tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34034338743511930332024-03-14T04:01:44.988+01:00LITOTESLittérature Opinions Traversées Escapades / Literature Opinions Travels EscapadesMaxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-74636814719328356492015-03-14T22:04:00.002+01:002015-03-25T21:45:51.915+01:00The Last Days of Peter Bergmann. Really?Watch this 19-mn documentary by Ciaran Cassidy:<br />
http://aeon.co/video/psychology/the-last-days-of-peter-bergmann-a-short-mystery-film/<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FTlhdxEieZY/VQSiL8pJKlI/AAAAAAAAATM/ImPL73Ix9K4/s1600/Peter%2BBergmann.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FTlhdxEieZY/VQSiL8pJKlI/AAAAAAAAATM/ImPL73Ix9K4/s1600/Peter%2BBergmann.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peter Bergmann outside Sligo City Hotel</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
And read whatever you can find on the case (there isn't so much), for example this <i>Irish Independent</i> article:<br />
http://www.independent.ie/regionals/sligochampion/news/mystery-mans-last-surprise-27570679.html<br />
<br />
or this unidentified dead person report issued by the German police (<u>IMAGE MAY BE DISTRESSING</u>):<br />
http://www.bka.de/nn_198456/DE/Fahndungen/Personen/UnbekannteTote/IrlandMann/IrlandMann.html<br />
<br />
I found both the story and Cassidy's film captivating. I read it won awards at various film festivals and I feel that is entirely deserved. I'd like to see Cassidy's previous film called Collaboration horizontale. Judging from website comments and discussion forums, I'm not the only one who has become engrossed in this mystery. <br />
<br />
<u>SPOILER ALERT - WATCH THE FILM BEFORE READING THE REST OF THIS POST</u><br />
<br />
Now here's my point - and as far as I know I'm the first one to make it publicly. Any information you can send <u>to support or refute</u> my theory is welcome. I<u> think there is a strong probability that the film is a hoax.</u> I have no evidence, but there is a whole series of clues that set me thinking about it:<br />
<ul>
<li>a senior police officer who's been working on an Austria-related case for 4 years and talks about "a place in Austria called Wien, W-I-E-N"? Hmm.</li>
<li>the bus driver sounds a tad too dramatic (acting?)</li>
<li>I am no specialist, but it seemed to me that CCTV footage is too good to be true: for example, 'Peter Bergmann' is conveniently facing the camera when reading his papers at the café; we have really good close-ups on him (think of how hard it is to see the faces of suspected criminals on 'real' CCTV footage they show us on TV)</li>
<li>there is a LinkedIn page for John O'Reilly, Detective Superintendent at Sligo Garda station (see also this <i>Irish Examiner</i> article mentioning him about an unrelated case http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/girl-kept-escaping-from-care-prior-to-her-death-233395.html) - but the film credits call him Detective Superintendent John Reilly (without the O')</li>
<li>the German police report refers to death-by-drowning, but in the film we are told (by the coroner?) that there was no water in PB's lungs and that the cause of death is unknown</li>
<li>the last words of the film are ('John Reilly' speaking): "...Peter Bergmann does not exist. It's highly likely that he never did". A metafictional wink?</li>
</ul>
<br />
My assumption is that there really was a man called Peter Bergmann found dead at Rosses Point, whose body was never claimed, but the purple plastic bag, the taxi ride to the beach and the whole hotel shebang are fiction. Which makes the film really great as such, like William Boyd's <i>Nat Tate</i> or Jean-Teddy Filippe's <i>Documents interdits</i>. I am sure some people say they remember the case back in 2009. But then again, maybe they really do.Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-10681878217152781442014-11-13T11:04:00.003+01:002014-11-13T11:09:05.106+01:00Vive la science !Voici coup sur coup deux avancées scientifiques majeures que l'on doit à la coopération européenne : la découverte du boson de Higgs par le CERN (Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire) le 4 juillet 2012, et hier 12 novembre 2014 le premier atterrissage contrôlé sur une comète, piloté par l'ESA (European Space Agency) avec la collaboration de divers organismes associés.<br />
<br />
La valeur de ces avancées réside en grande partie dans les travaux qu'elles permettent et qui vont suivre, une affaire de plusieurs mois voire plusieurs années. Pour l'instant, on peut se réjouir de deux choses au moins :<br />
<br />
1. Quand on y met des moyens et de la volonté, qu'on fédère les intelligences et les subventions, l'Europe, ça marche !<br />
2. Les deux événements, surtout l'atterrissage de Philae sur la comète, ont captivé une bonne partie du grand public, signe que l'on peut renouer avec l'enthousiasme des découvertes et de la connaissance, face à la suspicion qui se manifeste parfois à l'encontre du progrès scientifique et technique.<br />
<br />
Et puisque ce blog est dédié à relier actualité et littérature, je ne serai pas original en me tournant du côté de Jules Verne, mais du moins vers un de ses romans les moins connus dont je recommande la lecture : <i>Hector Servadac</i>. Nous sommes-là dans la science-fiction, puisque l'histoire est celle de quelques Terriens embarqués sur une comète venue effleurer la Terre,<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tEWBWjlGmBc/VGSA-XFLlvI/AAAAAAAAASo/0W7KulpZN5U/s1600/com%C3%A8te.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tEWBWjlGmBc/VGSA-XFLlvI/AAAAAAAAASo/0W7KulpZN5U/s200/com%C3%A8te.jpg" width="175" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Les héros de Jules Verne gambadant sur la comète Gallia</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
et qui profitent de ce moyen de transport improvisé pour voyager dans le système solaire. Dans les nombreuses interviews qu'il a données ces dernières vingt-quatre heures, l'astrophysicien André Brahic relie lui aussi cette relance de la conquête spatiale avec l'esprit des grandes découvertes du XVIe siècle. Et dernier détail : l'un des astronomes du roman de Verne s'appelle... Palmyrin Rosette. En plus des références égyptiennes, les inventeurs de la sonde Rosetta lui auraient-ils fait un clin d’œil ?<br />
<br />
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Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-69151146437473848472014-06-25T17:06:00.000+02:002014-06-25T17:18:57.634+02:00Concert Bonnet/Poulsen<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tneDEOpR1nQ/U6rjs2CBLvI/AAAAAAAAASU/Iep9UpymFuw/s1600/P5310077.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tneDEOpR1nQ/U6rjs2CBLvI/AAAAAAAAASU/Iep9UpymFuw/s1600/P5310077.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large; text-align: left;">Richard <a href="http://richardbonnet.fr/site/" target="_blank">Bonnet</a> (soufflant dans sa guitare à travers un bidule) et </span><span style="font-size: large; text-align: left;">Hasse <a href="http://www.poulsen.fr/" target="_blank">Poulsen </a>au </span><a href="http://lemaquisdevareilles.fr/lemaquis/index.php#" style="font-size: x-large; text-align: left;" target="_blank">Maquis de Vareilles</a><span style="font-size: large; text-align: left;">, Yonne, 30 mai 2014.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-12674087733627916352014-06-06T10:42:00.000+02:002014-06-06T10:59:43.764+02:00On te dit qu'Il revient<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_41IM99M0U4/U5F9OsINqrI/AAAAAAAAAR4/TvxnN8bGcoM/s1600/0006-3-Maurice-Thorez.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_41IM99M0U4/U5F9OsINqrI/AAAAAAAAAR4/TvxnN8bGcoM/s1600/0006-3-Maurice-Thorez.jpg" height="200" width="145" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Maurice Thorez</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">En 1953, Aragon publiait un poème ridicule sur le retour de Maurice Thorez en France. Difficile de croire, notamment en ce jour de célébrations du début de la libération de l'Europe, que ce fut le même qui écrivit "La rose et le réséda", "L'affiche rouge" et tant d'autres poèmes magnifiques. </span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-N3q-baF1SbM/U5GCMXOASEI/AAAAAAAAASI/BdyC-xxl3s0/s1600/Nicolas-Sarkozy_pics_390.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-N3q-baF1SbM/U5GCMXOASEI/AAAAAAAAASI/BdyC-xxl3s0/s1600/Nicolas-Sarkozy_pics_390.jpg" height="127" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Nicolas Sarkozy</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">Une fois encore, (mauvaise) littérature et actualité, ainsi qu'actualité d'hier et d'aujourd'hui, se télescopent, car voici que les fans de Nicolas Sarkozy font assaut de déclarations grandiloquentes sur le retour annoncé de leur vedette. Florilège, après des extraits du poème d'Aragon : </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Book Antiqua';">"Il revient ! Les vélos, sur le chemin des villes,</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Book Antiqua';">Se parlent, rapprochant leur nickel ébloui.</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Book Antiqua';">Tu l'entends, batelier ? Il revient. Quoi ? Comment ?
