September 11, 2003

Casting

My record as a political beast has been sketchy at best over time.

For the first years after I moved to France, I tried to keep up with the news from back home, hungry for familiar political intrigue (if such a word can be applied to Canadian politics). Little by little, I began to brush up on French politics but it felt so much like tuning in to an unruly soap opera that’s been running for decades.

Okay, hang on… who’s she sleeping with again? That guy with the comb-over, is he the one who took bribes from the oil companies or the one who’s channelling diamonds from Africa? Oh, right, yeah, that’s the one who broke into city hall at night and stole the ballot boxes. And who’s and what’s and when…

Phew.

As I slowly lost track of what was taking place back in the faraway land of moose and maple syrup.

Even though I had dual citizenship, it took me a long time to feel that I was part of the political process, or even that I had a right to vote. Gobsmacked and tickled by my new fellows’ seeming indifference to flagrant corruption. (Try as I might to perfect it, the so French shrug cum lip purse eludes me.)

So I didn’t cast a ballot – or, um, even register – for years.

But as time went on, and my taxes etc. began to boggle the mind, I began to believe that my voice was valid, and now gleefully diss and despise some of our leaders as well as the native born.

Reviens, Lionel.

Posted by Gail at September 11, 2003 03:15 PM
Comments


Politics baffles me. The world over.

Posted by: Nomadic* at September 12, 2003 05:18 AM

Sounds to me like you're taking on politics in the same resolute and sacred way we all do wherever we happen to live - "diss and distain". Now what channel is that soap on?

Posted by: Roberta at September 15, 2003 04:42 AM

Indifference to corruption? That's something I've never come across in my five years in France, so your statement surprises me, to be honest. Rather, I've been baffled by how well the French know what's going on in their politics: not only can they tell you who did what, they can explain in minute detail why that's good, bad or both, the implications it may have, those it has already had, compare it to other events, etc., and take action. There's a true sense of investment in democracy here. Certainly there are those who complain and do nothing more, but they're outnumbered by those who vote. That said, I don't know a single French person who's truly happy that Super Menteur is president!

Posted by: fraise at September 18, 2003 07:12 AM

I’ll agree that a lot of French have a fairly high political awareness, and I love the noisiness of democracy here, but… I have witnessed a great deal of overt corruption, to which the response was often, ‘oh, you know politicians.’ And the system of regional government and of mayor appointments is outrageous. Accountability is shabby at best.

The previous Mayor of Paris’s rigging of elections and consistently dirty deeds, abuse of public funds, nepotism, etc. went largely unpunished as he was only picking up where Chirac left off.

People may be outraged by Chirac, and be able to list a whole series of his crimes, but many are complacent about his protection from indictment while in office. Plus, they did vote for him in the second last election (the latest, of course, was just panic voting).

I must say, though, that he is the consummate politician. Man, he’s good.

Posted by: Gail Armstrong at September 18, 2003 09:32 AM