France Remembers U.S. on Independence Day

AP via Yahoo ^ | 7/4/03 | Elaine Ganley

[BunnySlippers]

A man uses his cellular phone inside the Paris tourism office decorated with American flags, Friday July 4, 2003. The French in large ways and small, have offered gestures of healing on America' s Indepedence Day. (AP Photo/Jacques Brinon)

[Drango]

For what it's worth, I think of France everytime I'm in the grocery store and considering buying wine, yougart, cheese and other potential Frech items...

[etcetera]

"It's like a family. There are conflicts, but in the end one remains a family. You stay together,"

I don't know about that. My grandfather disowned one of my aunts decades ago. He's been dead for 20 years, she died 10 years ago, and there's still hard feelings in the family.

[Arpege92]

I'm not quite sure how I should feel about this!

[Arkinsaw]

The only way the French can start to heal these wounds, IMO, is to throw out their caricature of a government and start over with one that is not hypocritically intervening in Africa and does not try to "contain" the United States.

Anything other than that is just putting flowers on a cow pie.

[BunnySlippers]

Me too. It will be a long time before I buy anything French, if ever.

A woman places a rose on the grave marker of a U.S. soldier at the American cemetery at Colleville near Omaha beach in Normandy, July 3, 2003. More than 9,000 roses were placed in this cemetery and a total of more than 63,000 throughout France in a gesture of France-US friendship and to mark Independence Day. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer

[BunnySlippers]

I'm still PO'd. Time will tell.

French Navy petty officer 1st class Jean-Marie Riboche holds a red rose to lay in front of one of the graves of American soldiers fallen during the two World Wars, at the American military cemetery in Suresnes, outside Paris, Friday, July 4, 2003. All American cemeteries in France were adorned with red roses as part of Independence Day celebrations. (AP Photo/Jacques Brinon)

[jwh_Denver]

Flags my ass. Look at post 3 in this thread:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/940242/posts

[MWS]

I think that has been discredited (there are reasonable explanations for each of the pictures).

[BunnySlippers]

I can't see them. Have they been removed?

[crazykatz]

Three years ago on this very day I was at that very cemetery, in the rain listening to a recording of "Taps".

[proud American in Canada]

I don't know how to feel about it either... like someone said, time will tell.

But it looks like this was done spontaneously, by the people, which tells me it was from the heart.

Perhaps the French feel like a lot of Canadians do: ticked off at their bumbling, anti-American leader.

[crazykatz]

I know that shop well. For "touristy stuff" it is NOT all that expensive... honest!

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

France can go suck it. They think a few gestures of token support mean anything after France's betrayal of the entire civilized world? Guess again.

[proud American in Canada]

let me re-phrase that: perhaps the non-Muslim population of France feels that way.

I'm sure the Muslims in France supported Chirac overwhelmingly.

[Jacvin]

TOO LATE!!

I will never buy anything french again!

Boycott France!!!!!!!!

[The KG9 Kid]

"... In simple ceremonies at military cemeteries, men, women and children placed a simple red rose at each of the 60,511 graves of U.S. soldiers who died fighting on French soil in the two world wars. The tribute began Thursday at the huge D-Day cemetery in Normandy and continued Friday at smaller burial sites in France."

We're always insisting on deeds rather than words at FR.

I do believe the French have done a deed.

[BunnySlippers]

American WWII veteran Captain Wilbur Latshaw, from the 741st tank, places a flower on a grave of an American at the D-Day war cemetery of Colleville sur Mer, Normandy, Friday July 4, 2003. For Independence Day, red roses were put on each of the 60,511 graves of American soldiers who died fighting on French soil. (AP Photo/Franck Prevel)

[mewzilla]

Let them eat cake.