This tax burden is falling on the French middle class who are being asked to suffer economically in support of a ludicrous environmental policy. The liberal left-socialists in the United States would support similar policies with the same effect upon American citizens. These perhaps well-intended but ultimately ineffective policies serve only to bring down the hand wringing West and advance the interests of China and other primary polluters.
We have come so far in the United States in cleaning our water and environment. I can remember the Love Canal, the filth of the Hudson and other environmental wrecks that simply no longer exist today. Figure out how to bring Eastern Europe and the Far East into environmental responsibility and you are moving towards solutions; penalizing the citizens of countries which have already made massive progress in environmental responsibility and your solving nothing.
16
I was in Paris two weeks ago when there were protests. I missed a flight for a daytrip in the morning because the streets were blocked off, and when I tried to return to my air-b-n-b, was prevented from getting there by the riot police.
Paris looks pretty shabby overall. World class museums surrounded by infrastructure that is shabby and nowhere near US standards. The main highway from Paris to the airport is way too small and is pretty beat up. The subway worked fine, but was itself pretty beat up, and was horribly overcrowded during times of high usage.
Food is expensive. I bought food at a grocery store and ate at restaurants. Not just tourist places.
Sounds like French pay is one-third to one-half of what we in the US earn. Sure, they get free school and free medical care, but this cannot possibly bring the average buying power in line with US standards. Not even close.
Whether or not one agrees with man made global warming, I have always been a green-house-gas-solution-skeptic. Reducing green house gas emissions HAS TO, at least in the short run, reduce standards of living. If driving is more expensive because of new taxes, my standard of living goes down. If goods are more expensive because the cost of transport goes up, my standard of living goes down.
It sounds like the average French person simply has nothing to give in terms of reducing incomes and standard of living to solve climate change.
6
@William Paris, like many cities, has its issues. But Paris never has nor never will look "shabby," come what may, come whatever, never will happen. It is the most beautiful city in the world. Even in her darkest hour, on her darkest day, she is a beauty.
8
@Caro Absolutely, Paris is the most beautiful city in the world, and their Metro works just fine, probably better than NY subways.
@William Housing in rural France and the smaller villages and cities outside of Paris is a fraction of what it is in most of the USA, that reduces the cost of living considerably. You're not taking that into account.
7
This is clearly a lesson about the consequences of having an open border!
Perhaps the times could do a better job of reporting the cause and effect of the issues in France. The issue is not the gas tax alone. It is also the purpose of the tax which is a warning shot across the bow for other countries as they determine their climate change proposals. To help curb climate change, the government had proposed the taxes, which were slated to take effect in January and were designed to wean consumers off diesel and other polluting fuels and to favor electric cars. But the price increases those taxes represented led to social unrest unseen in recent years that quickly became a full-blown crisis, and President Emmanuel Macron became the latest world leader to suffer at home for imposing green taxes.The proposed fuel taxes, however, were different, representing in the eyes of many an urban ignorance of the reality of life in rural areas relatively unserved by train lines or other forms of public transportation. France has more diesel cars than any other country in Europe and electric cars are expensive and have limited range!
5
Good idea.... Maybe our friends across the world can help us pull this off in NJ!
3
There is an important article in today's Le Monde pointing out the extent of the support that the Gilets jaunes are receiving from American Alt-right media. What's happening in France is not ALL grass-roots. It's being stoked and weaponized by wider anti-Macron forces. The signs that say "On lache rien" are distinctly right-wing signs. It's very frightening.
5
That's how we do, when we are tired of taxes, so imagine what it would be, if our beloved were continually killed in mass shooting because of no gun control...
3
France is the canary in the mine.
After decades of international dithering, lying and sticking our heads in the sand; decades during which every country could have begun serious efforts to shift away from fossil fuels for transportation, we have reached the sorry pass where the immediate needs of the working poor have been placed in direct opposition to the long-term requirements to dramatically lower the planet's CO2.
The result is class warfare on the streets of France.
As was said by a French writer, there is no exit.
11
Want to impose a 'Carbon Tax'?
Thomas Friedman has been banging that drum, seemingly forever.
Bring it on.
This is what happens, even in Socialist, Inclusive, Diverse, Welfare State Europe.
8
Hey hey, Ho Ho, Emanuel Macron has got to go!!
3
No response by the government ... yet?
Wow. Sounds like someone was asleep at the switch.
Macron should explain exactly how the gas tax is collected and used, including the proposed tax hikes.
Those paying the tax are entitled to know how the money they pay in taxes is spent.
And they may be equally surprised or angered by how the money is used or misused, depending on your vantage point.