Il</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Book Antiqua';">Revient ! Je te le dis, docker. Il revient. Oui,</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Book Antiqua';">Il revient. Le wattman arrête la motrice :</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Book Antiqua';">Camarade, tu dis qu'Il revient, tu dis bien ?</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Book Antiqua';">Et l'employé du gaz interroge : Maurice</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Book Antiqua';">Reviendrait ? Mais comprends, on te dit qu'Il revient,</span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Book Antiqua';">Maurice...</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Book Antiqua';">Il revient. Je redis ces deux mots-là sans cesse." </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">"Je peux vous dire : il faut qu'il revienne" (Roger Karoutchi)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"Il n’a pas le choix, il doit revenir. […] Nous avons besoin d’un vrai leader, nous avons besoin d’un chef" (Nadine Morano)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"Je crois que face à ces circonstances historiques, il est temps que le devoir appelle Nicolas Sarkozy" (Geoffroy Didier)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"Le courage, l'intelligence et la compétence ont un nom. Nicolas
SARKOZY.
Revenez Monsieur le Président, nous avons besoin de vous, pour nous, nos
enfants, nos petits enfants, qu'ils puissent dans uns [sic] France juste,
douce et sereine." Philippe (citation figurant sur la page d'accueil du site nicolasreviens.fr)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Ironiquement, j'ai trouvé dans ma boîte aux lettres il y a quelques jours la pub d'un marabout me promettant "le retour de l'être aimé". J'ai à peine lu ; c'était peut-être un tract de l'UMP ?</span>Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-48451965855672966932014-05-26T09:44:00.001+02:002014-06-06T10:50:19.594+02:00Europe : plébiscite pour que rien ne change<span style="font-size: large;">Le principal enseignement des élections européennes est clair : les Européens sont majoritairement satisfaits de l'Europe telle qu'elle fonctionne, et souhaitent continuer dans la même direction. La reconduction du groupe majoritaire (le PPE, droite) et la confirmation du S&D (gauche) dans son statut de principal groupe d'opposition en atteste.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">La nouveauté, c'est la percée de partis europhobes, en particulier d'extrême-droite. Ils arriveront peut-être à constituer un ou deux groupes distincts, autour du Ukip britannique et du FN français notamment. On voit mal à cette heure comment ils parviendraient à infléchir la politique générale du Parlement.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Du point de vue français, le résultat est également très clair : il y a UNE grande vainqueur, politicienne hors-pair, dont il faut bien reconnaître tout le talent, même si on ne partage pas ses convictions. Je parle évidemment d'Angela Merkel. François Hollande sort diminué du vote, sa légitimité pour demander une nouvelle orientation à la politique du Conseil est nulle, et la chancelière, qui s'oppose à tout infléchissement de la politique actuelle, peut remercier les électeurs du Front national d'avoir affaibli les positions françaises à ce point.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Conclusion : c'est une occasion manquée pour tous ceux qui voulaient changer quelque chose. Le Parlement est reconduit, le pouvoir continuera d'être entre les mains du Conseil (c'est-à-dire des chefs d’États et de gouvernements), pas au Parlement. Les nations (Merkel, Cameron... comme Sarkozy en son temps) vont continuer de tuer dans l’œuf toute tentative de fédéralisation dans les domaines clés : économie, fiscalité, affaires étrangères, défense, sans parler de l'éducation ni de la protection sociale... qui relèvent aujourd'hui exclusivement ou quasi-exclusivement des États souverains. C'est d'ailleurs la plus grande victoire des europhobes en France et au Royaume-Uni d'avoir réussi à faire croire qu'il en était autrement.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-19328626655171626662014-03-16T12:49:00.002+01:002014-06-06T10:50:51.921+02:00Ukraine, Russia and Gogol<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Scroll down for English version </i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PvYB55teFMM/UyWPldW6PrI/AAAAAAAAARc/V-J0dETPy1Y/s1600/Russia-Stamp-2009-NGogol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PvYB55teFMM/UyWPldW6PrI/AAAAAAAAARc/V-J0dETPy1Y/s1600/Russia-Stamp-2009-NGogol.jpg" height="200" width="152" /></a>Peu s'en souviennent aujourd'hui, mais l'actuelle situation politique en Ukraine a connu il y a quatre ans quelques prémices littéraires. On se préparait à célébrer le 200e anniversaire de Nicolas Gogol, né en Ukraine, pays qui servit de cadre à plusieurs de ses récits et nouvelles, mais d'expression russe, ayant vécu en Russie la plus grande partie de sa vie et enterré à Moscou. Les autorités des deux pays s'étaient disputées : Gogol, écrivain russe ou ukrainien ? Voici ce qu'en disait Igor Zolotussky, un spécialiste russe de Gogol :</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">"Il ne peut pas y avoir de débat car <i>il n'existe pas d'identité nationale ukrainienne distincte</i>. Gogol écrivait et pensait en russe. C'est un grand écrivain russe, point final." (c'est moi qui souligne)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">A l'heure où je poste cet article, un référendum est en cours sur le rattachement de la Crimée à la Russie, avec, nous dit-on, des bulletins sans enveloppes, des urnes transparentes et des paramilitaires pro-russes en faction devant les bureaux de vote...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Four years ago some literary/diplomatic incident between Ukraine and Russia foreshadowed the current political situation. The preparations for the 200th anniversary of Nikolai Gogol's birth caused a dispute between the two countries. Was he a Ukrainian or a Russian writer?Gogol was born in Ukraine, whose culture and folklore influenced some of his stories, but he wrote in Russian, spent most of his life in Russia and was buried in Moscow. This is what Igor Zolotussky, a Russian specialist of Gogol, then said:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">"There can
be no such discussion because <i>there is no such thing as a separate
Ukrainian national identity</i>. Gogol wrote and thought in Russian. He was a
great Russian writer, full stop." (my italics)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">As I write, Crimea is voting on whether to rejoin Russia or stay with Ukraine - with no enveloppes for ballots, transparent ballot boxes and pro-Russian militias deployed outside polling stations...</span>Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-10410999969239113682014-02-11T12:04:00.002+01:002014-06-06T10:52:35.722+02:00Murphy riots and Dieudonné<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pfdljraHr6M/UvoDbwQiYbI/AAAAAAAAAQY/2khToRLAxCE/s1600/City+Park+St+Murphy+Riots+1867+(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pfdljraHr6M/UvoDbwQiYbI/AAAAAAAAAQY/2khToRLAxCE/s1600/City+Park+St+Murphy+Riots+1867+(2).jpg" height="161" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-size: xx-small;">Murphy riots in City Park Street, Birmingham, 1867</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0cm;">
<span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-size: large;">I
was struck by the similarities between the Murphy riots in Britain in
the 1860s and the recent Dieudonné affair in France – a rather small-scale repeat
and in a different context, but with still much in common: </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 0cm;">
<span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="text-indent: -18pt;">1.
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="text-indent: -18pt;">Murphy was an obsessive anti-Catholic paranoid
(“every Popish priest is a murderer,
a cannibal, a liar, and a pickpocket”). Dieudonné is an obsessive anti-Semitic
paranoid (“les gros escrocs de la planète sont tous des juifs” – “the big crooks
in the world are all Jews”).</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 0cm;">
<span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="text-indent: -18pt;">2.
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="text-indent: -18pt;">Murphy’s
lectures in the North of England gathered impressive numbers of sympathisers.
So do Dieudonné’s shows in his Paris theatre and throughout the country.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 0cm;">
<span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="text-indent: -18pt;">3.
</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="text-indent: -18pt;">Murphy
presented himself as a champion of free speech, and so does Dieudonné. The
protestant Evangelical Mission (a strongly anti-Catholic organisation) said in Murphy’s
defence: “</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="text-indent: -18pt;">Englishmen are being
deprived by a Military Despotism at the dictation of ROMISH PRIESTS.” And Riposte
Laïque (a far-right organization): “Le pouvoir se sert de Dieudonné pour
interdire la liberté d’expression” – “the government uses Dieudonné to ban free
speech.”</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 0cm;">
<span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="text-indent: -18pt;">4. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="text-indent: -18pt;">The then Home Secretary </span><span style="text-indent: -24px;">personally</span><span style="text-indent: -24px;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -18pt;">intervened against Murphy,
saying “his words [were] only fit to be addressed to thieves and murderers”.
