Should we be a bit more like the French and revolt?

Joseann

Thanks Mamie.

What I sort of meant in relation to this thread, was that comparing the French mentality and response makes us reflect on our our own British response.

Sorry, I'm rushing to lunch.

While I was watching it I was trying to imagine British farmers doing the same!
The last line of your post sounds very French. 😂😂😂

Thanks Mamie.

What I sort of meant in relation to this thread, was that comparing the French mentality and response makes us reflect on our our own British response.

Sorry, I'm rushing to lunch.

Joseann

Nice to have a conversation about the French mentality on here without being lambasted!
My understanding is that the French farmers are cross because among other things, there are too many foreign imports entering the French market. The issue with food, as a produce of the land, la terre, is that it is such an emotive subject so farmers automatically get wound up.

Indeed they are. I am watching the lunchtime news and lots of demonstrators are wandering round Leclerc picking foreign imports of the shelves and haranguing the staff. The main target now seems to be centres of food distribution.

Nice to have a conversation about the French mentality on here without being lambasted!
My understanding is that the French farmers are cross because among other things, there are too many foreign imports entering the French market. The issue with food, as a produce of the land, la terre, is that it is such an emotive subject so farmers automatically get wound up.

Callistemon21

Mamie

Callistemon21

We in the UK are rather good at revolting and protesting and we have a gphistoty to prove it.

Whose Revolution came first? Did the French get the idea of a revolution from us?
The Suffragettes
The Jarrow March
Greenham Common
Poll Tax Riots (1381 and 1990)
Stop The War

There are many others, some very recent.

Farmers in many countries are becoming increasingly frustrated because they feel governments just do not care about them. After all, without farmers, without food, we are all doomed.

I don't think any of those were before 1789. 😂

Yes, I think

The Revolutions here were before the French Revolution; the Civil War 1642 - 1652, the Glorious Revolution 1688, way before that the Peasants' Revolt of 1381.

I'm sure I could think of more 🙂

Have we become more passive now?

I wondered if you meant the Civil War etc, but was confused by the recent examples. I don't think any of those revolutions had the same effect on the state in the long term.
The Republic is founded on the values of the revolution and deeply embedded in the way the state and state institutions are run and in the French psyche. I honestly don't think you can compare it to the UK.
Although demonstrations and revolution were much in the air when I went to university in 1968 I don't think we felt we had the duty to protest in the way that the French do.

I’ve thought that for years Dinahmo. We take every lousy trick thrown at us lying down.

French farmers have enjoyed large subsidies for years from the CAP hence the expensive tractors you see on TV. Times are changing and they don't like it.

nanna8

The ones here disrupt peoples lives and stop them getting to work. They lose sympathy because of how they are. If they want to rebel about something they should go and chuck themselves over the steps to parliament, not block the roads up. They did this again recently because of ‘invasion day’ 200 plus years ago. That and the pro Palestinian lot.

Your present government is decimating farming, making farming so much more stressful and difficult, nanna8. They have an agenda and it is not to support Australian farmers.

I don't think the population would survive for long without farmers.
It is your government you need to criticise, not the hardworking farmers.

Mamie

Callistemon21

We in the UK are rather good at revolting and protesting and we have a gphistoty to prove it.

Whose Revolution came first? Did the French get the idea of a revolution from us?
The Suffragettes
The Jarrow March
Greenham Common
Poll Tax Riots (1381 and 1990)
Stop The War

There are many others, some very recent.

Farmers in many countries are becoming increasingly frustrated because they feel governments just do not care about them. After all, without farmers, without food, we are all doomed.

I don't think any of those were before 1789. 😂

Yes, I think

The Revolutions here were before the French Revolution; the Civil War 1642 - 1652, the Glorious Revolution 1688, way before that the Peasants' Revolt of 1381.

I'm sure I could think of more 🙂

Have we become more passive now?

