France is aflame, after decades of choosing suicidal unwisdom and stubborn denial of self-evident realities. Paris is convulsed by riots, while the lovely Town Hall of Limoges was just burnt to the ground. (I wonder if it had a “beautiful oak door”.)
It’s tempting to think of this as some sort of divine retribution — and it certainly does have much to do with Europe’s abandonment of its faith, both in God and itself — but it’s more fundamental, and, one might even say, more mechanical than that. The consequences of folly and sin are not punishment, any more than being burnt is “punishment” for putting your finger in the fire; the results are implicit in the decision itself.
4 Comments
Maybe a smidgen of pushback here Malcolm. Rioting is just what they do in France, something as French as brie, having affairs, and the Eiffel Tower.
Speaking of that great nation, I look forward to seeing the new de Gaulle film when it comes here, the popularity of which suggests the daughter of the church still has a few teeth in her head. https://variety.com/2026/film/global/french-wwii-de-gaulle-u-s-distribution-with-samuel-goldwyn-films-1236858666/
Finally, if I may I hope Whitewall is doing okay, all things obviously considering. I miss his presence.
Right-wing bloggers tell me the rioters are all Africans from the Maghreb and points south. The MSM tells me they are just Frenchmen. I am absolutely sure the MSM would lie about it if the right-wing bloggers are right, but I’m still looking for objective information.
You are right that folly is self-punishing. The same can be said of sin. Folly and sin might very well be defined as conduct that leads eventually to misery and pain.
The Morlocks will always hate the Eloi, and they will hate them especially where class conflict and race conflict are combined. And of course where the Eloi pay for schools in which the Morlocks are told their beef is real.
Jason,
Yes, “jaquerie” is nothing new for France – but what’s different here is that this isn’t just endogenous. Europe has allowed itself to be invaded by a sullen and hostile alien horde, and matters are coming to a head.
JMS,
“You are right that folly is self-punishing. The same can be said of sin.”
I did!