They're Rioting in France

A number of years ago the Kingston Trio recorded The Merry Minuet whose words began:

They’re rioting in Africa
They’re starving in Spain
There’s hurricanes in Flo-ri-da
And Texas needs rain the whole world is festering with unhappy souls
The French hate the Germans, the Germans hate the Poles
Italians hate Yugoslavs, South Africans hate the Dutch
AND I DON’T LIKE ANYBODY VERY MUCH!!

Well, it seems like the more things change, the more they remain the same. Perhaps they are not starving in Spain but many people in Afghanistan and Iraq are hungry and now the rioting is in France and not Africa although some people of African ancestry are apparently involved.

When will people ever learn? When will the human race grow up? No matter what the grievances of people in slum areas of France, violence is NOT the answer. This will only serve to destabilize the country and possibly create conditions worse than what exist now. The youth of today, be it France or the U.S., has a large segment of mental midgets in it anyway. Sometimes I think some sort of genetic engineering should be done but that won't happen of course. (Think pre-frontal labotomies here.)

I had planned to return to France in 2006 or 2007 as I have not been there since 2001 and wanted to re-visit some of my favorite places in and around Paris. The present situation might force me to put that decision on hold but I am most concerned about the people of France. This is a small band of thugs now but what will happen tomorrow or next week or next month? What will this mean for French politics? Will martial law be invoked? What will happen next?