I read that France has retained the Republic’s founding principles of Liberty Egality and Fraternity and this manifests itself in the right to protest against its government. It certainly sends out strong signals to its government. Can we do the same here? I don’t know…

Many of the current problems facing farmers are the result of a series of appalling weather events across France last year. Crops have been devastated by floods, winds and fires on a level we have never seen before in the eighteen years we have lived here. In contrast one of the reasons for the protests is increased controls on products that damage the environment, which some farmers say make them less competitive. The price of diesel is another complaint. I don't know how the government can resolve these contradictory issues.
In terms of levels of protest in France the National Anthem does after all include "aux armes citoyens".

Land ownership and farming is very different in Europe, a much larger proportion of voters have a stake in its “prosperity”. A worker in the city may well have a stake in the family farm, they do value that connection, so any move that will disadvantage farmers has to be carefully considered.

The ones here disrupt peoples lives and stop them getting to work. They lose sympathy because of how they are. If they want to rebel about something they should go and chuck themselves over the steps to parliament, not block the roads up. They did this again recently because of ‘invasion day’ 200 plus years ago. That and the pro Palestinian lot.

Callistemon21

We in the UK are rather good at revolting and protesting and we have a gphistoty to prove it.

Whose Revolution came first? Did the French get the idea of a revolution from us?
The Suffragettes
The Jarrow March
Greenham Common
Poll Tax Riots (1381 and 1990)
Stop The War

There are many others, some very recent.

Farmers in many countries are becoming increasingly frustrated because they feel governments just do not care about them. After all, without farmers, without food, we are all doomed.

I don't think any of those were before 1789. 😂

It is interesting that the reporting in the UK seems to focus on EU regulations as a cause for the protests, when French news reports the precariousness of farming, foreign imports and rising costs.
I think French farmers have been much better protected by successive governments than British ones and the equipment you see driving around is indeed very impressive. I am appalled by the burning of imported food and the mess made in city centres.
The right to protest is, of course, deeply embedded since the Revolution, but my sympathies are limited in this instance.

gphistoty 🤔
history

We in the UK are rather good at revolting and protesting and we have a gphistoty to prove it.

Whose Revolution came first? Did the French get the idea of a revolution from us?
The Suffragettes
The Jarrow March
Greenham Common
Poll Tax Riots (1381 and 1990)
Stop The War

There are many others, some very recent.

Farmers in many countries are becoming increasingly frustrated because they feel governments just do not care about them. After all, without farmers, without food, we are all doomed.

I’ve been pondering this very thing today and wonder how bad things have to get before there are riots here such as we saw during the Poll Tax. Fortunately I think the prospect of a General Election will encourage a ‘wait and see’ attitude amongst would-be activists.

We’ve had people glueing themselves to motorways, (and stopping essential services as well as ordinary people getting to hospitals/funerals/A&E,) we’ve had “slow marches” through major cities, again targeting us the ordinary people, we’ve had tomato soup thrown at paintings and other tactics designed to cause maximum inconvenience.
I think we are doing well (?) enough without emulating the revolting French.

I think Joseann’s French friends are right, traditionally the British have been phlegmatic, but the character of the British people is changing, partly through immigration which means people from a variety of different places and backgrounds show far less tolerance because that is their culture, and also I think many younger people are far less tolerant than perhaps we older people were, so we have Just Stop Oil, and other environmental protesters, and all the support for the Palestine marches which goes on and on, and there are people still protesting against us leaving the EU, and of course other protests too. Of course British people have a long history of protesting, but perhaps protests have been more disciplined and less disruptive than is becoming apparent now.

I agree, we have enough protests, I wouldn't want to put up with the disruption that it causes, & it's almost "traditional" with the french farmers now, does anyone take any notice any longer? All the same, the right to assemble & protest is an important civil liberty & I was worried when Priti Patel was mooting the banning of peaceful marches & arresting protestors, last November.

I give up 😂

2nd try.

And the Germans. Notice how shiny the tractors are 😂

It is mob rule, and do we want that in Britain? We have had a home in France for 32 years and suffered all the inconvenience of road blockages and in one protest parts of butchered cattle being scattered over the road.

It stops the government introducing many much needed changes and just because there are lots of protests it does not mean that those demonstrating represent the majority of the population. It os often just a small vocal protest group forcing the majority to do what they want.