVENTS ARCHIVE DECEMBER 2007-4
Archives: Dec. 18-20, 2007
Anatomy of “Bling-Bling” Sarkozy
TimeMagazine. Dec. 20, 2007
Some pundits in France are now wondering abotut he monied vulgarity of
French President Nicolas Sarkozy's iconoclastic Elysée reign. Out are
the days of somber, aloof, and understated figureheads of the French
Republic; welcomed in are the celebrity and multi-billionaire visitors,
whom Sarkozy greets whilst wearing expensive suits, stylish sunglasses,
and conspicuously large wristwatches.
> More
French economy may slow in next quarter
Bloomberg. Dec. 20, 2007
French economic growth may slow in the first half of 2008 as tighter
credit curbs corporate investment and the euro's appreciation crimps
exports, according to Insee, the French national statistics office.
> More
French Areva wants one-third of world’s nuclear energy
TorontoStar. Dec. 20, 2007
French company Areva SA, the world's largest nuclear plant builder,
plans to hold a third of the global nuclear market by 2030, chief
executive Anne Lauvergeon said, testifying before the French Parliament
in Paris yesterday.
> More
Scotland wants Tour de France
UKTelegraph. Dec. 20, 2007
Scottish officials are hoping to lure the Tour de France to Scotland
within the next few years, and has had early conversations about the
possibility of hosting the grand depart in Scotland. The soonest
Scotland could get involved would be 2010, as Tour officials have
confirmed the event will start in Brittany and Monaco in the next two
years.
> More
French housing aide resigns over low-rent apartment
AFP. Dec. 20, 2007
The French housing minister’s cabinet director Jean-Paul Bolufer
resigned on Thursday in a flap over the spacious subsidized flat that
he had been renting at low cost in a chic Paris district for over 20
years. Bolufer rented the (2,000-square-foot) apartment in Paris' fifth
district for a mere 1,200 euros (1,700 dollars) per month, a fraction
of market value, but said, “There are thousands of cases like mine in
Paris.” The flap came as France struggled with housing crisis for its
estimated 100,000 homeless people.
> More
French arms company Thint in bribery scandal
AP. Dec. 20, 2007
South Africa's top prosecutor said Thursday he had enough evidence to
bring corruption charges against African National Congress leader Jacob
Zuma, the man standing in line to be the country's next president. It
is alleged Zuma accepted bribes of nearly $600,000 from the French arms
company Thint to stop investigations into a multibillion-dollar arms
deal.
> More
Super-Sarko’s Excellent Adventure
UKTimes. Dec. 19, 2007
President Sarkozy has broken his own record for self-promotion, hosting
the flamboyant Libyan dictator Gaddafi, and launching a romance at
Disneyland with sexy model-singer Carla Bruni. Psychiatrists,
sociologists and movie directors are pronouncing on the breath-taking
ego of the republican monarch. Libération devoted five pages to
"President Bling Bling."
> More
Chabrol Calls Sarkozy’s France “Lubitschian”
Liberation. Dec. 19, 2007
French film director Claude Chabrol calls France today "a Lubitschian
republic" where each day brings droll and ironic news from the
Presidential palace. Society has slipped into an easy-go-lucky
spectatorship, only concerned with being amused. Sarozy has revealed
himself a showman, eager to be loved and appreciated. Sarko is leading
the dance, and regardless of political opinion, at least France feels
alive.
> More
Sarkozy’s reforms risk new wave of red tape
FinancialTimes. Dec. 19, 2007
French business leaders are worried that President Sarkozy’s highly
charged reform programme risks getting bogged down in its own mountain
of red tape. Laurence Parisot, president of Medef, the French
employers’ federation, warned the government against introducing new
complications that could deter employers from taking full advantage of
the reforms.
> More
Airbus Cuts Factory Workforce & Overhead
BusinessWeek. December 19, 2007
Airbus edged closer to selling off six European factories, a key
element in a cost-cutting plan to restore its competitive edge. Its
parent European Aerospace Defence & Space (EAD) announced the
selection of three companies from Germany, France, and Britain, as
preferred bidders for the factories, which together employ about 7,400
people, about 13% of the Airbus workforce.
> More
Praise for Goldhammer's French Politics blog
New Republic. Dec. 17, 2007
Author David Bell praises Harvard professor Arthur Goldhammer's blog
French Politics which has become "an absolutely invaluable resource for
anyone interested in France, offering the best commentary on France
available in the English language today."
> More
Sarko Date at Disneyland
New York Times. Dec. 18, 2007
Recently divorced President Sarkozy was photographed with his “friend,
supermodel Carla Bruni this weekend at the most American of venues:
Disneyland Paris. L’Express confirmed the relationship. The event was
captured by media alerted by the President’s office. So much for the
supposed sancitity of his private life, which he defended vehemently
just a few months ago.
> More
French smoking ban to proceed
International Herald Tribune. Dec. 18, 2007
Less than one year after France imposed a nationwide ban on smoking in
most public places (including hospitals, schools and offices), on Jan.
1, 1008 it will extend the ban to bars, restaurants, hotels, nightclubs
- and the most cherished of all spaces: the café. Polls show that 66
percent of the usually feisty French support the law and those who
don't have mustered little resistance.
> More
France says Europe less hurt by subprime crisis
Guardian. Dec. 18, 2007
French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said on Monday the effects of
the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States this summer would be
measured, adding Europe had been less affected.
> More
End of France’s coal industry
Financial Times. Dec. 18, 2007
Later this week, the French government will publish a decree putting
the final nail in the coffin of the country’s 300-year-old coal
industry. In its heyday, the industry employed 300,000 people and
became the engine of the country’s industrial revolution. It has been
the bedrock of the French political left and its steady decline over
the past three decades has matched the virtual disappearance of the
Communist Party as a political force in France.
> More
Sarkozy Still Above 50% Mark in France
Angus Reid Global Monitor. Dec. 18, 2007
Nicolas Sarkozy maintains a steady level of public backing in France,
according to two recent public opinion polls. In a survey by CSA
published in Le Parisien, 55 per cent of respondents have confidence in
the president’s ability to face the country’s problems, up four points
since November. In a study by Ifop published in Le Journal du Dimanche,
52 per cent of respondents are satisfied with Sarkozy’s performance as
president, down three points in a month.
> More
French justice minister's brother jailed
Dec. 18, 2007
A brother of French Justice Minister Rachida Dati was sentenced
yesterday to eight months in prison for drug trafficking. Omar Dati,
one of Dati's 11 brothers and sisters, was found guilty of acquiring
and selling cannabis in 2004 and 2005. In 2001 he was sentenced to a
four-month suspended jail sentence for heroin trafficking. Omar, 36, is
the second brother of Dati to be convicted on drugs charges.
> More
French Civil Servants' Spending Power To Be Guaranteed
NasdaqNews. Dec. 18, 2007
French budget minister Eric Woerth confirmed no civil servant will see
their spending power decrease in the future. Between 2003 and 2007 the
income of 17% of public servants had increased at a rate below
inflation. Let’s hope these guarantees apply to the hundreds of
American "local recruits" working for the French government in the USA
but who have been refused the union representation, raises, overtime
and severance pay which their French colleagues get by law.
> More
//end
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