comment and analysis
Water torture - Privatisation leaves us high and dry
Brighton news sheet Schnews takes an irreverent look at the privatisation of water supplies in the UK, which since 1988 has lead to huge price hikes for users and bumper profits for corporations – a situation being repeated the world over.
Corporations have to splash out billions every year to persuade us to buy unneeded crap. But no such problems exist when they have a grip on more essential, life-sustaining, natural resources, like water. You don’t need to fork out millions for flashy PR men and mount big dollar advertising splashes to flog H2O. Who has to persuade us to use water? They’ve got us over a barrel on that one.
Financial Times: This is no middle class revolt
In an article which shatters every accusation of a privileged revolt, the Financial Times has become the first UK newspaper to point out the growing class angle of this rebellion against labour casualisation.
They say Villepin faces crisis as "as criticism of his labour market reforms spreads from increasingly violent student protesters to immigrant youth in poor riot-hit suburbs, undermining his claims to be helping the most disadvantaged."
UK and US coverage of French revolt "reserved" says Liberation
French paper Liberation reviews international coverage of the French CPE crisis.
From the New York Times to the London Times, Fridays Anglo-Saxon press is very reserved in its coverage of the anti-CPE revolt in the streets of Paris and elsewhere.
Round-up of CPE coverage
A summary of what French newspapers have been saying about the CPE.
Taken from todays BBC European press review:
Support for Villepin falls as 65% oppose CPE
But pollsters say discontent with the plan is the main reason why his popularity has sunk, a worrying sign for him a year before a presidential election in which he could run.
A poll in left-leaning newspaper Liberation put his approval rating at 37 percent, down from 44 percent in February and 49 percent in January. The previous low was 41 percent last June.
Chirac, Sarkozy and Villepin to present united front
Rough translation of reports at lemonde.fr.
Domenica de Villepin, Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy are from now on like mountaineering comrades. If one is to fall, the two others risk the same fall or, at least, of serious wounds.
Mixed messages from Villepin
This evening French PM Dominique de Villepin has responded in a French television interview to the CPE rebellion.
The last week of protests and university sitins has seen up to a million on the streets and the violent crushing of a student occupation at the University Sorbonne.
ID Freely
Iain Mackay analyses the likely course of ID cards following this month’s commons vote to impose the £12bn system.
Hopes that Labour MPs would develop a backbone and reject the government’s more insane plans were, unsurprisingly, squashed when they supported ID cards. In spite of previously admitting that ID cards would not have stopped the bombs in July, the spectre of terrorism was used by the government to pass the bill.
Sorbonne occupation grows as media focus on 1968 nostalgia
An account of events this afternoon in Paris from the left-leaning French paper Liberation.
Despite being a nationwide revolt of both young workers and students, the mainstream French press has concentrated on events at the Sorbonne University, scene of some infamous rioting in 1968.
Capitalism killing football
Richard Griffin analyses the decline of top-flight English football, its causes, and potential solutions.
Empty seats are appearing at Premiership games. So far this season attendances are down by 6%. There are a variety of reasons for this – high ticket prices, boring, predictable games, a lack of competition and a feeling that clubs don’t care about their fans.
The decline follows over a decade of growth.