3
This is getting to the point where Lenin’s strategy of death by a thousand cuts is being resurrected, albeit unknowingly, by these kinds of protests. How long will it be before the precariat figure out once and for all that the work on offer doesn’t pay? Their sacrifice, by accepting a lowered standard of living, thus becoming poor enough to qualify for all the government programs, might finally bring down the beast that is unadulterated, rentier capitalism. Just sit down and say no to work, at least it’s better than the guillotine, and it would be a good example for the rest of the wage slaves. Allons enfants!
2
The elitist Macron got to go. He's out of touch with ordinary French people.
2
Les Miserables, but with gasoline. Macron is Inspector Javert.
1
Gas Taxes are a shoddy instrument for encouraging the use of alternate transportation if there is no public transportation for people to switch to. Also, if nearly half of the cost of gas is already composed of taxes, there are diminishing returns from this mechanism. Within urban cores where public transportation is more available, London and Singapore have interesting models that precisely target commuting by charging a daily fee to enter the city during business hours. I am as motivated to take policy measures to combat climate change as anyone, but clearly Macron needs to explore other options that will have a greater impact, while not disproportionately burdening the working poor.
9
Countries need to deal with climate change; however, unless they take into consideration the detrimental effect that policies may have on all citizens, expect more of these uprisings throughout the world as living expenses increase.
Sadly, a truly international effort to deal effectively with climate change is lacking. Coal plants are still being built, which is ridiculous given the forecasts of what a warming climate will do to the Earth's inhabitants.
In this era of nefarious nationalism (as opposed to a sane patriotism) often carries with it a denial of climate change. Those living today will largely escape the climate calamities that are sure to come in the next century.
Those of us alive today will be harshly judged by the potentially hundreds of millions of climate refugees that will bring chaos and discontent to the countries they attempt to flee to.
5
Thats all well and good but how are people that cannot afford a gas price increase supposed to get to get around without an alternative? Public transportation does not exist outside the city. Its prohibitively expensive to move and live in a big city.
I think the bigger issue is that the rich have the option of clean energy and the poor dont. Dont blame us if we have no choice. We cant trade a 15 year old paid-for gas guzzler for a Tesla without a big time money investment that we dont have. Its not that we are against climate change, its just lower on the priority list due to cost, and in most cases, is never going to be an option for us anyway. I certainly understand the frustration on both sides, but the transportation we have takes gas not electricity. I/we want to be a part of the solution, but cannot make the same kind of contribution as someone with the time and resources to do so.
13
Same as the French, why don't we protest albeit peacefully, to what's been happening to our country since January 20, 2017? What will it take for us to rise and demand wiser and more humane government from its leaders?
4
While the French do love to protest, makes them intellectuals, these protests must stop. Violence of this magnitude is more than a turnoff. It's odd that people protesting don't realize that people look at them as thugs.
Same as when I see antifa in Oregon and elsewhere. No sympathy whatsoever, regardless of the validity of what they are trying to get across. None. But, before the violence, my sympathies went out to those that have to buy gas at these prices - it's not acceptable! But then the French are famous for the taxes and fees, ever growing to support the bureaucratic government that has grown out of control. This is NOT about saving the planet or about a 'green movement.' Actually, while I believe unfettered population growth is destroying the planet, I do NOT support cap and trade - the reason why every western government provides hundreds of millions to 'researchers' to substantiate their desire for cap and trade. Just one more way for government to enrich is unsustainable coffers and over-sized, inefficient staff.
3
The rural working people of France have more in common with the rural working people of Ohio than either of them have with their respective ruling class. Climate change policy must include consideration of social justice with the pain shared in a manner similar to progressive taxation. Lower economic classes will require subsidies to reequip with low carbon tools to continue their working life, not retraining as bank tellers.
1
This is a revolutionary situation such as we have never witnessed before. Macron, a politician of the right-center, is promoting needed action against climate change but is doing it on the backs of the middle class and poor.
So the government is progressive in its overall goals (unlike other conservative regimes that the people have rebelled against in the history of France and elsewhere), but elitist in its methods of reaching those goals. This has triggered a revolutionary spark.
This is so new, so startling, it feels like the start of an important world revolution whose shape we can now only surmise.
6
While I am sympathetic to those living on the margin, and regressive taxes always hurt them the most, but what is disturbing is that all of this spontaneous uproar and street fighting is against a centrist reformist government's anti-global warming policy and not against a larger evil - the global fossil fuel industry including big oil. Had gas prices gone up the same amount through ordinary market fluctuations people would have gripped and belly ached about it and then taken it in stride. Maybe it was the autocratic implementation. In any case somehow the ordinary citizens must be brought on board if we have even a wisp of chance of confronting the world historical catastrophe of impending climate change.