The French Home Secretary condemned “Dieudonné’s racist and anti-Semitic words
most firmly,” and won the legal battle to ban his most controversial show.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm; text-align: left; text-indent: 0cm;">
<span style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; text-indent: 0cm;">Fortunately, nothing like the Murphy riots happened, and
only minor incidents have been reported here and there. But the question posed
by Murphy’s lectures and by Dieudonnés shows is obviously the challenge they
present to political liberalism: should we or should we not allow total freedom
of speech? Where should we draw the line between free speech and incitation to
violence and hatred? Your reactions are most welcome.</span></span></div>
Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-88002576707730296672014-02-03T21:38:00.001+01:002014-06-06T10:53:08.122+02:00John Galsworthy et le mariage pour tous<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Nous avons assisté hier à une nouvelle démonstration de force de la "Manif pour tous". Il était amusant ce matin de comparer les unes du <i>Figaro </i>et de <i>Libération</i>, sans surprise au demeurant : "Grande manifestation pacifique" pour les uns, "Manip pour tous" pour les autres... Ce qui est curieux, c'est de manifester contre des moulins à vent : personne n'a jamais voulu enseigner la théorie du genre dans les écoles (d'ailleurs ça n'existe pas, c'est une traduction maladroite et trompeuse de l'anglais <i>gender studies</i>, dont on peut penser par ailleurs ce que l'on veut, mais si on les critique, critiquons-les pour ce qu'elles sont), et le gouvernement répète à qui veut l'entendre que ni PMA ni GPA ne sont à l'ordre du jour... Il s'agissait surtout de faire un procès en illégitimité au président et au gouvernement socialistes, et ce n'est pas la première fois que l'on constate que la droite a tendance à considérer que le pouvoir, pour le plus grand bien de tous, doit par essence rester sa chose.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZmcbHRtB-Lc/Uu_9vj3qPKI/AAAAAAAAAPU/VxvF0KQCtNc/s1600/forsyte.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZmcbHRtB-Lc/Uu_9vj3qPKI/AAAAAAAAAPU/VxvF0KQCtNc/s1600/forsyte.jpg" /></a></span> <br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Forsyte Saga</i> - 1967 television adaptation</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Cela dit, rien n'indique que PMA, GPA, et, pour élargir le débat, outils de surveillance généralisée des populations ou autres modifications génétiques, ne deviendront pas un jour réalité, illégale puis parfois légale. Il est raisonnable de penser que ce qui techniquement possible finit par advenir. Les peurs des manifestants d'hier ne sont pas à ranger au rang des fantasmes d'illuminés, toute arrière-pensée politique mise à part, je n'y reviens pas. J'étais replongé ces derniers temps dans la lecture de John Galsworthy, surtout <i>The Country House</i>, mais l'auteur est surtout célèbre pour <i>The Forsyte Saga</i>, où on lit ceci :</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">"Men are in fact quite unable to control their own inventions; they at best develop adaptability to the new conditions those inventions create."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Ainsi avons-nous dû nous adapter à la menace nucléaire, à l'invention du téléphone et aux trains à grande vitesse. Il faudra nous adapter (si ces choses deviennent techniquement et financièrement réalisables) aux innovations de la génétique et de la biologie. On devra bien sûr se poser la question du bien et du mal, mais comme on se la pose pour les drogues ou la prostitution : en sachant que le but ne peut pas raisonnablement être d'éradiquer le problème. Une autre citation de Galsworthy pour finir, histoire de pimenter un peu plus le débat sur le mariage homosexuel :</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">"Society is built on marriage... marriage and its consequences."</span>
<!-- Blogger automated replacement: "https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2F4.bp.blogspot.com%2F-ZmcbHRtB-Lc%2FUu_9vj3qPKI%2FAAAAAAAAAPU%2FVxvF0KQCtNc%2Fs1600%2Fforsyte.jpg&container=blogger&gadget=a&rewriteMime=image%2F*" with "https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZmcbHRtB-Lc/Uu_9vj3qPKI/AAAAAAAAAPU/VxvF0KQCtNc/s1600/forsyte.jpg" -->Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-59148970930362999182013-11-10T12:34:00.004+01:002014-06-06T10:53:47.833+02:00Typhoon<span style="font-size: large;">10,000 are reported dead in the Philippines after typhoon Haiyan hit the country. The tragic irony is that climate change - yes, climate change is to blame - has almost disappeared from world political discussions. As John Vidal wrote in <i>The Guardian</i> on Friday 8 Nov.: "From being top of the global political agenda just four years ago,
climate change is now barely mentioned by the political elites in London
or Washington, Tokyo or Paris. Australia is not even sending a junior
minister to Warsaw [<i>the next conference on climate</i>]. The host, Poland, will be using the meeting to
celebrate its coal industry." In the long term, this means great economic, social and environmental turmoil everywhere, including in Europe, as politicians should constantly be reminded of.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8yMgP4ZHE3s/Un9w1SZkjEI/AAAAAAAAAO0/cwInTACWbzo/s1600/typhoon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8yMgP4ZHE3s/Un9w1SZkjEI/AAAAAAAAAO0/cwInTACWbzo/s200/typhoon.jpg" height="200" width="141" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">On the literary side, here is a short passage from Joseph Conrad's <i>Typhoon</i>, one of his best novels:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"Observing the steady fall of the barometer, Captain MacWhirr thought,
"There's some dirty weather knocking about." This is precisely what he
thought. He had had an experience of moderately dirty weather—the
term dirty as applied to the weather implying only moderate discomfort to
the seaman. Had he been informed by an indisputable authority that the end
of the world was to be finally accomplished by a catastrophic disturbance
of the atmosphere, he would have assimilated the information under the
simple idea of dirty weather, and no other, because he had no experience
of cataclysms, and belief does not necessarily imply comprehension. The
wisdom of his county had pronounced by means of an Act of Parliament that
before he could be considered as fit to take charge of a ship he should be
able to answer certain simple questions on the subject of circular storms
such as hurricanes, cyclones, typhoons; and apparently he had answered
them, since he was now in command of the Nan-Shan in the China seas during
the season of typhoons. But if he had answered he remembered nothing of
it. He was, however, conscious of being made uncomfortable by the clammy
heat. He came out on the bridge, and found no relief to this oppression.
The air seemed thick. He gasped like a fish, and began to believe himself
greatly out of sort."
</span>Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-62728380353368885392013-09-08T17:29:00.000+02:002013-09-08T17:36:34.362+02:00Syrian Fiction and MusicHello everyone,<br />
Back to blogging after a loooooong summer pause.<br />
Syria seems to be on everybody's minds at the moment, and we all ask ourselves whether we should support some form of military action. I do, for the simple reason that at this stage I can't think of any other form of action, and because to me the use of chemical weapons against civilians <i>is </i>a red line. If it is not, what the hell is? But I'd like to offer a different perspective on Syria today, and recommend <i>Sarmada</i>, a novel by Fadi Azzam, a journalist now in exile in Dubai. The truth is I haven't read it, so I can't say much about it, except that the New Yorker found it very good. You'll find the review on their website. I also recommend the Syrian music band Tanjaret Daghet, whose name means "pressure cooker," because as lead vocalist and guitar player Khaled Omran says, "if you don’t let the steam come out, there will be an explosion." Plenty of videos on Youtube.Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-82473639532460294532013-06-25T17:08:00.003+02:002013-06-25T17:19:37.481+02:00PRISM and total surveillance<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O967LJkLarQ/UcmzzQR0GmI/AAAAAAAAAOc/_AZF_9A1Qus/s1600/GCHQ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="140" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O967LJkLarQ/UcmzzQR0GmI/AAAAAAAAAOc/_AZF_9A1Qus/s200/GCHQ.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">GCHQ</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB">PRISM, the </span><span lang="EN-GB">United States</span><span lang="EN-GB">’ global electronic surveillance programme, has hit the headlines
since Edward Snowden’s revelations. In the British press, the activities of the
GCHQ have been much commented on, and from what I have read I understand that as
I have been exchanging quite a few emails with UK correspondents over the past
few years, both professional and personal, they have all been stored or scanned
or analysed or whatever “they” do with them. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I see at least four possible
reactions to this. 1°) Outrage—breach of privacy! If our own governments don’t trust
us why should we trust them? Democracy is under threat. 2°) Irony—oh God, I
hope they won’t pass on my notes to some rival academic who could publish an
article on the yellow stockings motif in early Victorian fiction before me! 3°)
Condonation—seriously, how do you expect security services to prevent terror
attacks against us? 4°) Literary history—have authors discussed such issues in
novels?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB"> There is, of
course, George Orwell’s <b><i>1984</i></b>,
with its anticipation of the State’s total surveillance machine. On a smaller
scale, Jeremy Bentham’s <b>Panopticon</b> has long been used as a metaphor for surveillance
systems (Foucault, Zuboff) and many see the Internet as a form of modern
Panopticon. In <b><i>The Handmaid’s Tale</i></b>
by Margaret Atwood, “the omnipresence of Eyes, Angels, Guardians, and Aunts—all
agents of state sponsored repression—evoke an atmosphere of constant
surveillance and social control in which biblical mandate, fascist tactics, and
technology are all merged” (http://www.enotes.com). And in Philip K. Dick’s <b><i>A Scanner Darkly</i></b>, “the little people
are trapped in a total surveillance state where hologram cameras are routinely
used, every pay phone is tapped, supersonic tight beams are used for police
assassinations, and the closest friends inform on each other” (Darko Suvin, <i>New Boundaries in Political Science Fiction</i>).
