(PINR)Intelligence Brief: French Energy Policy

[nosmokes]

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Power and Interest News Report (PINR)
http://www.pinr.com
[e-mail]
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25 August 2005
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Intelligence Brief: French Energy Policy
Drafted By: Federico Bordonaro
http://www.pinr.com
French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin held an important speech on August 16, 2005. Apart from addressing his projects to tackle unemployment, he explained to citizens why the present oil crisis is destined to last and, more importantly, he briefly illustrated the new French energy policy. The importance of this speech is two-fold.
First, de Villepin is launching a strategy aimed at energy independence (involving the state's intervention in the national economy), which appears to be in line with his Gaullist legacy. Second, he never mentioned in his speech launching a common European energy policy.
These facts signal that the effects of France's rejection of the E.U. Constitutional Treaty are having a deep impact on the country's politics, and that sovereignist discourse is being incorporated by the neo-Gaullist majority. Therefore, we now see a shift in Paris' industrial policy -- although along well-known Gaullist lines -- which makes the formation of an authentic European political union even more difficult.

De Villepin's Speech and France's Energy Policy
Speaking at Matignon, de Villepin announced that his government is preparing a series of new measures for this fall aimed at spurring economic growth. He recalled with confidence some recent positive economic data as evidence that the economy is back on a more favorable growth trend. The French prime minister did not provide details of the program, but said it would include targeted spending of revenues generated from the government's privatization projects.
In order to fight unemployment, which is around ten percent and considered unacceptable by most of the public, de Villepin introduced in June 2005 a tough measure: employers will be allowed to fire new staff without justification at any time during an initial two-year period of their hiring. This decision sharply contrasts with traditional French labor guarantees, and it means that the neo-liberal agenda pushed by Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy is growing in influence and popular reception.
Summarizing the head of government's speech, the daily newspaper Le Monde said the challenge for de Villepin is creating a vast, industrial and commercial re-specialization of French products, while cutting taxes for small and medium enterprises.
However, the core of de Villepin's speech was, undoubtedly, on energy security.
~snip~
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complete report at link
Report Drafted By:
Federico Bordonaro
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[wli]

1. France is screwed up anyway

My French friends from the internet tell me they're getting taken over by fascists, too.

[neweurope]

2. The whole world is. Speaking from Germany here.

But the root of the evil is to be found in the land of the free and the home of the brave.


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Remember Fallujah

Bush to The Hague!

[wli]

3. What's going wrong in Germany?

I only got news for France, the Netherlands, and the UK. Most of the Netherlands news was cutbacks on social programs (economic policies swinging to the right) and not taking Gladio seriously nor having any idea that it was for the purpose of committing terrorist acts to influence politics away from Communism.

[neweurope]

5. Same for Germany. Cut back on social programs, growing

influence of the industrial military machine, cutbacks on environmental programs, growing disinformation and press concentration, loss of citizen's rights under the "terra-threat", growing surveillance, growing anti-Islam sentiments.

It's not nearly as bad as in the USA but things are changing for the worse.

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Remember Fallujah

Bush to The Hague!

[tocqueville]

6. yes there are cutbacks on things that today only the RICHEST

Americans can afford, but are more or less standrad in those countries.

and they still will have 5 weeks paid vacations like Bush

The problems France, Germany etc... have now are the problems Sweden had 1995. When they nearly went bankrupcy, borrowing they entire living abroad.

So the Swedes learned that social security cannot BUY everything, and that if you refuse a job, then you allowances can be cut...

Now they are afloat again, the other countries will have to do the same...

So instead of having to choose between 3 FREE daycare for their children, they might pay a little fee, or choose between two...

[tocqueville]

4. France is far less screwed than some other countries

There is a category of leftists in France (and other European countries) that see any attempt to change outdated policies (for example work legislation, market policies etc...) as "fascism". If Villepin raised their wages with 10% tomorrow, they'll call it "an attempt from the fascists capitalists to bribe the working class".

These guys recently participated TOGETHER with the French Fundies and the extreme right in the demonization campaign against the EU constitution, leading to failure in the referendum last may. Which was EXACTLY what the neocons had wished in the Wall St Journal etc...

A non balanced budget, a Constitution to rewrite, a lot of time lost, that's more time for the neocons, less time for the EU to become a real stabilizing power.

Sometimes I wonder if those guys are working for the CIA.

If the prime minister Villepin became a US citizen and candidated with his "French" ideas to change the US, he'll be characterized as a "leftwing liberal" and would be probably very popular amoung DUers

your French friends want to make me :puke:

[wli]

7. the French commentary didn't concern economics

But rather civil liberties. The Netherlands commentary was economic.

[tocqueville]

8. civil liberties in France are not threatened

because religious muslim proselytism has been stopped in schools, some hate preachers deported and some extra video cams set up here in there...

same debate here

[wli]

9. I wasn't given much specific to go on.

I have no idea how to defend the claim if/when challenged.

[tocqueville]

10. I understand

but I get a little upset when I hear those guys talking about fascism
when the measures taken by this center-right French Government (which would be left-wing liberal by US standards) regarding economy or security would have been taken by ANY responsible government, even a socialist one. The measures taken by socialist Germany are much more radical than the French.

I don't defend this government in everything, and a lot of timeq the measures have been taken in a very akward way, too late or without consulting the social partners...

but compared to the actual US government it's day and night.