'We must react': France's Macron announces nightly curfews to control Covid-19

[brooklynite]

Source: NBC News

PARIS — France will impose a nightly curfew on almost one third of the country's 67 million people to tackle a resurgent coronavirus, but a new national lockdown is not envisaged, President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday.

Macron announced the curfews, which will take effect from Saturday and run from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. the following morning, shortly after the government declared a new public health state of emergency.

The president said the curfews, which will remain in force for four weeks, would be imposed in the greater Paris region, Marseille, Toulouse, Montpellier and five other cities.


Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/we-must-react-france-s-macron-announces-nightly-curfews-control-n1243408

[DFW]

1. Drastic, but probably necessary

Europe is very densely populated, and an outbreak somewhere becomes an outbreak anywhere really fast.

I was just down in Paris this afternoon, and most people were wearing masks, though not while seated in restaurants or cafés. It is mandatory in trains and taxis, and the requirement is very strictly observed there. The French cops and national police (checking IDs on the train down from Germany) will confine you and cart you off if you refuse to wear the mask on the train. Trumpanzees would see jail time if they tried shouting down a French cop about their right not to wear a mask. They may get away with it in a Walmart or a Costco, but try that on an international train between Belgium and France, and you are looking at some rough treatment. Mes Américains Gonflés Antipathiques! Better leave that attitude at home if you travel. It doesn't fly elsewhere.

[BigmanPigman]

2. We won't be traveling anywhere as long as tRump is POTUS.

Can we trade him for Macron? Please. How about Merkel than?

[DFW]

3. The French NEVER like who their president is, no matter who it is

They'd probably give you Macron, be glad to be rid of him, elect a complete idiot to take his place (think Hollande), and then complain bitterly about him, too.

As for Merkel, NO WAY IN THE WORLD you get her. She stays in office until the last minute of her term ends next year, and then, we may still seal her in her office so she can't stop being Chancellor. All three men trying to replace her are jerks, and the macho world of German politics, already shell-shocked by Merkel's success, would never let Ursula von der Leyen become their candidate for Chancellor. She's better by far than the three men competing for the post, but two utterly competent women in a row? Merkel's party is tired of their whining, and has practically said, "OK, stop bitching, and one of you three jerks gets to be the next Chancellor, OK?"

[BigmanPigman]

4. I didn't know that about either country.

The French are "funny", at least your description of them is. As far as Germany goes, I thought that they were practical and wouldn't care whether or not a woman was their Chancellor, as long as she did a good job.

[DFW]

5. I live in Germany and have work in France usually once a week, and speak both languages

You acquire a local perspective over the years.

There are no bigger critics of France than the French. An obsessive love/hate relationship with their own country.

The cliché about Germans being practical only goes so far. They are fanatic in maintaining their oppressive bureaucracy, which my wife screams about in rage every time she runs up against them. The people couldn't care less what gender their chancellor is. They elect bureaucrats to their party positions, and therefore, being a parliamentary democracy to the positions of power that elect the chancellor. The chancellor is elected by a majority of the parliament, which has to build a coalition to form a majority, since one party rarely gets an absolute majority of seats. A huge number of the members of parliament are people who have never done anything else in their lives, and have no earthly clue what it means to apply for a job in the marketplace--or, indeed, at all, since once elected, they get pensions for life.

The major established parties (Social Democrats, Christian Democrats, Free Democrats) are mostly old boys' clubs, and they only reluctantly let a woman advance to the top. Merkel blindsided them, and then did so well, they hid under the rug when her popularity became too big to fight. But the machos are determined not to let it happen twice in a row, never mind that none of the men are anywhere near as capable as von der Leyen. Her party (the CDU) has had good women before Merkel (Rita Süssmuth, e.g.), as have the Social Democrats (Ingrid Mattäus Meier, e.g.), but never let them advance to lead the party. The newer parties, whether establishment left (Greens/Bündnis 90), far left (Die Linken, successors to the East German communists), and far right (Alternative for Germany) have no such problems with old boys networks, as they haven't been around long enough for them to develop. Women in all of them, therefore, have had no problem rising to leadership positions. Note that Germans call their country "das Vaterland (the Fatherland," ), where countries like France call their country "la Patrie," a feminine noun, as does Italy &quot la Patria" ) and Russia ("Родина, or Rodina" ) -- the Motherland.

There are many popular myths that circulate in the USA about the countries of Europe, and usually none of them are true, just exaggerated versions based on some half-truth, and then embellished for domestic (i.e. American) political purposes. If you were to believe all the posts you see, you would think everything is free here in Western Europe, all people are equal, and no one is starving or without free education, food, shelter or health care. Nothing here is "free." Some of the basics are just paid for in a different (and often more efficient) manner than in the USA. But we have problems with pollution, crime (both organized and not) corruption, and scarce resource allocation (housing and social services) just like in the States. It's just not fashionable in the States to say so.

[My Pet Orangutan]

7. I was an Augsburg once, no traffic to be seen.

I crossed over a small side street, against a 'Don't Walk' sign. Suddenly I heard a commotion on the other side on the main road. A father had leant down to his young son, pointing at me, raising his voice, 'That's what you don't do!'

This does not happen in Frnce.

[DFW]

12. France has a very schizophrenic attitude toward rules in general

Most French will agree that "rules are made to be broken," UNLESS they are the one enforcing those rules, in which case you are BREAKING THE RULES, whatsa matter you?

[GoneOffShore]

8. A very good breakdown, and thanks for the insight into German politics!

Now that we live in France, we're going to have to start catching up on our neighbors.

I do listen to the BBC a lot because I lived in the UK for 10 years, so I get that perspective, plus we have a lot of Brit friends here.

Interesting point about German bureaucracy. Didn't realize that it was as oppressive at the French one.

[DFW]

11. I have to wonder about when Napoleon subdued most of northern Germany on his way to Russia

I ask myself if he didn't institute his very French way of doing things into Prussia along the way, and the locals didn't say, "hey, now THAT sounds like a good way for the state to harass its citizens! Take note!" After the NSDAP was bombed into submission, and the "Nazi-free (so they said), socialist" German Democratic Republic took its place in the Eastern part of Germany, state fanaticism with controlling all aspects of life did not diminish.

An old friend of ours who used to be Moscow station chief for West German radio news, and more of a Socialist than a Social Democrat, used to curse out even pre-Nazi, empire era Prussia (he is a Rheinländer right down to his toenails) as the ultimate and original "Beamtenstaat (Bureaucrats State)." My wife, when she was a social worker in the city of Gladbeck, where the DKP (Deutsche Kommunistische Partei) was in the city government, and they required permission and forms filled out in triplicate for EVERYTHING, even where bottlecaps were to be discarded when the youth center (where my wife worked at the time) held a dance or a concert. The French have it, too, but they know it's oppressive and hate it. The Germans take it all way too seriously.

Every German city even has its own "Ordnungsamt," or "bureau of order (!!!)," which on rare occasions even fill its purpose of making some things run smoothly, but more often harasses people for parking one cenetimeter too far over some white line in an empty parking lot. None of the above is exaggeration, either! Oh, yeah, the Germans learned VERY well from the French.

[My Pet Orangutan]

6. It's kids spreading the virus.

Macron said that, while the curfew lasts, people would have to forget about night-time visits to bars, restaurants, or to friends’ houses.

[GoneOffShore]

9. Someone in The Local.Fr said that now here in France we're going to drinking like the Brits

And eating at the same time as the Americans.