Redstate

Posted at 11:23pm on Jan. 18, 2008 Freedom Crab

By bluegrassredstate

I realized moments ago while reading the text of this episode of Common Sense with Paul Jacob that we really should stop calling crab rangoon as such, because as Mr. Jacob points out:

So, how does Burma shave away knowledge? By increasing taxes on satellite dishes!

Most Burmese get their news from satellite TV. Since the Burmese government does not allow a free press within the country, access to the free press outside the country vexes the current junta. So the rulers decided to rocket the cost of satellite dishes upwards, beyond reach of most citizens.

Posted in burma | freedom | Miscellanea | Nicolas Sarkozy — Comments (1) / Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 3:09am on Jan. 15, 2008 Comme D'Habitude

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

I recognize the fact that Nicolas Sarkozy is going to veer from time to time ideologically, if only to ensure his own continuing political viability, but that doesn't make the decision discussed here any less disappointing. Of course, the decision should not surprise; Sarkozy made it clear early on that he wouldn't exactly be the Margaret Thatcher of France but clearing up Europe's case of continental sclerosis becomes that much harder when one of the more dominant and politically powerful European leaders--only Angela Merkel rivals Sarkozy for prominence on the European stage--decides that he won't make the necessary hard choices to help Europe advance.

Posted in Foreign Affairs | High Taxes | Nicolas Sarkozy | Statism — Comments (0)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 11:17pm on Nov. 30, 2007 Bringing An End To The 35 Hour Work Week In France

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

Nicolas Sarkozy's efforts to dramatically change the nature of the French approach to work continues apace:

President Nicolas Sarkozy is trying to revamp France's 35-hour working week without picking a fight with trade unions by making it easier and more attractive for employees to work longer.

Introduced in 1998 when the opposition Socialists were in power, the 35-hour work week has been blamed by the ruling centre-right UMP and business for inflation, competitiveness problems, sluggish growth, and a host of other ills.

Past UMP governments have already done their bit to undermine the law by allowing some exemptions, and Sarkozy introduced tax breaks for firms and employees for overtime work -- even before Thursday's announcements.

Read on.

Posted in 35 Hour Workweek | Foreign Affairs | France | Nicolas Sarkozy — Comments (0)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 7:40pm on Nov. 23, 2007 Le Vainqueur

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

Nicolas Sarkozy wins:

President Sarkozy of France is on the verge of a breakthrough in his ambitious plan to wean his country off the restrictive working practices he believes stand in the way of national prosperity.

Yesterday, the strike of rail and subway workers that has crippled France for nine days was clearly crumbling, as workers began returning to work in large numbers and union branches conceded that support for the dispute is collapsing.

"We think a dynamic of return to work has begun," Julie Vion, a spokeswoman for France's state-owned railroad network, SNCF, said.

Union leaders began to concede defeat yesterday. "We have to face reality. Since yesterday's negotiations, things have changed. The strike is no longer the solution. The strike strategy is no longer winning," a leader of the Sud union representing Paris underground railway workers, Philippe Touzet, said in an interview with Bloomberg News.

The collapse of support for the strike by individual rail workers marks the first success in what Mr. Sarkozy considers the key goal of his presidency, the abandonment of expensive entitlements and special conditions for public sector workers, including generous early retirement and pension benefits for half a million rail workers, which he believes make France uncompetitive.

Hopefully, this positive trend will continue, but it should not be forgotten that despite his reformist tendencies, Nicolas Sarkozy remains something of a statist who supports an industrial policy and is less than enthusiastic about globalization. To be sure, if his political successes continue, Sarkozy will be able to move France from the excessively statist position it has found itself stuck in for generations, but Milton Friedman or Margaret Thatcher he ain't.

The good news may be that Sarkozy will help set the stage for a future President who actually will pursue Thatcherite reforms. At which point, France will take the giant step towards economic and social dynamism all those who love it want it to take.

Posted in Foreign Affairs | France | Nicolas Sarkozy | Strikes — Comments (0)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 3:38am on Nov. 18, 2007 The Almost Perfect President Of France

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

I will never cease arguing that Nicolas Sarkozy is an enormous improvement over Jacques Chirac and that his apparent admiration for the United States is most welcome.

Additionally, I will never cease arguing that when it comes to Nicolas Sarkozy, there is a lot of room for improvement:

President Nicolas Sarkozy of France yesterday said Europeans were suffering an "extremely deep identity crisis" linked to globalisation and excessive commercialisation and this meant Europe had to be more than a market and a set of rules.

In a speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, he said Europe had to be seen "as a protector, a life-enhancer, as a magnifier of strength, and as a shining cultural and political example".

Mr Sarkozy also repeated his support for the principle - still undefined - of "community preference" for EU businesses, saying the word "protection" should not be taboo in Europe.

He insisted he was talking about reciprocity in trade deals and independence in energy and food rather than protectionism per se. But Europe could not be the only part of the world to make competition a "religion", he said.

All of this protectionist winking and nodding sounds pretty bad. But wait! It gets worse!

Mr Sarkozy's speech won a lukewarm response from members of the European parliament. Some of the loudest applause came, ironically, from socialist deputies particularly for his attack on the "capitalism of speculators".

Graham Watson, leader of the liberal group MEPs, described Mr Sarkozy's speech as "Blair minus". Although equally impassioned as the former British prime minister's celebrated address to the parliament in 2005, it "was not very coherent on economic issues".

Alexander Stubb, a centre-right MEP from Finland, said: "As an economic liberal, I would hoped for a more vigorous defence of the free movement of goods, services, capital and labour."

As would we all. But more and more people are noticing that when it comes to the issue of free trade and free markets, Nicolas Sarkozy--improvement that he is--remains a huge disappointment.

Posted in Capitalism | Foreign Affairs | Free Markets | Free Trade | Nicolas Sarkozy — Comments (7)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 3:23am on Nov. 8, 2007 Sure, He's Imperfect . . .

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

See here. And there should be no doubt that there remain a myriad of differences between France and America in terms of national and strategic interests. However, one cannot help but think, after reading this, that there has been a significant and genuine improvement in France's willingness and ability to appreciate the contributions and actions of its American cousins. Merely because there are differences in national interests between France and America does not mean that there should exist an ethos that calls for each country to look down upon the other.

Those of us who love France and who want to see close relations between France and the United States can rightfully celebrate the words of Nicolas Sarkozy in his visit to the United States. Deeds, to be sure, matter more than words and there will be deeds that provoke disagreement. But disagreement need not provoke condescension in turn. Once the latter unfortunate sentiment is banished, there will be a better chance that honest disagreements will give way to honorable compromises.

Posted in Foreign Affairs | Franco-American Relations | Nicolas Sarkozy — Comments (3)/ Email this page » / Read More »