2
The measures have already been denounced by the protestors as “mesurettes”, or small insignificant measures.
And one can’t help but see them that way too. Delaying the tax increases until just after the European elections... Promising that the decrease in income will have to paired with a decrease in spending... These don’t seem to be the measures of a government seeking to placate the protestors.
One of the protestors’ main rallying cries is the reestablishment of the original ISF, the wealth tax, which was denatured into something else entirely by Macron, costing the government about 3 billion euros.
When one sees that the new capital gains flat tax and the truncated ISF cost the State between 5 billion to 6 billion euros a year, by some estimates, for the sake of France’s wealthiest; and the new fuel taxes are about scrounging together 2 or 3 billion from France’s poorest, something does seem a little off...
Again, the movement’s goals are untenable. France can not afford to decrease taxes and maintain spending, or to raise spending, no matter how desperately needed a new injection of money into public services is needed. But again, the government shows itself to be the perfect “pyromaniac firefighter”, riling up the protests while it seems to attempt to douse them down.
8
@Un Laïcard It's quite interesting that during the protests, quite a few times, the following chant was heard: "We want Trump!"
3
All the gnashing of teeth about this situation overlooks a major component -- our consumption of fossil fuels. We now know this is the main contributor to climate change, etc., which is the biggest, most immediate threat to literally species survival, yet we still pretend it's irrelevant when it comes to our pocketbooks.
France, like the rest of us, should have seen this coming a long time ago. Back when the Hubbert Curve was figured out in 1956, and predicted the end of peak oil by 1970. The oil companies went into siege mode and have been there since. Efforts were made, including President Carter's wise decision to make America independent of foreign oil needs, his sweater and turning down thermostats, and the installation of SOLAR PANELS on the White House roof. Similar voices were heard in France and Europe. This terrified the petroleum industry who went into Gestapo mode and began the long journey of money and influence flooding into the capillaries of governing and decision making.
The fact that the French and most of us are forced to rely on our gas fueled automobiles is a reflection of longstanding lack of public will and infestation by corporate money. The first thing Reagan did when entering the White House after winning by manipulating the Iran prisoner fiasco, was to rip the solar panels off the roof. And so it's gone since then.
3
Must the world go through this drama again - a rehash of Italys 1970s Red Army posing in 2018 as Yellow Vests...recall in the in Turin...the terrorizing Red Army, kidnapping and killing politicians, then Journalists, finally Judiciary appointees...all seemingly in the name of some cause to help those fortunate but later found out to be implemented, funded and designed in Moscow to topple western democracy. Oh those Russians are coming...its so easy too find the vermin in the gutter, Putin and Trump...both think they are so smart in their complicit silences...like McConnell and Ryan during the 2016 Election.
2
Not so fast. Plenty of agitation came from right wing cells seeking to undermine and discredit the commies.
3
Macron's regressive tax on gasoline seemed rife to stir up trouble. Like in the US there is a gap where there is recognized boundary of poverty and those almost poor who are being hurt by present economic circumstance because the gov't doesn't give them poverty assistance. In France they have health care coverage for everyone which is important but the economy isn't creating the decent paying jobs which has increased this sense of uncertainty. Macron needs to instill the idea that there is equal sacrifice by the people and the big financial players in France.
2
As my namesake said.
“Don’t be deceived when they tell you things are better now. Even if there’s no poverty to be seen because the poverty’s been hidden. Even if you ever got more wages and could afford to buy more of these new and useless goods which industries foist on you and even if it seems to you that you never had so much, that is only the slogan of those who still have much more than you. Don’t be taken in when they paternally pat you on the shoulder and say that there’s no inequality worth speaking of and no more reason to fight because if you believe them they will be completely in charge in their marble homes and granite banks from which they rob the people of the world under the pretence of bringing them culture.”
5
Frankly the "gilets jaunes" movement is ridiculous. The French have always had this romantic notion around protests and retaliation, but now is not the time. The French have finally landed themselves a smart, capable, progressive leader, a man who is making a push for internal reform, something former Presidents like Hollande and Sarkozy were either unable or unwilling to do. Macron has started a period of transition for France, one which will ultimately transform them into the most powerful European state, if not one of the most powerful countries on earth. A country undergoing such a monumental transition is always going to face challenges, whether its price hikes or mass protest. This is one of those moments. This movement of crooks and hooligans, intent on causing havoc and bringing Macron's Presidency to an end, are merely looking for a target, a reason to rise up, to clash with his new aggressive reform and policies, something the French have never been a fan of. Sure, increases in pricing or taxes on certain commodities can't be labeled as positive, but when looking at the bigger picture, these sacrifices will strengthen France as a global power, and will benefit the French people in the long run. Being from a small island which endured one of the worst economic crises of the millennia, these minuscule tax increases are nothing. The French people need to give Macron some wiggle room in order to enact change and put the French Republic "En Marche"!