Some of you may have seen Richard Linklater’s 2006 film adaptation, with Keanu
Reeves as Arctor/Fred.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">Think of more dystopian/utopian fiction on total surveillance?
Please leave a comment!</span></i></span></div>
Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-2252362251115368842013-06-14T18:55:00.000+02:002013-06-14T19:09:58.190+02:00L'anglais à l'Université<!--[if !mso]>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: FR;"><img height="248" id="il_fi" src="http://media.fontbureau.com/images/posts/2009/asterixobelix.jpg" style="padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="320" /><span style="font-size: large;">La dernière polémique en date concerne un article
de la récente loi sur l’enseignement supérieur autorisant les cursus en anglais
dans nos Universités. D’aucuns y voient la fin du français, voire de la France.
Jacques Attali, qui jadis prôna la mesure dans son rapport sur les clés de la
croissance, tonne contre : c’est qu’il veut se faire élire à l’Académie
française. Il y a je crois chez les opposants au projet (qui au passage ne
concernerait que 1% des cursus universitaires, et qui pour les grandes écoles
entérinerait une réalité de fait – mais chut !), il y a chez les opposants
donc, beaucoup de nostalgie du temps où le français était la langue des élites.
Or, si l’on veut que la langue française retrouve son influence de jadis, il faudrait
redonner à la France sa suprématie politique, militaire et économique sur
l’Europe et sur le monde. Une langue et une culture influentes, ce sont
d’abord, toujours, et tout à la fois, une armée plus puissante que celle des
autres, une démographie plus dynamique que celle des autres, des entreprises
conquérantes, des scientifiques et des ingénieurs innovants, et des moyens
financiers et matériels colossaux mis à leur service. Comment croyez-vous que
le grec, puis le latin, puis le français, sont devenus en leurs temps les
langues véhiculaires des esprits cultivés en Europe ? Les autres peuples
étaient-ils composés d’idiots qui n’avaient rien à dire ? Non : mais
leurs armées furent défaites par Alexandre, par César, par Louis XIV. Les
auteurs de polars américains, connus partout dans le monde, sont-ils meilleurs
que les Français, qui ont, n’est-ce pas, un tout petit peu plus de mal à
s’imposer hors hexagone ? Non : mais les Etats-Unis ont dix
porte-avions en activité, et la France un seul. Et une économie (encore) dominante.
Et Google, et Facebook, et YouTube. L’exemple du français devrait d’ailleurs
rassurer les passéistes : les autres langues n’ont pas disparu entre le
XVII<sup>e</sup> et le XX<sup>e</sup> siècles parce que les érudits et les
diplomates conversaient en français. Pourquoi le français, relégué au rang de
langue locale, disparaîtrait-il ? Il est d’ailleurs en expansion
constante : contrairement à une idée reçue, le nombre de francophones ne
cesse de croître partout dans le monde, ainsi que le nombre de non francophones
qui apprennent le français. Evidemment, leur nombre croît mon vite que celui
des non anglophones qui apprennent l’anglais, mais la langue de Tatiana de
Rosnay (auteur français le plus lu en Europe et aux Etats-Unis ces deux
dernières années) a encore de beaux jours devant elle, à condition que les pays
francophones ne ratent pas le train de la mondialisation et refusent de se
mettre à l’anglais. C’est paradoxal, mais pas contradictoire. Car les étudiants
en chimie ou en astrophysique chinois, indiens, allemands, brésiliens que l’on espère attirer par cette
mesure apprendront <i>aussi</i> le français
une fois chez nous, et seront des ambassadeurs de la culture française une fois
rentrés chez eux, pour peu qu’ils aient été bien accueillis. Quant aux chercheurs français, le recours à l'anglais s'impose pour eux, qu'on le veuille ou non. Il faut leur donner les moyens de se faire entendre dans le concert anglophone du savoir. Un érudit du Moyen-Age parlait latin, d'où qu'il soit. Aujourd'hui il parle anglais. Certes, à l'époque le latin n'était plus la langue maternelle de personne, contrairement à l'anglais aujourd'hui, ce qui place les autres en situation de handicap au départ. Mais peut-être aussi en situation d'avantage, tant il est vrai que parler plusieurs langues est un atout, et tant il est vrai que les populations anglophones dans leur ensemble, qui s'en mordront les doigts un jour, négligent les langues vivantes.</span></span></div>
Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-45303483452815888402013-04-26T10:00:00.000+02:002013-04-26T10:00:42.768+02:00Les crieurs publics<a href="http://www.kalipedia.com/kalipediamedia/historia/media/200707/12/hisespana/20070712klphishes_118.Ies.SCO.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.kalipedia.com/kalipediamedia/historia/media/200707/12/hisespana/20070712klphishes_118.Ies.SCO.jpg" width="131" /></a>Un peu partout en France, les crieurs publics font leur retour. On peut en entendre, entre autres, à Mayenne (en Mayenne), à Mirande (dans le Gers), à Auvers-sur-Oise (Val d'Oise) ou encore à Lyon et dans le Lauragais. On croyait le métier à jamais disparu : sa réapparition coïncide avec l'avènement de l'hyper-connexion de chacun aux réseaux d'information mondiaux. Les sociologues nous expliqueront ce paradoxe ; fidèle à l'idée première de ce blog (expliquer l'actualité par la littérature), je me contenterai de rappeler ici l'influence capitale du roman de Fred Vargas, <i>Pars vite et reviens tard </i>(2001), dans ce phénomène. D'autres crieurs publics habitent la fiction : c'est par exemple le métier de Lazarillo de Tormès, héros éponyme du premier roman picaresque de l'histoire littéraire européenne (1554). La littérature africaine leur fait une part plus belle encore ; on citera <i>Faralako </i>(1958), d'Emile Cissé, et <i>Ce sera à l'ombre des cocotiers</i> (1987) d'Ansoumane Doré.<br />
<img height="200" src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSw3IVjBTXktZM-I7VEXkGhYcqTAgkKEkUwUdDLBEboT8hkcO7L4A" width="126" />Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-67509176646323684422013-03-22T09:57:00.000+01:002013-03-22T09:57:03.668+01:00Of Bees and Men<br />
<i>Version française en-dessous</i><br />
<br />
Bees are back! But for how long? Their impending extermination could lead to some major environmental disaster, if nothing is done in time. Here is a good article on the subject: http://www.salon.com/2013/03/21/without_honeybees_we_may_cease_to_be/ On the philosophical and literary sides, two books I recommend are Bernard Mandeville's <i>The Fable of the Bees</i> (does what Mandeville wrote about 18th century England apply to today's Cyprus?), and <i>The Secret Life of Bees</i>, the 2002 best-seller by Sue Monk Kidd.<br />
<br />
Voici le printemps, et les abeilles vont faire leur grand retour dans nos jardins. C'est l'occasion de rappeler tout ce que nous leur devons, et que les menaces qui pèsent sur elles menacent l'ensemble des écosystèmes. Sur le plan philosophique et littéraire, on conseillera de relire la célèbre "parabole des abeilles et des frelons" de Saint-Simon<i> </i>(toujours d'actualité ?), et <i>Le Testament des abeilles</i> de Natacha Calestrémé (2012), un polar scientifique avec comme toile de fond le mystère de la surmortalité des abeilles. <br />
<br />
<br />Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-41043799109662399902013-01-20T16:01:00.000+01:002013-01-20T16:28:22.061+01:00Friends or foes? Qatar, Saudi Arabia and radical Islam<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 14.2pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US">French troops have been fighting
Islamic fundamentalists in </span><span lang="EN-US">Mali</span><span lang="EN-US"> for more than a week now, and will
probably be doing so for many months – with the help, let us hope, of African and
European armies. The irony of the situation is that Salafism has been financed
and exported to the region (and elsewhere) by countries like Qatar and Saudi
Arabia, officially considered partner countries to whom we sell weapons, buy
oil, and who invest massively in Europe: iconic places and institutions like Paris-Saint-Germain
Football Club, Harrod’s and the Shard (Europe’s highest building) in London,
and the Italian fashion house Valentino are owned by Qatari investors. We
should obviously feel worried about </span><span lang="EN-US">Qatar</span><span lang="EN-US"> pouring cash–and ideology?–into
</span><span lang="EN-US">France</span><span lang="EN-US">’s disadvantaged suburbs. It is time we mustered
