Le Pen and French far Right achieve record popularity

The Sunday Telegraph ^ | 21 May 2006 | Kim Willsher

[NZerFromHK]

I think she sounds too much a conventional candidate that will probably support what everyone in the "acceptable" pundit class in France and the rest of Europe promotes. In contrast, Sarkozy sounds like he will try something that hadn't been tried in France for a long time, he will bring some sense into the French political scene and make a lot of "fringe ideas" like markets, competitions, into the mainstream.

Of course, Royal can still surprise us. She may turn out to be another Roger Douglas (which in some sense, "speak like a moderate-left but govern like a conservative" didn't start with New Labour in Britain, but rather, NZ in the Fourth Labour government in 1984) as she could convince her constitutencies that there-is-no-alternative. I will be prepared to read the shocks on the likes of Le Monde or Liberation in that case.

[Joe Boucher]

As the mooselims gain clout and the civilized society of france comes apart I predicted that the french would turn increasingly to the party of LePenn.
Should be fun watching the enlightened ones battling in the streets.
Hey frenchy, take a bath and get your woman to shave her armpits and put on some deoderant.

[FrogBurger]

I believe, except for immigration, and questions about World War 2 (that I can't get into, lest I be banned), Le Pen is actually on the left of the political spectrum.

For the average American, yes: Le Pen's positions would not shock any Hillary admirer. For the Europeans, he's as far right as you can get. Le Pen is for a strong but limited state, and he also quite realistically doesn't believe that even if he was elected tomorrow, he could undo 40 years of Muslim immigrations. Except if you were to create some kind of apartheid (and we know how popular it would be), you have no basis to treat French Muslims differently than non-Muslims. The question then becomes: how can you work with a French Muslim minority without keeping sliding down into dhimmitude? Personnaly, I think it would require a long series of miracles. I'm pessimistic for France and for Europe.

As for the allegations of antisemitism, that doesn't hold water, since quite many French Jews vote Le Pen. And for good reasons, since other politicians are just waiting for the imams to take over.

[Philistone]

I was actually living in Nice when it elected a National Front mayor. Despite the ravings of the rest of France, we weren't immediately indoctrinated and make to wear distinctive clothing.

And for a brief six months, the streets were clean and agressive pan-handling banned.

Then Paris regained control (mainly by disarming the local police force).