And are we doomed to slowly descend into this societal hell?
And was Socrates right that Democracy means chaos and that the best form of government for human beings is an autocracy?
Well French priests founded Notre Dame and French Canadians were the first explorers of all North America. Did you pass grade school or your education systeme is that bad?
Democrats, Independents and more than a few Republicans want to make sure we don't slip into one. It's not like France and other Democracies aren't facing concentrated and deliberate attacks from nearby Autocracies bent on taking them over. Once the U.S. gets back on its feet by 2028, we'll add our weight/power to theirs and make sure the tide turns in our favor.
Stemming from the Parisian Rive Gauche or Left Bank. In Paris, it was known as a liberal enclave. Many artists, writer, poets and "free-thinkers" settled into that "arrondissement" or administrative district/sub-division.
Those in the Rive Droite (Right Bank) were more conservative and frowned upon their behavior, in general. Residents of La Rive Droite settled in near the Louvre, the Champs-Élysées, the Opéra Garnier, the Marais and Montmartre. It is traditionally perceived as more chic, lively and grandiose than the Left Bank.
They need Le Pen to win the next election. Marine Le Pen, leader of France’s National Rally (RN), is running for the 2027 presidential election and is currently the frontrunner in polls, projected to secure around 36% of the first-round vote, with a likely runoff against far-left Jean‑Luc Mélenchon.
Le Pen launched her campaign on October 25, 2026 in Orléans, framing it as a “Renaissance for France” and promising a “national rebirth”. She is riding high on nationwide protests and unrest over cost of living, inflation, and public safety, which she says expose France’s government as weak and out of touch.
Bonne chance, Marine.
Going back to the 1840s, Strasbourg area.
...on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,919,745. Alsatian culture is characterized by a blend of German and French influences.
From 1982 to 2016, Alsace was the smallest administrative région in metropolitan France, consisting of the Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin departments. Since World War II most Alsatians primarily speak French.
Alsace was part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, but after defeat in the Thirty Years' War it was annexed by France in the 17th century. In 1871, it became part of the newly founded German Empire, forming part of Alsace-Lorraine. Alsace was returned to France in 1919, but was reincorporated into Germany in 1940. After 1944 it again became French.
Source: Wiki
The debate was over whether these ancestors should be considered French or German. I had a work friend from Germany, so I asked him, he looked at me quizzically and said: "What language did they speak? If you live in Germany but speak French, you are French. If you live in France and speak German, you are German.". I laughed and said I have no idea what language they spoke.