political will and diplomatic ingenuity to clarify our relationship with </span><span lang="EN-US">Gulf States</span><span lang="EN-US">.</span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-size: large;"> Let me take the opportunity to remind readers that Saudi novelist <span style="font-size: large;">T</span>urki al-Hamad was arrested <span style="font-size: large;">in his country one month ago for his tweets on religion a<span style="font-size: large;">nd politics</span>.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 14.2pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: large;">Further reading:</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 14.2pt;">
<a href="http://www.france24.com/en/20120929-how-saudi-arabia-petrodollars-finance-salafist-winter-islamism-wahhabism-egypt" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">‘How Saudi petrodollars fuel rise of Salafism’</span></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 14.2pt;">
<a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2113159/Qatar-bought-Britain-They-Shard-They-Olympic-Village-And-dont-care-Lamborghinis-clamped-shop-Harrods.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">‘How Qatar bought Britain’</span></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 14.2pt;">
<a href="http://www.shariahfinancewatch.org/blog/2012/12/31/extremism-on-the-rise-in-zanzibar-thanks-to-saudi-money-and-islamic-charities/" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">‘“Extremism” on the Rise in Zanzibar–Thanks to Saudi Money and Islamic Charities’</span></a></div>
<br />
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</div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span>Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-86991594036496491332013-01-04T00:15:00.000+01:002013-01-04T00:15:27.725+01:00Depardieu becomes a Russian citizen<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img height="200" id="il_fi" src="http://mockingbird.creighton.edu/english/HJS/images/Oxford.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-bottom: 8px; padding-right: 8px; padding-top: 8px;" width="181" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Henry James</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img alt="Taking a snooze: Gerard was seen stocking on French cheese after he renounced new French tax laws " class="blkBorder" height="200" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/12/20/article-0-16985CA0000005DC-408_634x746.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="169" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Gérard </span><span style="font-size: small;">Depardieu</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Will Gérard
Depardieu become Belgian or Russian? Vladimir Putin signed the citizen grant yesterday. The actor said he would turn over his French passport and social
security card if he had to pay 75% of his incomes over 1m euros in tax. Please
note: the bill says ‘75% of incomes over 1m euros,’ <i>not</i> ‘75% of incomes’ as even serious newspapers sometimes write.
Which means the mega-rich will still be super-rich after paying the new tax,
thank you very much. David Cameron was one of the first to be ironic about it,
when he talked about rolling out the red carpet for wealthy French people – to
which Michel Sapin, the French Employment minister, replied that he’d be
curious to see what it is like to roll out a carpet over the sea. But forget
about Depardieu, Putin, and all the squabbling between European conservatives
and social democrats (the latter are always right, aren’t they?) Here are famous
authors who changed countries and sometimes languages and nationalities. Please continue the list! </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Henry James</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">:
became a British citizen and lost his American citizenship in 1915 in protest
against the </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">United States</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">’ reluctance
to join the war. Follow <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2009/jul/29/from-the-archive-henry-james" target="_blank">this link</a> to read the 1915 report from the <i>Guardian</i>'s archive.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Joseph Conrad</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">: born
a Russian citizen. Excerpt from Wikipedia article: ‘On </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">2 July 1886</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> he applied for
British nationality, which was granted on </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">19 August 1886</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">. However, having become a subject
of Queen </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Victoria</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">,
Conrad had not ceased to be a subject of Tsar Alexander III. To achieve the
latter, he had to make many visits to the Russian Embassy in </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">London</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> and
politely reiterate his request. He would later recall the Embassy's home at </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Belgrave
Square</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> in his novel <i>The Secret Agent</i>.<sup id="cite_ref-najder_1-16"> </sup>Finally, on </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">2 April 1889</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">, the Russian
Ministry of Home Affairs released "the son of a Polish man of letters,
captain of the British merchant marine" from the status of Russian subject.' </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Vladimir Nabokov</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">: born
Russian. His first nine novels were in Russian. His family left </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Russia</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> after
the Bolshevik Revolution. Became a </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">US</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">
citizen in 1945.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Milan</span></b><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">
Kundera</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">: left his native </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Czech
Republic</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">, then under Communist
rule, in 1975. Settled in </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">France</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> and
became a French citizen in 1981.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Maurice G. Dantec</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">: </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">France</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">’s
world famous (and politically controversial) sci-fi writer has been living in </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Quebec</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> since
1998 and became a Canadian citizen.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Marie NDiaye</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">: in
2009 the celebrated author of <i>Three
Strong Women</i> (<i>Trois Femmes Puissantes</i>)
explained that she had left </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">France</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> for </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Berlin</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> with
her partner and their children in 2007 largely because of Nicolas Sarkozy’s
election.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><b>Jonathan Littell</b>: the first American to be awarded the Prix Goncourt was granted French citizenship in 2007.</span></span></div>
Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-74246686883293614442012-12-11T09:40:00.000+01:002012-12-11T09:40:43.582+01:00La ténébreuse affaire DSK<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Dominique
Strauss-Kahn et Nafissatou Diallo sont parvenus hier à un accord financier
mettant un point final à l’affaire du Sofitel. On ne saura donc jamais ce qui s’est
passé dans la suite 2806. La procédure est courante dans le système judiciaire
américain ; vos journaux l’expliquent en détail. Aucun de ceux
que j’ai parcourus ne relève à quel point tout ceci est balzacien : l’argent
corrupteur et régulateur ; l’inconvenance d’une certaine presse ; le
pouvoir dont seul la mort peut faire passer l’envie (Berlusconi revient, a-t-on
