Opinion
The French battleground
Manfred Gerstenfeld
Published: 22.03.11, 00:43
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17 Talkbacks for this article
1. french elections--poor choices
moron ,   galut   (03.22.11)
dsk as a socialist will make sure jews are blamed for socialist failure-ms le pen is not a conservative as much as simply old french which never liked anybody except germans they admire- jews least of all--no future for 'multi-cultural' france
2. Don´t trust Strauss Kahn
Salomon Mizrahi ,   Brazil   (03.22.11)
He is the french version of austrian Bruno Kreisky....
3. I would go for the extreme rightist and
Israeli 2   (03.22.11)
make certain that the Jewish leftist will be defeated permanently.
4. French Nationalism is natural reaction to Islamic expansion
(03.22.11)
Other Europens will follow suit. Denmark has reduced the influx if Muslims, Sweden kicked out the Socialists, Germany exposed the failure of "integration", Belgium and Swiss referendums ban mosque building and other Islamist expansion attempts, Austria is eyeing a far right government... EU is waking up, and Jews are NOT the reason - the arrogant and genocidal Muslims are!
5. the leftists are not welcome in israel too
ronen   (03.22.11)
if you want to invite arabs than buy a home and invite them into it. dont do so with homes that are nto yours
6. wow!
Golan ,   Modiin   (03.22.11)
And we complain that there is no one to vote for.
7. naive analysis of the French presidential elections
deborah ,   Paris, France   (03.22.11)
DSK is stuck with pro-islamist leftists. Even as a Jew, I would be worried to have him as a president if he can't get rid off Aubry (who is implementing the Shariah in her city, Lille) and others leftists, among which the greens ("Europe Ecologie") who kindly shake the Hamas leaders' hands. Marine Le Pen is a strong nationalist, not (yet) as fascist as her father, and quite smarter as she is indeed targeting the jewish community.. Now, beyond her complete lack of solutions and the fear of having the extreme right running the country, people appreciate her because she does say out loud what the French think : a deep exasperation towards those muslim who wish the Shariah to prevail over the republican and secular laws, and do not even hide their hate against the "French" (ie the white christian people), close to the assault situation... It's an increasing trend that neither the rightist nor the leftist can stop, unless they openly deal with their failure in integrating those who represent about 20% of the population (and not only 10% as claimed in this article). Not to happen anytime soon.
8. 600.000 not 350.000
Michael Amsellem ,   Paris, France   (03.22.11)
There is about 600.000 Jews in France...
9. deborah is correct -- this is a naive analysis
bill ,   dallas texas   (03.22.11)
deborah is correct - this is a naive analysis -- the real problem facing europe is islamism -- here the right "gets it" more than the naive left - and Jews in europe unfortunately cling to the dated belief that the left will protect them.. they only dream...there must be realistic protection against Muslim immigration and power grab..this is the main threat to European Jewry
10. #7 Deborah, "failure to integrate" the Muslims
Carl   (03.22.11)
Explain how. They don't want to integrate. They want to dominate. As Aubry has clearly indicated, the only way to get along is to play along with them by implementing shariah law. Sorry, you still don't understand the situation.
11. Marine Le Pen friendlier to Israel
Marv ,   Montreal, Canada   (03.22.11)
DSK is no friend of Israel. He is just a politician. The young Le Pen is a statesman. How ironic that a right-winger French president would be a better news for France's Jewry than a Jew.
12. What a hateful, racist article
A.R. ,   USA   (03.22.11)
" In Europe there have been since time immemorial large numbers of citizens who were suspicious of, despised or hated “the other.” " Every people on Earth has a healthy, natural suspicion of outsiders - including Jews, and Muslims, and Chinese, and even those evil Europeans who you hate so much. It's called biology.
13. Looking at the French national soccer team, one can fathom
Tahl   (03.22.11)
the enormous magnitude of the immigrant takeover of France. 8 or 9 out of 11 starting players are African immigrants, plus another guy who converted to Islam. Not exactly Le Pen's constituency... Makes you wonder if he ever routes for his own national team?
14.  The French battleground
Bob ,   Orlando, Florida, US   (03.22.11)
Eskimo, Jew......whatever, socialist are only a bunch of daydreamers fools
15. As long as the mainstream parties remain complacent ...
Raymond in DC ,   Washington, USA   (03.22.11)
European frustration with the "immigration question" is more nuanced than suggested here. The UK has, for example, had better success integrating "Asians" of the Hindu, Buddhist or secular inclination than it has Muslims. France has had better success with Jews immigrating from North Africa than with Muslims. But for too long - and even today - mainstream parties are either complacent ("No problem here; move along.") or act in ways that exacerbate the problem. Witness, for example, Sarkozy's obsession with a "Mediterranean Union". But people generally aren't blind. Though the initial warnings came from conservatives (Phillips, Steyn, Falacci) and a few liberals mugged by reality (Bawer), a few mainstream types like Caldwell are now raising their voices - this despite the legal assaults on those speaking uncomfortable truths. But if the politicos remain complacent, more radical voices will take center stage.
16. Marine Le Pen and her perfect mate... Mel Gibson
Abe ,   Santa Maria, CA   (03.23.11)
Marine Le Pen is single and a dedicated fascist Jew hater. So, here's a perfect match for her: Mel Gibson. They're both single. They're both right wing Catholics. They're both Holocaust deniers. They're both Jew haters. They're both anti-Israel. When is the wedding? Herr Ratzinger, the current Catholic pontiff, can officiate at the nuptials.
17. DSK is rightist not leftist
Leo ,   Modi'in   (03.23.11)
And here are facts to prove it: 1) DSK is affiliated with the "socialist" party. This party when in power increased in France more deregulation, capitalization and privatization in virtually all sectors including banking and health, than the right.... So calling him "socialist" is meaningless. 2) The International Monetary Fund is controlled by multinational empires (most of them of US origin). In particular, the Obama administration decides there whatever suits their interests. Do you really believe DSK could be Managing Director if he was leftist ? Please.
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