The solution to the niqab "problem" is simply time. Those few hundred women who for one reason or another wear the thing will have daughters, and those daughters will naturally choose to dress provocatively, dye their hair green, and listen to crap music while chattering away brainlessly on their I-phones...just like their white counterparts.
Plus, I have trouble with the idea of "defending society" by essentially picking on a tiny sub-set of the women-folk from one of your minority groups. It smacks of cowardice, of finding an easy target. I mean, this is France: if we were talking a couple hundred men wearing masks the country would have already surrendered.
11 comments:
"I mean, this is France: if we were talking a couple hundred men wearing masks the country would have already surrendered."
Why take the stereotypical American-style shot at France for supposedly always surrendering? It's cheap and factually incorrect.
Oh, and it's always iPhone and never I-phone.
:-)
Why take the stereotypical American-style shot at France for supposedly always surrendering? It's cheap and factually incorrect.
Curtis, France has influenced the world in many social and political advances, and of course there is always culture. But militarily?
The Complete Military History of France
Yes I know that's oversimplified and factually challenged, but there is a lot of truth in the overall picture.
And as a comparison of losses - I used this in school whenever friends would rib me about WW2 footage of the Polish army fighting Nazi tanks on horseback.
France had 20 years to prepare for WW2 - they knew Germany was ticked at being blamed 100% for WW1 and at amount they were to pay for war reparations - and they would be back. At the start of 1939 they had the largest military on earth, more soldiers and armament than the Nazis. They surrendered in 2 weeks.
The Poles had all of 2 months to prepare for a suspected invasion. Their military capabilities were no match for Hitler's war machine. It took two months until Poland fell. Imagine if we had France's military.
I'm beginning to actually like the French. I mean Sarko (after claiming he wanted to save the planet) ditches France's plans for a carbone tax/cap 'n trade, now this. Vive la France.
Why take the stereotypical American-style shot at France for supposedly always surrendering? It's cheap and factually incorrect.
That's just BCL. He likes to tease.
The Poles had all of 2 months to prepare for a suspected invasion.
Why only two months? Weren't the Poles aware of the same conditions you're claiming the French were aware of and ignored?
I suspect the French didn't really care to fight another WW2. They were exhausted. And in the aftermath, with very little of their beautiful country laying in ruins, I don't exactly blame them.
I wouldn't have agreed with the decision at the time, but then I'd give my left nut to have the opportunity to strangle a nazi with my bare hands. ;)
Sorry...sb. "care to fight another WW1."
@Ti - You could probably fill a library wing with books written on the sole topic of WWI and the aftermath from the Treaty of Versailles. Though opinions certainly vary, the one thing that sticks out is that during the process it was French PM Clemenceau who pushed the most for crushing German war reparations and land claims, with British PM Lloyd George and US Prez Wilson constantly having to push back. Both were concerned with Germany being able to rebuild, and both wished to maintain good future trading relations. Both also feared demonizing Germany to the point where it could spawn a second European war. Clemenceau felt such a war was inevitable and wanted to cripple Germany to maintain future security. French foreign policy continued for the following twenty years based on the premise of preparing for a future war with Germany. There was no excuse for them to fold so quickly, except for the traditional French mentality of surrender.
Poland began to suspect what was up after Hitler rolled into Czechoslovakia. The two months I spoke of was the period of time between Germany’s demand that Poland give Gdansk (Danzig) along with the eastern half of the country to them; in exchange for not being bombed. Poland was relying on Germany being kept at bay by the French and Brits after 1919. Britain did what they could after Hitler’s demands, and gave the Poles some airplanes and guns before the inevitable invasion; and of course claimed war on the Nazis after they began the hostilities. And the French, as typical, folded. They bailed on us too during the Napoleonic Wars.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the French as a people. But my thoughts on them in terms of militarily allies ...pppft!!!
. . . but then I'd give my left nut to have the opportunity to strangle a nazi with my bare hands. ;) - Ti-Guy
ROFLMAO!! Presented with the opportunity, it's more likely you would be the first to enroll in a German language immersion course.
You're not going to find me disagreeing with the fact that it was the Treaty of Versailles that led to the conditions that caused Germany to spark a second World War. But the exercise in which groups of people try to shift blame to others and away from themselves for decades is beyond tedious.
I routinely get lumped into that "the French tradition of surrender" crap because French Canadians (correctly) judged that engaging in the imperial adventure of WW1 was pointless. It turned out of even worse than pointless and when the next WW2 came rolling around barely 20 years later, we got blamed again for appearing less than enthusiastic.
Decades of a pointless Cold War that resulted from it and an aftermath of that that led directly to the current Great War on Terrah should have made us all learn by now that we should stop fighting past conflicts since they only lead to new ones.
We should all be concerned about imperialism; whether it's inevitable and if so, the nature of the type of imperialism the modern world might be able to live with instead of remaining prisoners of our history.
I love the French as a people.
I don't. I said their country is beautiful. Like the US, much too good for the people, if you ask me. ;)
Presented with the opportunity, it's more likely you would be the first to enroll in a German language immersion course.
Too late, Herr Sonnenstrom. I lived in Germany and speak the language fluently. Never had cause to strangle a nazi (they were all pretty much dead or ancient by the time I lived there), although a German immigration officer who was handling my visa came awfully close one time.
cbc.ca has Ignatieff
commenting favourably on the Quebec legislation at the Thinkers' kickoff.
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