At 15:02 17/05/99 EDT, you wrote:
>Dans un courrier dat=E9 du 17/05/99 18:39:11 , BP Johnsson a =E9crit :
>
>> ABSOLUTELY NOT. IMNSHO the Union is undemocratic, and the way "European
>> Union adaptation" was used as an excuse for all manner of unpopular
>> measures that were in the end not relevant to Sweden's entry into the
union
>> made me vote against the entry. Now that we are there the best we can=
do,
>> however, is to do our best to make it more democratic.
>
>The French say goes that the only way to forge a nation from different=20
>peoples is warfare, either against those unwilling to join or against
another=20
>country to unite common will, fear and glory.
>To make it short, I doubt you can make up a country with French and Swedes=
=20
>unless the Swedes EDUCATE the French first.
>The current European Union is already too much of a democratic one from a=
=20
>French viewpoint. Just forget about Europe or get the French out.
>In France, the Parliament is NOTHING. We elect an allmighty president for 7=
=20
>years who is said to BE the French People and who (or the Prime Minister)=
=20
>makes the laws instead of the Parliament (he Constitution doesn't read long=
=20
>and complicated and this sums it up very accurately - esp. sections 34 and=
=20
>37). And when the constitution doesn't fit anymore, a strong man drafts one=
=20
>up and the people vote a yes-no referendum (we had a dozen constitutions=20
>drafted). I still remember that German fellow student telling our tutor he=
=20
>was horrified reading the French constitution and couldn't understand why
the=20
>judiciary and all courts are ruled by the Minister of the Interior (was=20
>Minister of Police), why firemen and half of the policemen are soldiers and=
=20
>why litigations vs. the State are handled by special courts made of...=
State=20
>civil servants (from ENA) and so on. For sure there aren't many political=
=20
>scandals over here ;-). France is just a very democratic country with very=
=20
>undemocratic structures.
>French would not rely on any kind of European Parliament. What would be=20
>normal to them is a strong European President (a French or Corsican one),=
=20
>elected for 7 years by the people.
>
The problem is that France is a democracy, but people here continue to
think like in an absolute monarchy. France is even more monarchist (in its
actual way of behaving) than most European parliamentary monarchies. I
don't think the problem comes from politics. Contrary to what seems to
think Mathias, our parliament really has powers. It can have the Prime
Minister (our chief of government, the President is the chief of state)
fired, and already did. As for the President and the Prime Minister, it is
true that they have many powers, but I think they are well balanced by the
Parliament. As for the fact that the Minister of the Interior rules the
courts, it is true, but it is changing (slowly, but really). The real
problem in politics comes from the oldness of most politicians in France
(see the Senate which is a real old people's home!).
No, the major problem in France comes from the administrations. Some of
them already existed when France was still a monarchy and most of them are
real fossiles. They have really monarchist reflexes (be confident with us,
we deal with everything, you can't do it by yourself. Anyway, you wouldn't
understand anything) and nearly paralyse our country. The gift of our
monarchist past :( .
>
>
>Mathias
>
>
Christophe Grandsire
|Sela Jemufan Atlinan C.G.
"Reality is just another point of view."
homepage : http://www.bde.espci.fr/homepage/Christophe.Grandsire/index.html