by Diana-Maria Stocker //
A familiar but highly dangerous game is being played out in the French political arena. It is a spectacle in which not only political camps are exchanging masks, but the future of an entire continent is at stake. It is not a dispute over content, but a deep rift in the political character: it is not about the better argument, but about this, who it puts forward. Whether left or right - both camps are under no compulsion when it comes to using ideas that they demonized years ago. But unity? Not at all. It's not about the cause, but about power politics.
Emmanuel Macron, directly elected but surrounded by a fragmented National Assembly, is currently trying to push through reforms whose basic structure - higher retirement age, greater flexibility in the labour market, budgetary discipline - could be included in any conservative election manifesto. And indeed: parts of the Républicains have called for these measures themselves in the past. But now that they have come from the Élysée, they are refusing to agree.
But the opposite is also true: when the conservative Nicolas Sarkozy tried to push through pension reforms and social adjustments in 2010, he was met with massive resistance from the left. Proposals that were later taken up again in a slightly different form under the socialist government of François Holland. The sleight of hand is old: your own party stays clean, the opposing government remains unable to act - and the sovereign is left with a policy that only exists on paper. A lazy game that can now be observed all over the world: In the USA, in Spain, in Israel, in Germany anyway - and with increasing brazenness in France. Political camps change their position, but not their tone. They copy content that they previously opposed, only to torpedo its implementation or vice versa. And each time, the population is left out in the cold.
France is thus becoming the blueprint for an entire systemic failure - and Europe is watching. France is not a marginal player, but systemically relevant: economically, geopolitically, strategically. With a national debt close to 110 % of GDP, weakened competitiveness and a growing backlog of reforms, the country is no longer an anchor of stability, but a shaky pillar in the European house. When Paris wobbles, Brussels wobbles too. And if reforms fail because political vanity is more important than the state's ability to act, then this is a revelation of the democratic system.
However, the price is not only high economically, but also socially. Every failed reform, every willfully destroyed compromise, every tactical blockade deepens citizens' mistrust of the institutions. In France, this mistrust has long had a name: Yellow vests. Pension protests. Strikes. Abstention from voting. The political class has lost its way in a power game that knows no winner - except resignation.
In theory, the solution would be simple: coalitions across party lines, substantive debates without ideological blinkers, a minimum of mutual respect. But political calculation outweighs public spirit. Better to block than to divide. Better to watch the house burn than to hand your political opponent a bucket of water. And that applies to all camps.
It is time for politicians to stop playing with fire - because Europe's citizens deserve better than this risky poker game for power and influence.
It is about more. About Europe's political culture. About its future viability. And ultimately the question of whether democracy is more than just a game played by functionaries. At the moment, it doesn't look like it.
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6 Responses
Good morning everyone! Just read the teaser for the article and the 5 comments so far. There is a lot of meat on this bone. For now, just this much: if we continue to believe the negative forecasts, we will experience the power of self-fulfilling prophecy - set by propaganda - across the breadth of society; only lucky individuals will be able to escape. These individuals in particular will feel to a large extent that they are now being challenged with their hearts and hands. Anyone who identifies poles of strength in their environment that work and argue for togetherness (across party political and ideological boundaries) in a way that is declared and clearly recognizable by their actions, thus paving the way to peace step by step, should ally themselves and develop into the next pole of strength. All power comes from the people, in direct democracy, which does not have to be formally proclaimed, but becomes more alive every day through individual decisions. Every person is a power. Only the awareness of the actual possibilities for shaping things is inferior. The flesh is willing, the spirit is weak. We should put the pyramid back on its base together. In the upcoming local elections, we can start right away: not electing parties, but characters who do not seek compromise, but the good solution, and remain capable of compromise. The councils need a breath of fresh air - from their own kind. And if the right person has the wrong party membership: so what?!
In many respects, a degeneration of the leading elites can be seen in Western societies that were originally organized democratically. There is talk of a negative selection of political dignitaries, reminiscent of the nobility and clergy in France at the end of the eighteenth century. At that time, it was possible to buy arrest warrants with which disagreeable fellow human beings were taken out of circulation. The rule of law had disappeared. Some see certain parallels there. The GDR with its party system was nothing other than a feudal system legitimized by party membership. Many involuntary comrades from back then see familiar things returning today in Western democracies.
In many respects, the political class acts like a one-size-fits-all party that takes rigorous action against dissenting opinions - the key phrase is "the end justifies the means". The competition of ideas is missing and our political, economic and cultural development is coming to an artificial standstill, which in the worst case will be disruptively dissolved. We as citizens should prepare ourselves for the fact that in the future, community, reciprocity and support for those in need will be demanded of us. We can already see today that the healthcare system is on the verge of collapse, and worse is to be feared due to demographic developments in the care sector. There is a lot to do, let's tackle it!
Thank you for this analysis, which I can understand very well as a Frenchman and a German.
The next step is to realize that this is not just a French phenomenon. Politicians around the world are increasingly acting opportunistically and no longer morally.
Democracy in its current form has had its day. Voters are no longer in a position to recognize the interests of society; nor do they want to, because selfishness and personal advantage are more important than anything else.
There is a lack of foresight, a sense of responsibility and consideration for future generations.
And politicians are no longer able to convince voters to make sacrifices in favor of their children and grandchildren.
First comes the food, then the moral. (Berthold Brecht)
There are a few remedies:
Apart from armed uprisings like those in the middle of the 19th century - apart from the peasants' Bundschuh
up to targeted assassinations a la RAF, direct democracy with referendums and the right of the people to vote out a government offers sufficient means to remove the basis for such malaises.
Direct democracy is the death of party dictatorship.
I agree with the analysis, but one key aspect is missing: it was Emmanuel Macron who dissolved the parliament after last year's European elections without need and thus plunged the country into chaos. Until then, his movement (LREM) had been able to rely on coalitions on a case-by-case basis, which was no longer possible afterwards. Before that, i.e. before the 2022 parliamentary elections, it even had an absolute majority. Macron's policies are therefore undoubtedly largely to blame for the current situation.
You have forgotten the modern "sovereign", the "social parasite" you refer to as the "citizen", without whom the nasty game played by the political parties would not be possible. He acts according to the motto "The main thing is that it doesn't affect me (yet)" and "Close your eyes and get on with it". Hardly any citizens expect a solution from politics anymore, no, they have learned over the last fifty years that politics is only played as a "game of black and white" and a "musical chairs". Against the pseudo-modern backdrop of "Sex and the City" or "Trump Tower", of course, at least for those with a place in the sun. Everyone else has to see where they are anyway. Migrants? Where in our district? Economic decline? I where, but not on Sylt. And for some people, the bagel store in NY is still an event. Oh my God, WE were already there in 1984. No wonder people from the provinces want to go there today. No, no, you can never expect anything from politics anyway, regardless of whether it's the left or the right. You always have to be next to yourself. That's the only thing that helps. Irony off.