appris hier ! Sarkozy se tient en embuscade ; DSK, blanchi, va-t-il
faire son retour en politique ?) ; et bien sûr, pour reprendre le
titre d’une des parties d’un roman de Balzac, « Ce que l’amour coûte aux
vieillards » (6 millions de dollars, murmure-t-on, dans le cas de DSK).</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-828NZYgOp9U/UMbvU2qmxfI/AAAAAAAAAMw/xTQPQfA4dZs/s1600/balzac.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-828NZYgOp9U/UMbvU2qmxfI/AAAAAAAAAMw/xTQPQfA4dZs/s320/balzac.jpg" width="196" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Voici
un extrait d</span><span style="font-size: large;">e <i>Splendeurs et misères des
courtisanes</i> (Diallo n’en est pas une, attention, le <i>New York Post</i> vient, lui aussi,</span><span style="font-size: large;"> de lui verser des sous pour avoir
écrit le contraire). C’est la scène où Nucingen, le vieux financier, négocie certains
arrangements monétaires avec une dame…</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">« D'irritations
en irritations et de dix mille en dix mille francs, le banquier était arrivé à
offrir soixante mille francs à madame de Saint-Estève, qui lui répondit par un
refus grimacé à désespérer un macaque. Après une nuit agitée, après avoir
reconnu combien Esther portait de désordre dans ses idées, après avoir réalisé
des gains inattendus à la Bourse, il vint enfin un matin avec l'intention de
lâcher les cent mille francs demandés par Asie, mais il voulait lui soutirer
une foule de renseignements.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">–
Tu te décides donc, mon gros farceur ? lui dit Asie en lui tapant sur l'épaule.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">La
familiarité la plus déshonorante est le premier impôt que ces sortes de femmes
prélèvent sur les passions effrénées ou sur les misères qui se confient à
elles; elles ne s'élèvent jamais à la hauteur du client, elles le font asseoir
côte à côte auprès d'elles sur leur tas de boue. Asie, comme on le voit,
obéissait admirablement à son maître.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">–
Il le vaud pien, dit Nucingen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">–
Et tu n'es pas volé, répondit Asie. On a vendu des femmes plus cher que tu ne
paieras celle-là, relativement. Il y a femme et femme! De Marsay a donné de
feu Coralie soixante mille francs. Celle que tu veux a coûté cent mille francs
de première main; mais pour moi, vois-tu, vieux corrompu, c'est une affaire de
convenance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">–
Mèz ù ed-elle ?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">–
Ah! tu la verras. Je suis comme toi: donnant, donnant !... Ah! çà, mon cher, ta
passion a fait des folies. Ces jeunes filles, ça n'est pas raisonnable. La
princesse est en ce moment ce que nous appelons une belle de nuit...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">–
Eine pelle...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">–
Allons, vas-tu faire le jobard ?... Elle a Louchard à ses trousses, je lui ai
prêté, moi, cinquante mille francs...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">–
Finte-sinte ! tis tonc, s'écria le banquier.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">–
Parbleu, vingt-cinq pour cinquante, ça va sans dire, répondit Asie. Cette
femme-là, faut lui rendre justice, c'est la probité même ! »</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-2042460902380166282012-11-27T18:32:00.000+01:002012-11-27T23:19:49.941+01:00Quelles solutions pour l'UMP ? / French right in crisis<i><span style="font-size: large;">Scroll down for English
version</span></i><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F6h5TdqLawQ/ULT4r1wYrvI/AAAAAAAAAMc/sFemIMoy8hY/s1600/peel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F6h5TdqLawQ/ULT4r1wYrvI/AAAAAAAAAMc/sFemIMoy8hY/s400/peel.jpg" width="260" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Robert Peel, founder of the Conservative Party / fondateur du Parti conservateur britannique</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">L’UMP se déchire sous nos yeux, spectacle mi-consternant,
mi-désopilant. Quelques faits : l’UMP a été fondée en 2002. Son homologue
britannique, le Parti conservateur, en 1834. Quant à nos partis centristes, le
MoDem de Bayrou, fondé en 2007, et la toute nouvelle UDI de Borloo, née en
septembre 2012, ils font figure de jeunots à côté des Libéraux Démocrates
britanniques, qui portent ce nom depuis 1988 seulement, mais viennent
essentiellement du vieux Parti libéral fondé en 1859. Evidemment, les noms et
les dates ne font pas tout ; les héritages, les courants existent par-delà
les appellations. Mais tout de même. Et puis il y a cette étude (<a href="http://www.vrm.ca/documents/representation_femmes.pdf" target="_blank">cliquez ici</a>) qui montre que plus les instances politiques ont de femmes en leur sein,
plus elles sont stables.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Je me permets donc d’adresser ces conseils tout simples à MM. Copé
et Fillon : 1. soyez britanniques. 2. soyez des femmes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;">The UMP, the main opposition party in France, is probably
heading for a split as the leadership battle between Nicolas Sarkozy<span lang="EN-GB">’s political heirs is reaching peaks of
irrationality. Facts: in the </span><st1:country-region><st1:place><span lang="EN-GB">UK</span></st1:place></st1:country-region><span lang="EN-GB">, the Conservative Party was founded
in 1834. The French UMP was founded in 2002. In the </span><st1:country-region><st1:place><span lang="EN-GB">UK</span></st1:place></st1:country-region><span lang="EN-GB">, the Liberal Democrats formed their
party in 1988 only, but mainly out of the Liberal Party which had been founded
in 1859. In France, the centrist Mouvement Démocrate and Union des Démocrates et
Indépendants, who are now rubbing their hands as disgusted UMP members are
joining them en masse, were founded in 2007 and 2012 respectively. Obviously there
is more in parties than dates and names, and ideological roots and legacies reach
out beyond labelling, but still. Also there is this study (<a href="http://www.vrm.ca/documents/representation_femmes.pdf" target="_blank">click here</a>) showing
that the more women in political organs, the more stable these organs tend to
be. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-size: large;">My advice to Messrs Copé and Fillon is therefore: 1. be British, 2. be women.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-78617572533422638922012-11-21T21:53:00.001+01:002012-11-23T16:33:24.589+01:00Bugarach, Edgar Poe, and the end of the world<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GOFpwp4bJK0/UK0702L0-dI/AAAAAAAAAMA/s-EXvN41zDE/s1600/bugarach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="230" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GOFpwp4bJK0/UK0702L0-dI/AAAAAAAAAMA/s-EXvN41zDE/s320/bugarach.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Bugarach</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB">According to Mayan calculations, or rather to
disreputable self-appointed Mayan experts, the world will come to an end in one
month exactly, which leaves me little time to pay my taxes. I wonder what it
will be like. Shall we have the time to realise what is going on, boosting the profits
of our mobile phone operators one last time? “Yeah, I can see it – it’s big and
green and gooey and – oh my God it just swallowed the petrol station! I love
you darling! [<i>sobbing</i>] I love you!” Probably
not. I expect something swift, quick-fried blue steak type. (Did the Mayas eat
steaks?) Arguably, the odds of seeing the UMP, </span><st1:country-region><st1:place><span lang="EN-GB">France</span></st1:place></st1:country-region><span lang="EN-GB">’s
right-wing party, split in the next four weeks are much greater, but of course of
lesser magnitude worldwide. </span><st1:country-region><st1:place><span lang="EN-GB">France</span></st1:place></st1:country-region><span lang="EN-GB">,
however, or at least one tiny part of it, might be the winner. Apparently the
little </span><st1:place><st1:placetype><span lang="EN-GB">village</span></st1:placetype><span lang="EN-GB"> of </span><st1:placename><span lang="EN-GB">Bugurach</span></st1:placename></st1:place><span lang="EN-GB"> in the French Pyrenees will be the only place on earth left standing
after 21 December. <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/nov/19/bugarach-french-village-survive-mayan-apocalypse" target="_blank">Follow this link to read Angelique Chrisafis’s excellent report from Bugurach for <i>The Guardian</i></a>.
