Attal, farmers and the authority
François Soquet, Ugine (Savoie)
On January 30, Gabriel Attal, in his general policy declaration, marked his determination in two shocking sentences: “You break, you repair, you dirty, you clean! You challenge authority, we teach you to respect it!” Three weeks later, using slurry and “breaking” tractors, buildings were “dirty”, panels were “stolen and broken”, under the impassive eye of the police. Whatever the fairness of the fight, there is a very uncomfortable collision… (“Agricultural Show: Gabriel Attal’s warning“, published on Lexpress.fr on February 26)
Macron’s thoughtless ideas
Paul Perret, Montmorency (Val-d’Oise)
To judge the quality of a person, I have always asked myself the following question: “If I had a company, would I put him in charge of it?” In view of Emmanuel Macron’s results in terms of the economy, immigration, security and his ill-considered international ideas – coalition the States against Hamas, possibly engaging the French army on the Ukrainian front – the answer seems obvious. He is neither de Gaulle nor Clemenceau. On the other hand, he would make a very good Jack Lang. (“Sending troops to Ukraine: Emmanuel Macron’s problem“, published on Lexpress.fr on February 27)
From the Alexandre III Bridge to the Navalny Bridge?
Xavier Viollet, Paris
France would honor itself by temporarily renaming the Alexandre-III bridge in Paris “Alexeï-Navalny bridge”, at least for the duration of the Olympics. It would be a way of showing our attachment to Russia – but not to just any. (“‘From Stalin to Putin, nothing has changed’: Navalny-Sharansky, letters to the test of the gulag“, published on Lexpress.fr on February 28)
RSF against CNews
Alain Toncourt, Largentière (Ardèche)
Concerning the “RSF-CNews affair”, the only reasonable, democratic and truly pluralist solution would, in my opinion, consist of applying to the audiovisual sector the same rule as for the written press: “external pluralism”. In other words: let the viewer choose. Or, like me, flip between channels to form your own opinion. It is therefore necessary to modify the 1986 law, because the audiovisual landscape has completely changed. Imposing pluralism with a very limited number of channels was essential during the vote on this text; today, thanks to the expansion of the offer and the remote control, it is unnecessary. (“CNews, Arcom and RSF: behind the scenes of a liar poker game“, published on Lexpress.fr on February 20)
The causes of the agricultural crisis
Francis Frey, Colmar (Haut-Rhin)
If the French agricultural trade balance remains positive, it melts from year to year like snow in the sun. The reasons for this are multiple, linked to regulatory, social and administrative differences, in a Europe which has still not succeeded in harmonizing the conditions of its agricultural production. Factory farms are thus more numerous among our neighbors than in France, where the slightest project of this scale arouses reluctance. Furthermore, the minimum wage here is 1,747 euros, compared to 816 euros in Poland and 604 euros in Romania. Finally, France continues to distinguish itself by the adoption of standards which often go beyond the framework defined by Europe, particularly in the phytosanitary field. (“Free trade treaties, (too) easy culprits of the crisis“, L’Express of February 1)
Exceptional badinter, but…
Jacques Mansard, Prendeignes (Lot)
Mr. Badinter was a respectable and exceptional person, but, if it is still possible to express all opinions, it seems to me that he sometimes let himself be carried away by a humanism that was as admirable as it was exacerbated. When another nation endangers our freedoms, even our lives, our leaders order us to kill innocent people obeying the orders of their leader. But, when one or more individuals kill one or more of our fellow citizens, these same leaders forbid us from killing in the name of guilty indulgence. There would be much to say about this paradox, the fruit of a respectable humanism, if it is not exacerbated. (“Robert Badinter, a Righteous One of the Republic“, L’Express of February 14)
Spying: find all our investigations
Our great story about the master spy who revolutionized the DGSE; our revelations about the director of L’Express who worked secretly for the KGB; the great Parisian school which serves as a recruitment pool for intelligence services around the world; the methods of the French secret services; Latin America infiltrated by Russian and Chinese secret agents… The journalists of L’Express – and, in particular, the editor-in-chief of the society department, Etienne Girard – maintain a certain passion for espionage. Our readers too, since many of you have shown a keen interest in our stories on the subject. All of our articles and podcasts on this theme can be found on Lexpress.fr and on our mobile application.
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