France. Another crack.

I think there is some confusion concerning my attitude towards the revolting French students. If you are a regular reader, you will probably know that I support violent protest by default (particularly if it 'turns nasty').
All I wanted to do was point out that some manifestations of resistance are less significant than others. We all remember the mother featured in Fahrenheit 911 grieving her dead soldier son. We can also recognize that this sort of thing has the potential to change attitudes in a country like the United States. But in the end, we snort with derision at people who all-of-a-sudden turn pacifist coincidentally at the same time as they lose a loved-one at war. Magically Tony Blair and George Bush become liars when Private Johnny gets blown to pieces in a ditch somewhere in terrorist-land.

And so with the students. Not a peep from them in November (even Socialist Worker struggled to find evidence of this). Then: oops, laws concerning their immediate financial future get changed and suddenly it's 'solidarité!'

I still support them. I still dislike 'reform' or 'modernization' (ie. becoming more American). Nonetheless - and perhaps it is the tiny anarchist hiding inside me - I was far more encouraged when the banlieus erupted, spontaneously, last year.