Of course one can sneer at those lunatics who have started gathering there, or
fear there might be suicidal doomsday cult members among them. But one can also see
this as <i>living literature</i> – and from
what I read most of those who are planning to go there on 20 December, or who
have been looking for the treasure of Abbé Saunière in </span>the same region
(remember the <i>Da Vinci Code</i>?), fall
back on a massive suspension of disbelief, which is, after all, rather
uplifting. In literature proper, <i>apocalyptic
fiction</i> is a sub-genre of science-fiction concerned with the end of human
life or the end of the world as we know it. One of the first examples (Biblical
and other mythological stories set apart) is Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Conversation
of Eiros and Charmion.” Eiros died in the apocalypse (a comet hit the earth) and
describes the scene, as well as people’s attitudes over the preceding days, to
Charmion, who had been dead for some years when it all happened. The story is
very short; <a href="http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Conversation_of_Eiros_and_Charmion" target="_blank">click on this link to read the full text.</a> Here is the last
paragraph:</span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JYZ8bvIkROM/UK079WZklSI/AAAAAAAAAMI/PWsb1nWS3Ss/s1600/edgar+poe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JYZ8bvIkROM/UK079WZklSI/AAAAAAAAAMI/PWsb1nWS3Ss/s320/edgar+poe.jpg" width="225" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Edgar Allan Poe</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: large;">“Why need I paint, Charmion, the now
disenchained frenzy of mankind? That tenuity in the comet which had previously
inspired us with hope, was now the source of the bitterness of despair. In its
impalpable gaseous character we clearly perceived the consummation of Fate. Meantime
a day again passed, bearing away with it the last shadow of Hope. We gasped in
the rapid modification of the air. The red blood bounded tumultuously through
its strict channels. A furious delirium possessed all men; and, with arms
rigidly outstretched toward the threatening heavens, they trembled and shrieked
aloud. But the nucleus of the destroyer was now upon us; even here in Aidenn, I
shudder while I speak. Let me be brief—brief as the ruin that overwhelmed. For
a moment there was a wild lurid light alone, visiting and penetrating all
things. Then—let us bow down, Charmion, before the excessive majesty of the
great God!—then, there came a shouting and pervading sound, as if from the
mouth itself of HIM; while the whole incumbent mass of ether in which we
existed, burst at once into a species of intense flame, for whose surpassing
brilliancy and all-fervid heat even the angels in the high Heaven of pure
knowledge have no name. Thus ended all.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-62649739134484027062012-11-11T15:25:00.000+01:002012-11-18T17:40:32.386+01:00Fifty Shades of Hesitation<div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"> <span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">Should I or
should I not buy—and read—<i>Fifty Shades of
Grey</i>? Call me a snob but worldwide media hype about a book, film or triangle
player is usually enough to put me off. However, am I not missing out on a
cultural phenomenon here? Just consider the amazing number of people who not
only read it but subsequently ran to their local sex <i>and</i> music shops and stepped out with armloads of CDs by Britney
Spears, Chopin, and the Tallis Scholars, as well as with various silk or leather
or studded or wobbling contraptions. Unless of course this is part of the hype
too. Has any serious study <i>proved</i>
that all this happened? Did it happen <i>before</i>
they said it was happening? So back to the old problem: so many books, so
little time. Should I or shouldn’t I? Henry Miller wrote an essay called “To
Read or Not to Read” which might help
all “hesitating purchasers” like myself. Just follow the link below</span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">—the text is very short, less than 4 pages</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">. (Scroll up as the link will take you to page 160 while the beginning is on page 157.) Isn’t it fun reading it with E. L. James’s novel in mind</span><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">?</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<a href="http://books.google.fr/books?id=1Pr2wywtSjAC&pg=PA160&dq=henry+miller+books+clouds+shadows+trees&hl=fr&sa=X&ei=26WfUImBCojE0QXN9IHwBA&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=true" target="_blank"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">http://books.google.fr/books?id=1Pr2wywtSjAC&pg=PA160&dq=henry+miller+books+clouds+shadows+trees&hl=fr&sa=X&ei=26WfUImBCojE0QXN9IHwBA&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=true</span></a></div>
Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-70387671099732372382012-10-26T16:09:00.000+02:002012-10-26T16:14:53.449+02:00Lance Armstrong: facts and fiction (mostly fiction)<br />
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-size: large;">Hilarious: after
the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) stripped the American cyclist of his 7
Tour de France victories, a Glasgow bookshop simply shelved his autobiography in
“Fiction.” Anyway, this is where the real champions are. If you haven’t
seen <i>The Triplets of Belleville</i>, take
a ride to your local DVD shop and watch it.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-size: large;">Also on today’s reading list, three
great books on cycling:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<ul style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="disc"></ul>
<ul style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-size: large;">H.G. Wells’s <i>The Wheels of Chance</i> (1895—those
were the days, before the rise of cars—by the author of <i>The War of the Worlds</i>)<o:p></o:p></span></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-size: large;">Flann O’Brien’s <i>The Third Policeman</i> (now a great
classic of literature, not just literature about bikes, written in 1939-1940—famous
quote: “Is it about a bicycle?”)<o:p></o:p></span></span></li>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-byKf5i1aZXk/UIqYGDU-0UI/AAAAAAAAALs/m-O3VbSLiQY/s1600/belleville03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-byKf5i1aZXk/UIqYGDU-0UI/AAAAAAAAALs/m-O3VbSLiQY/s320/belleville03.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Les Triplettes de Belleville</i> de Sylvain Chomet (2003)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<li class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="font-size: large;">Ralph Hurne’s <i>The Yellow Jersey</i> (1973—a detective
novel featuring a prophetic drugs scandal in the Tour de France)</span><o:p></o:p></span></li>
</ul>
Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-28929174294306452852012-10-17T12:08:00.000+02:002012-10-17T12:08:26.989+02:00Edward Hopper / Denis Diderot<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zeJa85LZsgs/UH6A44fvadI/AAAAAAAAALQ/fT2z93M8QMg/s1600/edward-hopper-summer-in-the-city.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="224" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zeJa85LZsgs/UH6A44fvadI/AAAAAAAAALQ/fT2z93M8QMg/s320/edward-hopper-summer-in-the-city.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Edward Hopper, <i>Summer in the city</i>, 1949.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: large; text-indent: 14.2pt;">Depuis que
l’exposition Edward Hopper a ouvert ses portes au Grand Palais au début du
mois, Hopper est partout dans les médias : il a fait la une de </span><span style="text-indent: 14.2pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Libération</i></span></span><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: 14.2pt;">, du </span><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: 14.2pt;"><i>Monde</i></span><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: 14.2pt;">, de </span><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: 14.2pt;"><i>Télérama</i></span><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: 14.2pt;"><i> </i>et de divers
magazines d’art, et l’on ne compte plus les suppléments qui lui sont consacrés.
Il s’est même invité dans les journaux télévisés de TFI et de M6, et dans
plusieurs documentaires sortis pour l’occasion, comme dimanche dernier sur Arte. </span><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: 14.2pt;">Bien sûr, il y
a une part de publicité : quelques attachés de presse ou
« responsables médias » du Grand Palais ou de la Réunion des Musées
Nationaux font très bien leur travail. Mais il y a là autre chose, dont nous avons
tout lieu de nous réjouir, car le fait qu’un événement culturel se hisse au
premier rang de l’information dans les médias généralistes est à la fois
surprenant et réjouissant. C'est peut-être ce que l'on appelle l'exception culturelle française.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 14.2pt;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KixDRyb8leg/UH6B_eO3wUI/AAAAAAAAALY/-r_OYsqR1CI/s1600/Diderot+I-Grande-9290-essais-sur-la-peinture.-salons-de-1759-1761-1763.net.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KixDRyb8leg/UH6B_eO3wUI/AAAAAAAAALY/-r_OYsqR1CI/s200/Diderot+I-Grande-9290-essais-sur-la-peinture.-salons-de-1759-1761-1763.net.jpg" width="141" /></a><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: 14.2pt;">Lorsque que
vous verrez l’exposition, n’oubliez pas d’écouter les commentaires des autres
visiteurs devant chaque tableau. C’est Diderot qui recommande cet exercice fort
réjouissant. Voici un passage du </span><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: 14.2pt;"><i>Salon</i></span><span style="font-size: large; text-indent: 14.2pt;">
de 1763 :</span></div>
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Je ne regarde pas toujours, j’écoute quelquefois. J’entendis un
spectateur d’un de ces tableaux qui disait à son voisin : « Le Claude
Lorrain me semble encore plus piquant ! » et celui-ci qui lui
répondait : « D’accord, mais il est moins vrai. » Cette réponse ne me parut pas
juste. Les deux artistes comparés sont également vrais ; mais le Lorrain a
choisi des moments plus rares et des phénomènes plus extraordinaires. (…)</div>
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C’est lorsque [les visiteurs] se rencontrent au sortir de là qu’ils
sont plaisants à entendre. L’un dit : « Avez-vous vu le Mariage de la
Vierge ? C’est un beau morceau !</div>
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– Non. Mais vous, que dites-vous du Portrait de la comtesse ? C’est
cela qui est délicieux.</div>
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– Moi ! Je ne sais seulement pas si votre comtesse s’est fait peindre.
