Voting for the European elections
...in France

• 22 May 2009 at 18:03
• Tombé pour la France, Politik Pop

I'm glad I can vote in the UK, where the choice is rather simple. If I had to vote in France at the european elections, I would stab myself in the eye. I would hesitate between the Socialist Party and the Left Front, for many reasons.

First of all, we are in the middle of a crisis for neoliberal capitalism. We need MEPs capable of imposing an alternative or at least, of objecting to the destruction of public services, social rights, and so on. From that point of view, the Left Front is much more credible than the Socialist Party, which supports or used to support free-market initiatives. Nevertheless, the Socialist Party seems, under Martine Aubry's influence, to slide more to the left. Unfortunately, Aubry uniting pro-free-market and anti-free-market politicians, she seems pretty shy on the subject. It was clear when she introduced the economic recovery plan the socialists would have implemented, had they been at power: the plan lacked ambition and innovation. Besides, a number of economists, including the eminent Jacques Sapir, called for the French to vote for the Left Front.

However, on the left, the Socialist Party seems to be the only one to send some of its members to the European Parliament. The european elections' ballot system is intricate and, according to me, not really representative. The Left Front is a new initiative, moreover it is competing with Besancenot's New Anticapitalist Party, and the points they will score may cost the Left some precious seats. Also, I'm pro-european and the Socialist Party seems to be mroe encline to build Europe than the radical Left. Likewise, Mélenchon's positions seem to me too radical sometimes, i.e., his total lack of empathy for the people of Tibet against China. Finally, the Socialist Party managed to agree with the other left-wing parties of europe on a common policy platform, which is a very good initiative.

Now, there's one thing, which is not serious but still a bit important, and it is the personalities of the leaders. Martine Aubry, the Socialist Party's leader and Jean-Luc Mélenchon, one of the main leaders of the Left Front, look, at first sights, like old farts, they even look a bit like yokels, but that's actually why I like them! When Martine goes to the market with french cook Jean-Pierre Coffe, prepares some little dish and concludes with "and now, let's have a drink!", you'd feel like spending all your Sunday afternoons with her! Same thing with Mélenchon, when he says "My name is Mélenchon, and is not subject to jokes" ("-chon" sounds indeed a bit like "con", which means "idiot" or "cunt") or when he tells his stories with a subtle smile, I really enjoy it. Likewise, in their positions, both Aubry and Mélenchon are devouted to diverging but pious approaches. Aubry seeks to ressuscitate the first opposition party, which is gonna be far from easy, "an impossible mission" said health minister Roselyne Bachelot. Whereas Mélenchon wants to create a movement at the left of the Left to turn it into the majority in the opposition.

Can't they just ally?!

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  ...in France