Many French and francophile correspondents take comfort in tu quoques, where, to their satisfaction, America is made out to be worse than France. This is very weak tea and even poorer argument but -- though requiring a tacit acknowledgement of the facts against France -- it suffices to relieve these correspondents of the hard work of defending France. France has nothing to answer for as long as our correspondents feel America or some nation somewhere in the world is less exemplary in kind than France.

At the same time they wish us to believe that France is something rare, unique, wholly without equal, "une Nation qui rayonne dans le monde". And in unexpected ways she certainly is, um, unique.

For example, most everywhere looting is a crime without appeal to necessity. Looting does not provision the looter with the necessaries for subsistence. Looting is stealing for the material enlargement of the looter. Except in France. In France if you are destitute, well, all the good things in life, all the little LVMH must-haves, are yours for the having. Only in France does poverty entitle you to délices à emporter on demand.

Carine at E-Nough! has a first-hand post (with pix) on upscale French looting organized and executed in accordance with the social principle of le sien, le leur, le vôtre = le mien.

This weekend, something surreal yet very real happened in Paris. A little less than two hundred people, who described themselves as "unemployed, people in a precarious condition or intermittents [basically, French, part-time, show-biz workers who benefit from a very (too) generous unemployment insurance enabling them to get a year's worth of their unemployment-insurance benefits for just a couple of months actually worked]", and apparently illegal immigrants, rushed at a luxury grocery store on the Left Bank (Bobo Land) of Paris to claim "a couple of provisions to spend a normal New Year's Eve". And they obtained them. Well almost, apparently:

About a hundred unemployed or people in a precarious situation and intermittents du spectacle gathered on Saturday [Dec. 30, 2005] in front of the store* in Paris.

They asked that the "promise" to give them "provisions to celebrate New Year's Eve" be "kept", claimed the Coordination of intermittents and people in a precarious situation in the Parisian region.

* The targeted gourmet-goods grocery is La Grande Epicerie de Paris ("There is nothing as good as the best."), part of the department store Le Bon Marché, which is owned by LVMH.

According to the person in charge of the coordination: "We tried to get in touch with the manager... but policemen attacked us and we had to flee."

Yeah, that's what happens when you loot.

About a hundred members of different organizations (...) had invaded this same store on Friday night "in order to obtain the redistribution of the products on the shelves."

"We managed to get out with fifteen trolleys, but the store managers agreed with the police forces who questioned us and confiscated the goods", said the person in charge of the coordination.

The indigent French need only take. Of course if you can pay and take, you are a common thief.

PFFT (What is this?): Poverty as a gateway to luxury 3 | Rayonnement français 0

Damian, that's mean. After all the poor (non)workers were only stealing a loaf of bread!!!

I mean with the high unemployment rate of Frogistan you can't expect much better.

Better to raise taxes even higher to make sure that essentials such as new year's celebrations are taken care of. After all it is in the "UN Declarations of Human Rights". Right 15296 if memory serves.

This goes well and is simply an extension of the French indigents and willfully unemployed who strike for more welfare benefits...

At the same time they wish us to believe that France is something rare, unique, wholly without equal

Only in your head, Damian.

As for tu quoque-ing is just an amusing way to put things in perspective and to remind PAVE that no one's perfect. For instance, while 425 vehicles were supposedly torched the other night in France's own version of La Nuit Du Diable, roughly 15,000 Americans were shot to death last year, 67% by firearm. And worthy of the "Only In America" special mention, even the unborn are at risk.

To be fair, overall crime in the US has decreased while Europe's has increased, however 726 per 10,000 are incarcerated compared to 142 in the UK and 91 in France.

And here's my tu quoques of the day, whatever that means.

726 per 10,000 are incarcerated compared to 142 in the UK and 91 in France

That's because the police in the US tend to do their job, whereas European police officers (that includes French) are afraid of criminals and prosecution is hampered by a lax legal system.

Just look at how these criminals are able to create "no-go zones" throughout ghettos in Paris, Brussels, Malmo,etc...

"...roughly 15,000 Americans were shot to death last year, 67% by firearm" Huh? Any how were the other 33% shot to death? Slingshots maybe?

That's because the police in the US tend to do their job...

EVIDENCE, my dear Watson, we need EVIDENCE...

"evidence" Ummm yes. Each person in jail was arrested at one point. To make it clear idiot, police arrest people. That's their job. How did people get into jail if they weren't arrested first?

What did they take a page from your countrymen and all surrender and put themselves in jail?

Some EVIDENCE:

In the Washington Times (front page) today:

Gang terrorizes train in France

PARIS -- A gang of more that 20 youths - thought to be North African immigrants - terrorized hundreds of train passengers in a rampage of violence, robbery and sexual assault on New Year's Day, French officials said yesterday.......The opposition Socialist Party said it viewed the incident with "astonishment". It said "such acts show a worrying lack of security" and questioned why it took so long for police to rescue the passengers and why so few arrests were made. [bolding mine]

Sorry for not putting in link...sometimes articles I can not find on web..

ok, here is gang story