9
@IrishinFrance None of your comments are wrong. Except when you fail to recognize the suffering of the people. You can feel it in most developed countries. And it generates bad results such as a Trump being elected or nationalism growing in Europe. Recognizing it is recognizing the unfairness of people having to pay more small taxes because global conglomerates exonerate themselves for paying big ones. Capitalism has to look at itself in the mirror before it creates the conditions for rebellion. And Macron has one flaw, he does not know the people outside the elite. And he has no party on the ground to relay their suffering.
11
@IrishinFrance ... your comment provides an incisive and excellent example as to the reasons for Trump's electoral success.
9
@NativeFrench If people think they're suffering now, wait til fossil fuel caused climate change really makes them suffer. We here in California have lots of recent examples of this, as does my daughter in Houston, my friends in Florida, and my family in the Midwest. If people think their high gas prices are a problem, wait til their entire city and their home, business, infrastructure, etc,. is sitting under six feet of water, like the homes in my daughter's neighborhood after Harvey struck. I live in Santa Barbara, and you've heard about our little problems recently here. My son describes crop failures etc. in the Midwest, where only TWO crops are grown in the entire region -- corn for cattle and soy beans. All GMO and heavily drenched in petroleum based pesticides and fertilizers. The soil is now dead, and droughts, floods, tornadoes, etc. are wreaking havoc.
3
Is it a new Revolution ? 84% of the french people agree with the Yellow Vests . They hate Macron .
Yellow Vests are demonstrating also In Belgium . Some in the Netherlands ...
There is a link between the Yellow Vests and Liberty . Liberty always win , almost in France . As a Chilian wrote on the Arc de Triumphe on saturday 1st december , during the demonstration : Pico pa Macron !
7
I guess there’s a limit to how much government waste and frivolous policy citizens will accept. Good for the French people!
10
They don’t pay for health care or education w those incomes. Not to say they are doing well....it points to how badly Americans are doing unless they are in the top earning brackets.
9
@Skier You know nothing about life in France and what they get for 'free.' But, if you think you'd have it better in France, I challenge you to move. Or, at least live there for a few weeks. Food is good, wine great, and most enjoy entertaining and travel. But, you will be shocked at the difference in living standards. You do have free education in the US from k-12. Check out and compare just education here vs. France. Unless you excel, you do not get free college. And your healthcare will only help acute issues, like breaking a leg on the slopes. Please, go check it out.
6
There are 2 elephants in this room. One is China, the world's largest polluter and taker of working class jobs, whether in France or in the US. The other is the strange conflation of right and left wing ideologies in the West that come to the same economic conclusion - an economy can produce nothing but be sustained by computer bits, moving money, and government bureaucracy. All production can be moved to China (or Mexico, etc.) and the Western urban elites can live in a permanent, Eloy-like fantasy world. To be honest more than 1% benefit from this, but well under 50%, much less 100%. The end will not be pleasant for the West but it will come as the logical outcome of the West's politics and policies. Keep your powder dry, people.
18
@Paul Unlike America and even Europe, at least China is busy constructing giant solar and even wind arrays, etc. at an astonishing rate. They install more in one week than America does in a year. We can belly ache about the origin or promoters of problems or recognize they're happening and take action NOW.
2
Macronalogic: We can't tax corporations because then there will be no trickle-down, so we have to tax the trickle-down instead.
8
Their demand is global. They are tired of paying the taxes that the GAFA and most mega firms do not pay. It's all about fairness. They refuse to pay 20% taxes on their revenues when local governments allow Apple and friends to pay less than 5% on profits. They pay for road repairs that Amazon trucks use to generate profits that are not taxes.
32
Je ne comprend. Am I correct in thinking that 90% of power in France is generated by nukes? Why, then, is there no push for electric transportation?
4
@wc It's not 90% of power, it's 75% of electricity and electricity is only 23% of the power used.
2
@Rod Nukes require fossil fuel to produce the materials used in the reactors, and to power it. Same for desal, etc.