Je m’amuserais autour d’un portrait, tandis que je n’ai ni trop d’yeux ni
trop de temps pour le Joseph de Deshays ou le Paralytique de Greuze !</div>
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– Ah ! oui ; c’est cet homme qui est à côté de l’escalier et à qui l’on
va donner l’extrême-onction ?</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Cela promet de savoureuses tirades au Grand Palais, car s'il est un
peintre qui fait parler, c'est bien Hopper, dont les tableaux nous forcent à imaginer
tant d’histoires…</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-66207702237634091742012-10-09T16:47:00.000+02:002012-10-09T17:02:44.839+02:00Russian fairy tales<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rkBZdT0VO30/UHQ2z7KqXqI/AAAAAAAAAK0/wunquIWPDkQ/s1600/putin+topless.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="125" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rkBZdT0VO30/UHQ2z7KqXqI/AAAAAAAAAK0/wunquIWPDkQ/s200/putin+topless.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZlPgwqwrgZs/UHQ28Q5pc_I/AAAAAAAAAK8/LSx17QWYmBA/s1600/father+frost.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZlPgwqwrgZs/UHQ28Q5pc_I/AAAAAAAAAK8/LSx17QWYmBA/s320/father+frost.jpg" width="248" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">"<span style="background-color: white; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px; text-align: start;">Дед Мороз</span>"/"Father Frost"</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB">According to a recent poll, one Russian woman out of
five ‘definitely would’ or ‘would probably’ marry Vladimir Putin. What this
says about polls, Putin, Russian politics, Russian women, or politics and women
everywhere, I am not quite sure – probably that in today’s </span><st1:country -region="-region"><st1:place><span lang="EN-GB">Russia</span></st1:place></st1:country><span lang="EN-GB"> political
propaganda has a stronger impact than what Hélène Landemore calls “democratic
reason,” i.e. “a certain kind of distributed collective intelligence specific to
democratic politics.”<sup>1</sup> My apologies for the pun, but the Russian
president has spent more time posing topless for cameras than defending the naked
truth about, say, Chechnya, electoral fraud, or the assassination of Anna Politkovskaya.
On Sunday, he said that the Pussy Riot members “got what they asked for” and
that “the court’s decision was right” (so much for the separation of powers.) The
three women were sentenced to two years in prison after their anti-Putin “punk
prayer” in a </span><st1:city><st1:place><span lang="EN-GB">Moscow</span></st1:place></st1:city><span lang="EN-GB">
cathedral.<sup>2</sup></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB">Literary connections fail me here. Maybe “Cinderella”
with all the girls lining up in the hope the Prince will marry them? Or “The
Wolf and the Seven Kids,” with Vladimir Putin as the ravenous wolf and Pussy Riot
as the slaughtered lambs? Obviously things are not that simple. Although there probably
was voting fraud, Putin did not win through it – millions of people voted for
him for a reason. Many say this was a vote for stability. However, whether
economic stability will last with the UE threatening to tackle Gazprom monopoly
remains to be seen. Ironically, stability is a key concept throughout Vladimir Propp’s
classic analysis of Russian fairy tales. Putin fits into the stable, reassuring
archetype of the king providing order and protecting his realm. And if you want
to know more about Russian fairy tales (literary, not political), follow the
link to a very good introduction with beautiful illustrations: </span><a href="http://www.endicott-studio.com/rdrm/rrrussian.html"><span lang="EN-GB">http://www.endicott-studio.com/rdrm/rrrussian.html</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 9pt;">1.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">read the article on <a href="http://www.sas.upenn.edu/ppe/documents/Landemore_DemocraticReason_Article_Version_for_UPenn.pdf"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">http://www.sas.upenn.edu/ppe/documents/Landemore_DemocraticReason_Article_Version_for_UPenn.pdf</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 9pt;">2.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">see the video on http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/video/2012/aug/17/pussy-riot-release-new-single-video</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 9pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-4643056468364885552012-09-24T01:12:00.000+02:002012-09-24T01:12:49.915+02:00Caricatures<span style="font-size: large;">Here we go again... Seven years ago the Jyllands-Posten published cartoons which fuelled the anger of extremist Muslims around the world. Another 'Muhammad cartoons row' has erupted after the publication of drawings in Charlie Hebdo. Let me be clear about this: satire and caricature are essential to freedom, and we should not yield to intimidation or threat from fundamentalists. To celebrate the right to satirize, here are a few caricatures on religious issues. #1 and #2 are by James Gillray (1757-1815) and today they would no doubt cause a fatwa to be issued on the artist's life. #3 is a 16th-century Protestant caricature picturing the pope as a cannibal. #4 is a modern cartoon making fun of the militant atheists waging war on Christmas in the United States.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ldY7apnESvI/UF-S7HOmKHI/AAAAAAAAAKg/4Ol1x8ZhkZA/s1600/Presentation-Of-Mahometan-Credentials-Or-The-Final-Resource-Of-The-French-Atheist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="546" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ldY7apnESvI/UF-S7HOmKHI/AAAAAAAAAKg/4Ol1x8ZhkZA/s640/Presentation-Of-Mahometan-Credentials-Or-The-Final-Resource-Of-The-French-Atheist.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">#1. 'Presentation of Mahometan Credentials.' Oil painting.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-45bDsBfiBnU/UF-AzSjKPII/AAAAAAAAAJk/i48k0-AZnAQ/s1600/james-gillray-1851-hc-caricature.-theologie-a-la-turque.-turkey-islam-satire-%5B2%5D-24743-p.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-45bDsBfiBnU/UF-AzSjKPII/AAAAAAAAAJk/i48k0-AZnAQ/s640/james-gillray-1851-hc-caricature.-theologie-a-la-turque.-turkey-islam-satire-%5B2%5D-24743-p.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">#2. 'Théologie à la Turque or The Pale of the Church of Mahomet.' Etching.<br /></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DHcQw19qWDk/UF-I_E2sSNI/AAAAAAAAAJ4/ubIh2wjzIRI/s1600/pope.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DHcQw19qWDk/UF-I_E2sSNI/AAAAAAAAAJ4/ubIh2wjzIRI/s640/pope.jpg" width="540" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">#3. 16th century engraving. <i>Société de l'Histoire du Protestantisme Français</i>.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RG-v7RlStN4/UF-PONrN52I/AAAAAAAAAKM/ppFH-LVEZc8/s1600/war_on_christmas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="494" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RG-v7RlStN4/UF-PONrN52I/AAAAAAAAAKM/ppFH-LVEZc8/s640/war_on_christmas.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">#4. Cartoon. </span></td></tr>
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<br />Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3403433874351193033.post-20471225439605597312012-09-13T11:40:00.000+02:002012-09-13T11:40:18.521+02:00Diplomatic mysteries<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="clear: right; float: right; font-size: large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="The Saladin Affair: A Robbie Cutler Diplomatic Mystery" border="0" height="300" id="prodImage" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41gLYmm1y-L._SL500_AA300_.jpg" width="300" /><br /><span lang="EN-GB"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB"><i>Version française plus bas </i></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-GB"> The brutal
attacks on </span><span lang="EN-GB">U.S.</span><span lang="EN-GB"> diplomatic compounds in the Arab
world may prompt interest in a new genre in thrillers, the “diplomatic
mystery,” stories set in American Embassies abroad. The creator of the genre,
William Shepard, is a former career diplomat who served as Consul General in </span><span lang="EN-GB">Bordeaux</span><span lang="EN-GB">, </span><span lang="EN-GB">France</span><span lang="EN-GB">. In 2009 he published <i>The Saladin Affair</i>, in which al-Qaeda hatches a plot to assassinate U.S and European diplomats. His latest novel <i>Vintage Murder</i> (2012) is set in </span><span lang="EN-GB">Paris</span><span lang="EN-GB"> and </span><span lang="EN-GB">Bordeaux</span><span lang="EN-GB"> and takes the reader into the
shadow world of ETA terrorism. Another book I recommend reading is John Le
Carré’s <i>The Constant Gardener</i> (2000),
also a 2005 film with Ralph Fiennes, in which a British diplomat investigates
the murder of his wife in </span><span lang="EN-GB">Kenya</span><span lang="EN-GB"> and uncovers scandals involving the Foreign Office and the
pharmaceutical industry.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">L’attaque sanglante du consulat américain à Benghazi me
rappelle qu’un nouveau genre littéraire est justement apparu ces dernières
années, le « diplomatic mystery ». Son inventeur (et à ma
connaissance seul représentant à ce jour) est William Shepard, ancien consul
des Etats-Unis à Bordeaux. Ses thrillers se passent dans
les ambassades américaines à travers le monde. J’ignore s’ils ont déjà été traduits en français. Dans <i>The Saladin Affair</i> (2009), Al-Qaïda fomente l'assassinat de diplomates américains et européens... L’action de <i>Vintage Murder</i> (2012) est située en France,
des diplomates américains à Paris et Bordeaux ayant à faire à l’ETA. Je recommande aussi <i>La Constance du jardinier</i> (2000), grand roman de John Le Carré dans lequel
un diplomate britannique en poste au Kenya enquête sur le meurtre de sa femme, dévoile
un trafic de médicaments et finit par être assassiné lui aussi ; le film du
même titre de Fernando Meirelles (2005) est excellent également.</span></div>
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Maxime Leroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02322868962038712925noreply@blogger.com0