Saturday, November 25, 2017

Go Macron ~ spoken like a true 21st century man

I've mentioned before on this blog that I consider Macron one of a trio of progressive 21st-century leaders. And he proves it again this week:

‘Sick With Sexism,’ France Must Fight Violence Against Women, Macron Says

Unfortunately France seems to have its own version of evolutionary psychology that says that men should be free to harass women since that is the French way and Macron reiterates it here:
But he also said he did not want France to become a country of “denunciation” where “each relationship between men and women is suspicious.”
“We are not a puritan society,” Mr. Macron said, echoing a longstanding perception in France that gender relations are different here than elsewhere, especially in the United States.
"Puritan" is code-word as this article explains for men in France being permitted to take liberties with women whether or not the women asked for it. Or as this Guardian article has it:
France always prided itself on a tradition of unbridled sexuality and a society based on seduction, where Jacques Chirac kissed female leaders' hands and declared that Michèle Alliot-Marie, who served as justice, defence and foreign minister, had "the best legs" on the right.
Many argued that the dreaded "American puritanism" – the US's strict laws on workplace touching and harassment – would make France a dull place. But now the floodgates have opened on women denouncing French machismo.
This attitude leads to extreme douchbaggery like this, later in the article:
The journalist and philosopher Jean-Francois Kahn dismissed the case as a "troussage de domestique", a phrase suggestive of French aristocrats having non-consensual sex with servants. He later apologised and quit journalism. Women politicians are speaking out. One female Socialist MP wearing trousers and a summer top to a recent commission hearing was reportedly told by a rightwing MP: "Dressed like that, you shouldn't be surprised at being raped."

French society, ruled by men maybe even more than in "Ango-Saxon" countries enjoys the tradition of "unbridled sex" because in practice it's men groping women at will, especially older powerful men groping younger women.

If women started to be as aggressive - especially older women groping young and handsome male underlings, the French, I guarantee you, would suddenly find out that they were rather puritan all along.

It's disappointing that Macron of all people would push that Puritan line since he's living proof that not only can a man be a devoted husband, but his wife can be a generation older than him. 

But then he has to be the leader of French people so his rhetoric has limits.