B E B E R E

I do hope that mon ami du loin is doing alright. He's old enough to take care of himself, but a girl has a right to be concerned.

I see that there's been a silent march against the violence in Aulnay-Sous-Bois this morning, where 2000-3000 people walked the streets in a show of solidarity with authorities. The mayor of that particular suburb stated that the march was a sign that the laws of the Republic applid to all and that they were not going to give themselves over to violence.

Of course, then there's the "beurre" view: "Of course we are all opposed to the violence. Sarkozy, however, was the one who set things off, and he's not to be excused."

Sarkozy, in case you don't remember, is the one who called those who started the violence thugs. Seems like an apt description to me. If they happened to be maghrebin, well, there you go. Maghrebin and thug are not mutually exclusive terms. To try to shift the blame in this way is a great example of the decadence of PC, I think.

***
Here is a discussion as to whether the riots were organized acts (with a fair bit of prior planning), or 'crimes of passion' fuelled by emotion and the moment. As to the islamification of the movement: It can't be conclusively proven at this time, according to Paris's head prosecutor, Yves Bot. "At the moment, we can say that this is a movement directed primarily against the Republic and that it's not yet taken any sort of philosophical or ideological (communautauriste) turn."

The head of SOS Racisme called for a discussion that would go beyond simple investigation of the events and would address the futures of the urban ghettos. (Not a bad idea. A lot of these places are pits and tend to get ignored.)

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Now I see that the rioting's spread across the country. Not good. What on earth's going on? Goodness. Denmark, too?