Just a reminder that in France religious freedom no longer exists. All must worship the One True God of the State.
Here’s a little hint for les grenouilles, if you think banning headscarves or The Passion of the Christ will fix France’s problems with endemic anti-Semitism, you’ve got another thing coming. It’s like putting a band-aid on a decapitation.
I do not support this text. It is a real stupidity to try to settle things with such a joke. If americans didn’t try to make the world believe that France was a close ally of muslims, chirac would probably never have tried to crack down on headscarves…
this solution will lead to more young muslim girl send to muslim school, which is not a good way of improving their situation.
I do not understand how can Chirac do this. He must be getting very old.
But anyway, that’s not a reason to insult all french people by calling them “froggies” (which is something I quite never understood since we do eat a lot more snails than frogs -really rare ;-).
It’s just like saying all palestinians are terrorists…Racism again Jay…
Vincent- there is indeed much racism directed at French people from all over the American spectre. Conan O’Brien’s hateful words for French Canadians (the irony being there that all French speaking people are lumped together by bigots like Conan) just a few weeks ago show just how endemic this problem is, and how it’s is not just the neo-right making such statements. However Jay is not a racist by this statement or any other he has made about France, and I have never interpreted anything he said as bigoted towards France. I think you need to take his comments in context. Jay’s comments towards France have always been in the form of balanced criticism, and he has even praised France on rare occasion. However a good site that is trying to counter the scapegoating of French and French speaking people is http://www.miquelon.org.
No, I’m an anti-French “racist”, although I couldn’t possibly disagree more with the ban on religious symbols in France. Taking away such a basic right of free expression won’t solve the problem of anti-Semitism and virtually establishes atheism as a state religion. There are plenty of people here who wear headscarves as a religious symbol and do so not because they’re forced to, but because it’s a symbol of their faith. Arguing that they should not have the right to express those views is quite frankly authoritarian.
And damn you, now you’ve made me hungry for escargots! 🙂
Conan O’Brien’s hateful words for French Canadians (the irony being there that all French speaking people are lumped together by bigots like Conan) just a few weeks ago show just how endemic this problem is
Christ. Is there something about learning French that removes your sense of humor?
Hateful words, my ass. What the fuck is wrong with you people?
Justin,
I’d like to believe that ” Jay’s comments towards France have always been in the form of balanced criticism”, but ehre is today’s title of Jay’s new article:
“Why France’s Government Sucks”…
I do admit the French government is not always doing the right choices, but that still doesn’t sounds like a balanced criticism…
On the topic now, you must read more about headscarves adn women’s liberty of choie. Many women are actually forced to wear it. We had many debates and protests here. Let me tell you that the women supposedly defending their right to choose were carefully escoted by beard guys, and had -for example- no right to talk to cameras without some guy around. Some may be willing to wear it, but not most of them. Make some research about the “ni putes, ni soumise”s” movement (no whore, nor dominated), and you’ll have a good example of the great role islamist are saving for their wifes. France cannot let a few bearded bring back slavery. Something had to be done. Maybe it wasn’t the best decision, but somethinbg had to be done. I believe it to be more efficient to fight integrism in your own country than start bombing other nations.
Freedom of religion still exists, but not within the State’s institution.
Read the article, then decide.
As for the argument about headscarves, it’s more than disingenous. Where was France in standing up for the rights of 12 million Iraqi women brutalized by Saddam Hussein?
Banning religious symbols won’t do a damn thing to help those caught in Islamist violence in France. The women aren’t the problem – the throngs of young, angry, unassimiliated Islamist men are. The policy doesn’t do a damn thing to address the real problem – which is the growing tide of Arab radicalism coming out of French mosques and places like the Sarcelles.
It’s a massive delusion to think that banning religious expression will do anything other than take away religious liberty. At best the second those people forced into the veil get home, they’ll be right back where they started, or more likely we’ll see them forced to stay home from school. Either way, the real reason this law was passed was so that the Assembly could convince themselves they’d done something while they continue to ignore the root of the problem.
Finally, it’s based on a fundamentally racist premise – that everyone who wears a hijab is forced to do so. There are plenty of Muslims who wear the hijab because it is part of their culture and their identity as a Muslim. Furthermore, banning the right of Jews to wear kippas is not only a violation of individual rights, its the state forcing someone to violate their religious beliefs when those beliefs aren’t even remotely a problem. That alone is digusting.
What next, force Muslims and Jews to eat pork and shellfish? How about preventing anyone from expressing any sign of religion in public?
Banning headscarves to promote personal liberty is about as ridiculous as a mass orgy to promote stopping STDs…