Perpignan, France—“He who doesn’t listen to the streets is deaf to democracy,” warns a huge banner draped across the city council building in this village in southern France. It’s a message French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin heard loud and clear over several [RETURN TO ARTICLE]
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Reader Comments
LA R
I don’t agree with the conclusion of this story, which seems to reflect the rightwing line that no one has a right to participate in politics unless they have what this writer refers to as ‘credible policy alternatives.’
In fact, it doesn’t matter whether the French Socialist party has an alternative. Since it’s the right wing who want to make the changes, obstructing these changes is a laudable form of politics in its own right. Who says you should only resist change if you have an alternative? The alternative is the status quo, which should be defended at all costs. When the status quo is safe from rightwing attacks, then the Socialist party might want to think of ways to improve the system from a socialist perspective.
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