The tax on fuel in this case is really what we've always called a "sin tax". It's meant to discourage a behavior, in this case driving. There needs to be a carrot with this stick. There needs to be a means for the average person in France to upgrade their cars to the most fuel efficient available. We know climate change is real, we know what the impacts are going to be. Part of mitigating that is providing for the very people wearing those vests. But, today, right now these people are struggling and adding additional regressive taxes on them can be truly devastating. They also realize that the impact of that tax falls mostly on them and it pulls a larger percentage of their income than people higher up the income ladder. France needs to come to grips with the reality that at the end of the day the cost of providing subsidies to purchase energy efficient vehicles will likely be less than the costs of these and other likely protests.
17
The wealthy top (1%) receive additional tax cuts and control a staggeringly disproportionate amount of the world's wealth & resources - and the middle class is pushed to near breaking point.
If this where a dinner table & folks at the end of the table had more food then they could ever eat in a million lifetimes and many at the table could barely feed themselves with the scraps available to them - even though they worked hard everyday..... it would be viewed as an insane scenario....
and the GOP in the USA passes tax reform putting more money into the hands of the wealthy & wealthy corporations claiming that worn out argument of "trickle down"... which simply never seems to trickle down.
16
@Jimi: I agree with your well written, spiritual comment, but only up to a point, as if the disparities between wealthy folks and the rest of us were only the fault of the G0P. Establishments of both parties are to blame,Reports that Mitch McConnell advised his party not to attempt to rescind Obamacare because his lobbyists had informed him that their clients were making too much money from it. Re troubles in France, you have two countries, the "pays legal,"made up of wealthy "citadins"all for offshoring, eager to encourage immigration in order to keep wages low all around and who support Macron who cannot even return to his native Amiens because of his encouragement to Maytag to offshore, thus putting half the population of the city out of work, and then you have the "pays reel, " which is suffering, living mainly in rural areas and small towns, which cannot afford to pay 7 dollars a gallon for gas among other grievances. Macron would not be enjoying his "quinquennat" were it not for the most incompetent politician in the history of the country opposing him in last election, Marine le Pen. Even her own father can't stand her and he founded FN. In my view, Macron has 1 redeeming feature, his compassion for abandoned 4 legged creatures, 1 of whom he and his spouse adopted and now has the run of the Elysee Palace!
3
@Jordan You are aware that this tax cut has an expiration date, right?
1
@Jordan I think what Speaker Pelosi meant is that since Sheldon Adelson is getting $67 Million-- per quarter-- what you are getting is indeed crumbs.
Also, over time, the calculation shifts and you will be paying the same or more taxes. Do a little reading before you snark.
Lastly, in California & New York, we can no longer deduct our state taxes-- so we will be paying more.
But I get it-- as long as you can take a jab at a long-standing public servant you've never met, it's OK to be conned by some billionaires. Enjoy!
1
Tax the rich. They’re the ones who benefited the most from the destruction of this planet. Let them pay to save the planet.
57
@Greg Rich meaning Amazon, Google, Apple, Uber, Facebook... and some individuals who all exonerate themselves for paying taxes that the people will have to pay on their behalf.
8
I will admit total ignorance on French politics, but lack of leadership and ideas is a worldwide scourge. We all need to be investing in clean, efficient public transportation, which would create jobs, cut down on wasted traffic time and help the environment. The fact that there are no leaders who have a vision for our shared future is really sad. And it lays the framework for people like Trump and Le Pen, who offer crazy pseudo facts to fill the void. We all need some shared goals, and some real leadership, pronto.
10
Be very afraid, socialism does not work. The fact is- people will only put up with high taxes and big government for so long. Do you understand how much they are taxed in Europe? I'm not so sure you do.
There is more to this protest than just taxes. Increasing taxes are the catalyst but corruption, government spending, and immigration are also playing a big part. Europe, it's nation states and the EU are on a knife-edge. Don't rule out the (albeit unlikely) possibility of a Frexit down the road.
12
@Rob Campbell this tax has nothing to do with socialism, and neither do any of Macron's other initiatives. Macron has not done anything to redistribute resources more equitably - that would be socialism, and they should be so lucky. Instead his tax cuts favor the wealthy and corporations.
9
Perhaps we need to rethink Green. Because the fact is, most save the world types are pretty wealthy. So wealthy in fact that they have the luxury to worry more about far off scenarios where the world is a bit warmer than about bad schools, open borders, crime, and making ends meet.
So let’s have them pay a steep price for their Green policies first, and then see if their values still stick.
