The Politics Thread (PLAY NICELY!)

A simply hypothesis, but even hundreds of years ago astronomy managed to disprove the idea of "it is all just dots in the sky". You need the most simply hypothesis that fits all the facts you know.

That's a more differentiated position that "it is all a conspiracy" and probably a little more realistic.
Still would the typical real journalist constantly think about the long chain of "who owes who" when writing articles? I expect journalists to care about reporting the facts and stories that sell.
Well at least journalists of respected serious news papers.
And even the journalists of boulevard trash papers are only after selling their papers, no matter what lies that may have to write for it. So if they were to decide that a "Macron is evil" story would sell, they'd do it.

In general for all media: Selling lots of copies is a lot more important than pleasing Macron. Macron isn't some sort of dictator who can just have the police take down a paper he doesn't like.

You'd have to provide an insight into the workings of the french press, statements by journalists why they wrote what they wrote and such to convince me that something more sinister is happening.

well in effect people care about the main man. and that's themselves.

If they think they can get a better situation if they forward macron himself and also his agenda then they will.

some of them will be in the situation of disagreeing with publishing pro macron propaganda but have direct pressure from their boss to do so and that's not really something you can combat not when all the other media channels you could work for would have you doing the same anyways and in france you cannot afford to loose a job. we've got 9.6% unemployment rate these days people would throw their best friend in a ditch over a job. and you wanna have a perfect fukin record. If ever you got fired noone's gonna hire you again.

That's something you're assuming however. I am not aware of any supportive facts for this.

@cola_colin
well testimony could only come down the line in any event. But there's still the situation these 10 millionaires are in. If we can't prove they act on it/ tie the results in the press to it with could hard evidence we can't assert nothing dangerous is in practice either.

I mean the situation itself is prooved and I yet have to hear from you that it's any kind of a threat to the free press.

I'll obviously keep my eyes peeled for testimonies as they roll in. it's not as though I wouldn't have.

A lot of sponsored folk are "well above" common applications. It's not like they're applying to every burger-flipping place within 10 miles. They write media. If ever there was a job you could be commissioned to do over the internet, it was that, making local unemployment rates irrelevant.

Dat 9.6% unemployment rate d'oh, who's fault is that? Somebody oughta fix it, somehow, someway, obviously without endorsing sweatshops.

9.6 unemployment? Amateurs...

Low diversity and low competition in the media landscape sure is not good for the free press.

Ever increasing focus on 24 hour news, the competition from social media, and ever reducing money from ads and subscriptions are far far greater threats to the press than that. Hell we've already seen the effects.

I wasn't meaning to imply no other problems exist. The press sure has it hard these days, no question about that.

@cola_colin @Devak @whoever's interested I took my civic duty up a notch today and replied "yes" when asked if I'd kindly volunteer to ballot-count. It's a thankless job (well no they do say "thank you" I just say that because) it gets no pay or collation but it's interesting to see how it's all done.

(paper system which explains why this is even necessary)

I didn't know this before but counting ballots and in fact a large part of the electoral process relies heavily on volunteering. What they do is ask people as they drop their ballot (random minus the people from last time selection) and these people come back to the same place they voted and there's a process where we have to create ten stacks of ten envelopes (last set is less then 100) and we check the resulting number against the count that the school/state employees have made of that ballot box's voter's signature (after casting the ballot we go sign next to our name in a book). these 100 are put in a bigger envelope and signed by all of us.

once that count fits we proceed per envelope of 100 envelopes with two of the volunteers at the table marking ticks under the name's column (they each are given their own pre-printed A2 sheet and a different color pen).

four volunteers open envelopes and hand the paper inside if the vote was valid (if it's not it is handed to the president for later and no tick is made) to a caller, that's me (four aswell) who take turns saying the name out loud and putting the paper on corresponding piles at the center.

We then have to count each pile and check them against both "ticker's" counts for that envelope's total for that candidate.

then we count the total plus invalid votes, which should be 100. then we all sign the invalid votes (left in the voting envelope) and once that is done we can proceed to the next 100 while that envelope's results are dialed in allowing a live following.

our booth had 585 ballots there were three other booths with their own set of personnel in this voting place, a kindergarten (almost all are either kindergartens or elementary schools).

there just though i'd share.

this is the first legislative's round and the second and final is next sunday.

and the results are in.
http://www.lemonde.fr/elections-leg...tion-et-dans-votre-ville_5142439_5076653.html

which is why Macron getting voted in is incredibly ironic.

It'll be interesting to see how Macron will actually affect France, it seems there is nothing that could stop him anymore from pushing his agenda.

EDIT:
Is my memory just wrong, or was the voter turnout in the presidential election really good?
And now it is really bad for the parliament? Why?

it's always been that way. French have an incredibly bad habit of not caring if it's not the presidential's and the first round of the legislatives in particular.

Last Week Tonight 6/11/17:



and if it gets taken down welp it officially lasted half a day. the official (shorter) post from their own youtube channel :

Macron : "I took note of the great listening faculty of Mr Trump and his will to progress with us on the climate issue"

you imbecil you tried to prove what a big boy you where by shaking his hand too hard forgetting that Trump is as powerful as he is stupid and to get back at you even though it affects you in no way whatsoever he pulled america out of the paris agreement.

You fuckked us over by proxy.

another piece :



an artist's take on macron and the french people. you get the idea but here's a translation anyways :

"LEGISLATIVES : THE ELECTORATE GET READY TO GIVE A LARGE MAJORITY TO MACRON"

"You like that, having less rights, don't you?!"

"Oh yes master! break my worker's code"

https://www.facebook.com/discordinsoumis/videos/290227334720358/

Trump has been anti-environmental legislation for a long time now. Don't pat yourself on the back with Macron there, it was bound to happen that he discovered the Paris agreement and started hating on it.

true enough but I'm not the one that made that observation and the timing there is just ... not a coincidence.

Stepping out of the Paris deal is petty and largely for show (many local governments and major companies pledged to uphold it), so it sounds exactly like something Trump would do. The timing is interesting, but then again his timings have always been interesting.