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Coronavirus

France's Covid Curfew And A Bad Case Of Deja Vu

Empty metro station in Paris
Empty metro station in Paris
Laure Gautherin

"Bienvenue en Absurdie..."

President Emmanuel Macron's announcement of at least four weeks of an all-night curfew in France's biggest cities sparked some colorful reactions — political and personal — across the country.

"Welcome to Absurdia" came from opposition leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon, a firebrand leader on the political left, who noted that most COVID-19 infections happen during the day, in schools and offices — not from 9 p.m.- 6 a.m., when people now won't be allowed out of their homes, or risk a 135-euro fine.

"Good night" titles French daily Libération

The decision to shut down nightlife altogether for millions of French citizens is of course also a major blow to entire sectors of the economy. Michelin-starred chef Michel Sarran told France Info public radio it was a "coup de grâce" for France's renowned culinary and hospitality sector after a steady progression of new limits had been imposed in recent weeks on bars and restaurants — first in the southern city of Marseille, and then Paris and elsewhere. Macron's announcement Wednesday evening of the all-night curfew came after the number of COVID cases skyrocketed through September in France, now rising above 20,000 per day, as part of what now appears an undeniable "second wave" of the virus across much of Europe.

As Paris daily Les Echos reported, reaction to the latest government measures have been much more pointed than six months ago when there was general support behind what was one of the world's strictest lockdowns. Senator Bruno Retailleau (on the political right) called out the government for failing to implement a rapid and effective system for testing, while others wondered whether the curfew will be enough to stave off a rise in the number of both cases and deaths, as hospitals begin to fill up as they did last March.

The situation indeed feels like déjà vu, with an extra splash of futility. Because even if the curfew manages to slow the spread, we've seen how quickly it can pick up again after the pent-up desire for human contact leads people to let their guard down, and masks off. Day and night.

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Geopolitics

U.S., France, Israel: How Three Model Democracies Are Coming Unglued

France, Israel, United States: these three democracies all face their own distinct problems. But these problems are revealing disturbing cracks in society that pose a real danger to hard-earned progress that won't be easily regained.

Image of a crowd of protestors holding Israeli flags and a woman speaking into a megaphone

Israeli anti-government protesters take to the streets in Tel-Aviv, after Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired Defence Minister Yoav Galant.

Dominique Moïsi

"I'd rather be a Russian than a Democrat," reads the t-shirt of a Republican Party supporter in the U.S.

"We need to bring the French economy to its knees," announces the leader of the French union Confédération Générale du Travail.

"Let's end the power of the Supreme Court filled with leftist and pro-Palestinian Ashkenazis," say Israeli government cabinet ministers pushing extreme judicial reforms

The United States, France, Israel: three countries, three continents, three situations that have nothing to do with each other. But each country appears to be on the edge of a nervous breakdown of what seemed like solid democracies.

How can we explain these political excesses, irrational proclamations, even suicidal tendencies?

The answer seems simple: in the United States, in France, in Israel — far from an exhaustive list — democracy is facing the challenge of society's ever-greater polarization. We can manage the competition of ideas and opposing interests. But how to respond to rage, even hatred, borne of a sense of injustice and humiliation?

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