Let’s put Michel Bloomberg in a 1,500 square foot house out in the boonies. Let’s take his private planes, all of his wealth, and all of his income in excess of $50,000. Let’s take his small army of help away. And let’s take away his second and third homes too. Let’s take his ability to pay for his trip to Iowa away, where this week he’s showing a movie on climate change. Now, let’s do the same with every celebrity, public intellectual, six-figure public sector faculty member, politician, and business leader. Be sure to take away their ability to travel internationally too. That’s a lot of carbon right there.
If we do all this, and they’re still yammering about our collective need to pare things back, let’s take a second pass and make sure they’ve really curtailed their carbon footprints. Do they have children, or grandchildren with a large carbon footprint? Is there a Chelsea and Charlotte out there who still enjoy life on the large? Then limit them too. Send them to a subsistence farm in Malawi, and see if Hill and Bill stand by their save the world values.
This will be fun!
50
@Trans Cat Mom This is one of the most entertaining, and accurate, comments I have ever read in the nytimes ! thanks for taking time to write it !
11
I am an environmentalist because I read travel, observe. I also know that our military is hugely aware of the threats to our security posed by global warming and attendant issues. However, like you, I do agree that the ruling oligarchy, the very few who own more than half the assets of the USA among fewer than 300 families, need to pay their share. As long as a corrupt congress keeps that from happening, we have the prospect of choosing between squeezing the life out of the middle class and taking measures against continuing to foul the only home humans have.
13
Perhaps countries can begin offering great subsidies, trade-in deals, and tax breaks to trade in fuel cars in favor of electric cars. I think people need some alternative to the reality that taxes continue to rise while their salaries decline in buying power. The middle class is the beast of burden carrying the economy. Whoever can get people to work cheaply and safely may win this century. It's really not social benefits that are the issue (they are good!), but a need to manage climate change, a costly expense for the whole world, that has to be managed. France is showing leadership that the U.S. lacks, but it needs to be bolder and lead from integrity.
6
There is more to it than just a fuel price hike.
First, France has had a lengthy period of a 35 hour working week that weakened the economy and that is now on its way out in order to gain more economic strength.
The decision of working 35 hours a week was a mistake that now results in these rather low earnings across France and the decline in purchasing power.
Second, France is well known for having a short tempered public, so these protests are easily taken over by all kinds of protest groups that now see a chance to get their voice heard.
Third, Macron has been elected more or less only to avoid Le Pen being elected.
He has less of a plan than his predecessor Hollande who had no plan other than "let the rich pay for it all".
This is the major issue of Macron who needs to present a plan that not only works but also rectifies the mistakes of his and his predecessor governments.
In order to do so, Macron would need the support of some of the members of his cabinet that ran away over the past few months.
So unless these experts come back or are replaced by others of the same quality, it looks like Macron is alone and may better consider to step down.
But that would mean an election that Le Pen might win, which in itself, is not an improvement.
11
Once again we see the failure of neoliberalism and unfair and unsustainble tax policy. This has been occuring for decades along with the reliance on debt by the middle and working class to just get by.
France is in quite the delemia as they want the social safety net, address climate change and many other things but lack the broad economic growth to support all of these goals.
Working folks can not always be the ones who pay the highest price for such failed policies, but sadly we continue to.
Hopefully the Yellow vests will help shift that inbalance.
44
@shiningstars122
thanks for your right vision of what's going on actually in France ! i was here to check what foreigner people know about our problem in France , and it's so good to read your comment
thanks from France
16
More like neo rich capitalists taking care of their own. Get it straight.
7
@shiningstars122
"but lack the broad economic growth to support all of these goals."
A beauty of the French culture is that it recognizes, or at least used to, that working can be done to a harmful excess. Let's hope that the French never abandon the 35-hour working week for that would let their culture descend to the point where opioids and colossally inhuman leadership becomes as normal is it has become in the so-called United States of America. Nonetheless, economic inequality is obviously becoming a potentially revolutionary matter that Macron must now sharply raise on his government's list of priorities. Can his vicar's daughter counterpart in the Brexit-ridden kingdom to the northwest of France avoid much longer also doing the same?
5
I see that the editor thinks that taxes in France are very high. They are, but most of them are meant to help the French people, not only the very rich, like in the US. Watch Micheal Moore's movie about that, and understand that the taxes are used for, among other things, education and health care.
But for sure, the American neo capitalist dream, the greed is good principle, has had dire consequences for normal people all over the world. Here in the Netherlands too, where many vote for the conservative party VVD, a party that stands for greed is good. And, of course, it's all the fault of the foreigners. Sad, all this.
14
The "yellow jacket" protesters seem to be giving a Freudian message by wearing green jackets protesting against the fuel tax hike.....I guess subconsciously they do want to stay "green."
