France is certainly capable; but for Europe to protect itself, first of all, it needs to crack down hard on the rise of fascism, before anything else. The EU is currently one of the few large bastions of liberty left; and we are under threat from foreign Russian aggressors (as well American and to a much smaller extent, Chinese). We need to combat that corruption.
That means:
-
Taxing multimillionnaires and billionnaires actually properly and fining them harsher if they and their assets leave the EU.
-
Same with techbros and their algorithms. Make sure billionnaires can’t seize algorithms to sow division (by focusing hatred on LGBT people) and hatred of taxing billionnaires. Don’t give fascists a podium; make sure hateful ragebait gets lower in the algorithms. Make it impossible to find fascist videos, manifestos, and the like. Encourage and foster AI only if it’s energy-efficient, tolerant, and privacy-respecting; and tax or outright prohibit the rest.
-
Raise wages properly. Put a stop to the raise of monthly rents/mortgages, and finance the social housing builders. Reduce the airBNBism and thus bring power back to hotels. Link wages to inflation rates.
-
Fiscally support farmers in their transition to more sustainable practices. Tacitly support pro-queer groups attending farmers and other like protests.
-
Restrict immigration, but don’t deport those who already live there or are having their appliances processed, and didn’t have a criminal record before the new restrictions come in. Quietly make procedures swifter and more welcoming for queer refugees.
-
Build an European army, as an extra unit on top of the national militaries. The European army should be cautious in whom it recruits: no fascists and reactionaries!
-
Fiercely oppose surveillance capitalism: all intolerance-fostering means of chat control should be resisted. The only legitimate means of control are the ones to crack down on the corrupt fascists and their terrorist sympathisants. What we should target, are the fascist politicians, leaders, and their ilk. Not the commoners. Those should be offered better living standards, provided that they forswear their hatred and fascism.
Neoliberalism and fascism is a danger to the EU, and correspondingly, to all European nations. (That includes the UK). I’m counting “right-wing populism” as part of fascism, since it’s doing exactly the same. A better name is “right-wing corruptism”, since it’s mainly populated by grifters.
Amen.
There’s no point in arming ourselves to the teeth when the Orbans and Ficos of Europe are frothing at the mouth to stage their “coup” and then gain full control of the newly created defensive institutions.
They also need to clamp down on surveillance capitalism and all attacks on privacy, encryption, etc. You can’t be a bastion of freedom while being pro mass surveillance. They are completely incompatible.
Emanuel Macron would be calling you an Antisemit outside of the Republican values if he heard you talk like that, just before appointing the fourth prime minister this year.
Don’t care what he calls me. Macron can call me slurs for all I care. My point is stronger; Macron, while defending democracy somewhat, is not helping it stay sustainable by being a rich labour-suppressing guy; the true answer to defending democracy is to have a worker’s democracy where all are able to work and have their own home easily.
Don’t get me wrong, I mostly agree with your points.
I can’t know if you are French or follow the French politics closely. I can see how my comment could be misunderstood. I will try to explain, for anyone who isn’t so deeply into French politics.
Since the 7-october attack and the subsequent genocide of Palestinians, Macron, his allies and everyone to his right of the political spectrum, have made it an habit to publicly call anyone to their left an Antisemit without the start or the beginning of a justification. It’s purely and simply a smearing campaign surfing on the tragic events that are still continuing without any sanctions whatsoever. Marcron has very much participated in it, very publicly.
I disagree with you on one point, when you say that Macron is defending democracy well… He his proactively killing the French democracy. He has denied the results of the last parlement elections that he has triggered himself. Before that he has denied the voice of our representatives in the parlement by using executive orders to bypass votes and pass unpopular laws (49-3), he has ignored the voice of people protesting en mass in the streets against the retirement system reforms, he has ignored petitions that have collected millions of signatures against reintroduction of dangerous pesticides. Finally, he has already invited fascist to his government, most notable in my opinion : Bruno Rotailleau
Yikes, didn’t know that. I thought he only ‘defended’ democracy in the sense that he opposed working with fascists. Though he also sadly opposes the left, now that I recall… he’s too stuck up his arse to realise he’s part of the problem emboldening fascists.
-
France has the largest exclusive economic zone in the world for a reason and yes it’s bigger than that of America.
That reason is colonialism lol
Although, France maybe be losing a bit of it’s ZEE in the near-ish future.