1
@HCJ, the vests are yellow, with a neon look. Not green
2
Both climate change, migration, and rampant wealth inequality are caused by and are driving further unrest what should be obvious: Capitalism had failed. This is the outcome. How much more do rational people need to change. What’s next? We need to know soon!
14
@Laura
What's next is either fascistic authoritarianism or a balancing of values such that socialistic and capitalistic principles can co-exist -- as they did in the mid 20th Century in the Western world and are not now doing so very much in the 21st Century.
This means that the fanatics of simplistic ideologies have now learn to learn from each by abandoning the win-and-avoid-shame-at-all-costs mentality. The French-speaking peoples may, I suggest, learn how to reach this balance sooner than English-speaking peoples are likely to.
Why do I believe this? There are two principle reasons:
1. The French-speaking peoples have legislated shorter working weeks so they have more time to relax and learn; whereas English-speaking peoples, with longer working weeks, are rushed and workaholic and so our decision-making is driven more by expedience than by values
2. The conventional French language way of speaking allows emotions to be stated as nouns, whereas the conventional English way of expressing emotions is to 'spill the beans' in more completed thoughts/notions. The latter way is far more likely to end in acrimony and false compromises that later erupt in acrimony than the former way.
Fortunately, both these points are beginning to be explored, discussed, and tested in the English-speaking world -- under the rubrics of 'Eye-Zen English', 'workoholism', and 'thorough problem-solving communication'.
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My Christmas wish is to see the same kind of strikes and protests here in America.
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@Mick So the US liberal progressive response to these thugs that are destroying property and injuring or killing civilians is to bring the thug thinking to the US?! I am struggling with voting for Dems at this point.
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Macron is a globalist who wants to lower France's fossil fuel consumption. The problem is he wasn't elected to save the planet. He was elected to govern the country and its citizens -- and specifically, to address their needs. Imposing a green tax without the consent of his constituents was the height of hubris. As globalists are learning, their jobs are, first and foremost, to deal with their own citizens.
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@AACNY
i like this interjection because it highlights a lethal logical fallacy among the Right and Center-Right: that in an internet-connected world with 7 billion souls (and growing) individual countries can pursue their vital interests independent from those of “the planet.” macron can’t help french citizens without also attending to both the causes and consequences of global climate change. every educated person takes this for granted. the real question for macron is how to best to manage policies aimed at protecting the interests of french citizens both short term (as yellow jackets rightly demand) and long term (as so-called “globalists” insist). it’s easy to see why this balance is critical but devilishly difficult in practice to enact.
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@AACNY
The only problem is that the planet, the "globe" if you will, needs saving. "Addressing the needs" of the citizens by authorizing and furthering the current fossil fuel regime is in the end suicidal (for the workers themselves, for everyone, for the planet). And Macron's attention to the problem of climate change is not in itself somehow undemocratic--he was elected, as have been other recent government heads in Europe, in part to address it.
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Liberté, égalité, fraternité
With so many people struggling to survive, not just in France but all across the planet, one has to wonder when the Marie Antoinettes of the world will offer their "eat cake" solution.
It is time for a new economic system to one that is sustainable and is not centered on continuous unlimited growth. As the article stated, the gas tax was only the drop that overflowed the vase. Many countries are at that same point where one more drop will cause a spill.
Solidarity my brothers and sisters. We must all stand together.
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@skramsv thanks fromFrance for your comment !
the problem raised here is so universal!
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@skramsv. A sustainable economic system is a good goal, in France and everywhere. Working poors with a car ,with long commute, have been tricked. Their way of living will change, like it or not. It is not fair to make them pay for it, at least not all of it, and no more than urban middle class, wich can easily pay higher gas price. Any idea how to achieve this ?
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The poor can’t afford gasoline? Let them drive Tesla’s.
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How many revolutions has France endured and still the insuperable gap between rich and everyone else yawns? No matter how many parties of the left are elected, human nature prevails with its greed and inability to let go of more than one's share. France is no different from other places in its susceptibility to the ugly aspects of humanity. Perhaps it's tried to overcome them without any success. Let the little people in yellow vests rage on, they have billions of counterparts worldwide who want the same things, and who are equally ignored and despised.
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Good paper, giving a factual rendition of recent events in France. The motivations and objectives of protesters are numerous and diverse, therefore difficult to satisfy by the French government. Many features of the Yellow Vest movement can be explain by a silent and deepening division between two France : the successfull, world-connected and dynamic metropolis (including the suburbs with a higher concentration of immigrants) and the "France périphérique" (as Christophe Guilluy named it in a book 4 years ago), badly struck by industrial and economic crisis over the last 30 years, forgotten by all successive governments over the years. Their anger has many causes, not only the high taxes on gas, and will be difficult to calm.
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No to rule by mob. If wealthy countries can't afford a gas tax, what chance do we have against climate change? This tax is a small price for moral leadership. Stay firm, Mr. Macron.
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@Asen Ivanov Mr. Macron may be the only leader left with the gumption to address climate change with a concrete policy of "transition énergétique". Whether the French like it or not. Next thing I would do is cancel "allocations familiales" to force them to have less children, which has the worst carbon footprint of all! When is that major issue going to be addressed worldwide?
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@Asen Ivanov
Climate change mitigation is a local and individual decision. Look in the mirror and ask what you are going to do today to restore the historical land cover. What are you going to do to reduce your polluting effects on this planet. Lead by example. Organize your community to clean up.the environment, reduce consumption, reuse/rehome items. Again have your community lead by example. Countries cannot restore a historical "normal" climate, only individual human beings.
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@Asen Ivanov Mr Macron doesn't care about climate change, this is just an excuse for this tax.
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The biggest challenge for Macron will not be to accept to make some changes that could calm the anger of the yellow vests, the biggest challenge for him will be to find the right tone to announce them. The arrogance with which he has spoken so far to the people has fueled their anger as much as his politics.
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The root cause of the French protests stems from the citizens being outraged over President Macron’s high gas taxes. Dig deeper & we discover the riots are caused not just by a huge hike in fuel costs, but that the increase was due to a draconian increase in fuel taxes to reduce fossil fuel consumption in order to meet the Paris Climate Accord. Yet to fight climate change as many Democrats want that's exactly what we would have to do here. Obama’s former OMB director, Peter Orszag, told Congress that “price increases would be essential to the success of a cap and trade program. The majority of U.S. voters will never go for this. Period. Gas in France is about $6 a gallon. Can you imagine what would happen in the U.S. if a Democratic President imposed a $3 climate change gas tax? All this in an attempt to lower the temperature of the planet by 2 degrees over the next 100 years to see if it will alter the weather. This, even as every bit of evidence has concluded that China’s international coal plant construction alone makes that absurd goal a total impossibility. Pure insanity. France has one of the lowest carbon footprint for its electricity grid thanks to their nuclear power - so why go so hard on gasoline? Because the inmates are running the asylum, that's why. Inconvenient truth. When a government tries to enact a green tax to support carbon reduction when income inequality is increasing, people will react to their immediate situations without considering the future.
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@Bill Brown And that is exactly where the problem lies: the French reacting to their immediate situations without considering the future... A few cents more for fuel vs. NO future when humanity is gone (the planet will be fine...). And we are NOT talking about 100 years down the road... Macron is spot on. Réveillez-vous les Frouze! Even if Americans dig their heads in the sand.
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@Bill Brown Sorry, Bill, but I think you miss the mark. People here aren't opposed to moving away from fossil fuels. Nor are they opposed to high gas prices, per se. What they don't want is a transition to a green economy paid for by those who can least afford it. Today in France outside of the big cities, people need cars for work. Those in low-paying jobs (the majority of people) suffer paying $6 - $7 / gallon for gas. Clearly the government needs to rethink its approach. If high gas prices are intended to wean people off gas guzzling cars (and eventually cars, period), affordable alternatives need to be available.
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@cbadgley Well from the articles I have read & the news reports I have seen I don't think I missed the mark by too much. Clearly there's a limit to how much gas tax people will tolerate. If high gas prices are intended to wean people off gas guzzling cars then wouldn't it make sense to have affordable alternatives in place first....yes? You don't have to be a genius to figure that out. Here in the states American voters don't want to pay more for energy. Every poll backs this up. Most politicians are simply reflecting the desires of their constituents. The point of cap & trade was always to increase the price of 85 percent of the energy we use in America. That is the goal. For it to “work,” cap and trade needs to increase the price of oil, coal, and natural gas to force consumers to use more expensive forms of energy. This point can't be emphasized enough...that's never going to happen in the U.S. The overall reality in that climate change legislation is hard to pass even in good times. It's a real killer in an economic downturn where citizens & business fear higher costs, even slightly higher costs, & may see no concrete benefits. Can we bring ourselves to prioritize renewables over cheap fuels? Are we willing to vote against our own self interests & approve higher taxes on fossil fuels? Can we muster the restraint needed to leave assets worth trillions in the ground? Absolutely not. If you can't make it work in France then there's zero chance of it gaining traction here.
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