"More fundamental... is an underlying national malaise that can seem inexplicable to outsiders but which has undoubtedly gathered pace..."

"Call it the 'French Paradox.' For the more than 100 million people or so who visit France each year — more than any other place on the planet — the country has long been synonymous with glorious weather and scenery, good food and wine, and the best high-speed rail network in Europe.... Many of the French themselves appear to see their country differently, however, with a traditional national grumpiness giving way to what one recent poll described as 'a collective depression.'... It could be... a 'feeling of lost identity.' Such national gloom explains the rapid spread of the discontent expressed by those behind the protests planned for Wednesday, largely on TikTok, Facebook and other social media platforms, many of them from Paris and other big cities in what has been dubbed la France périphérique...."

From "Let’s block everything: protesters plan to ‘pull the brake’ on France/National malaise under President Macron is moving towards a general strike — campaigners who want to abolish political parties have planned a day of disruption" (London Times).

So, apparently, a country is having a mental breakdown.

"La France périphérique" means "Peripheral France." I can see that there was a 2014 book titled — and translated — "Peripheral France: How the Working Classes Have Been Sacrificed" — which Grok says "analyzes the marginalization of France's working classes—often described as 'French of native stock' or 'petits Blancs' (little whites)—who have been displaced from urban centers due to globalization and economic shifts." 

"At all times, the teacher-student relationship between Mrs. Macron and President Macron remained within the bounds of the law. "

"But, when President Macron’s parents became aware of his strong feelings for his teacher, they decided to transfer him to Lycée Henri-IV in Paris. Mrs. Macron encouraged him to leave and was confident he would fall in love with a peer. Yet, before his departure, he told her, 'Whatever you do, I will marry you.'"

That's paragraph 27 of the lawsuit filed by Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron against Candace Owens — filed today in state court in Delaware.

For an article about the lawsuit, here's "French president sues Candace Owens over claims his wife is a man" (CNN).

That paragraph struck me because it put the relationship between the Macrons in a much more positive light than I'd ever seen. 

"Publicity seeking President Emmanuel Macron, of France, mistakenly said that I left the G7 Summit, in Canada, to go back to D.C. to work on a 'ease fire' between Israel and Iran. Wrong!"

"He has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington, but it certainly has nothing to do with a Cease Fire. Much bigger than that. Whether purposely or not, Emmanuel always gets it wrong. Stay Tuned!"

Wrote Trump on Truth Social.

AND: The London Times reports this from the U.K Prime Minister, Keir Starmer:

“There’s nothing the president said that suggests that he’s about to get involved in this conflict — on the contrary.... There’s nothing the president said that suggests that he’s about to get involved in this conflict — on the contrary.... Throughout the dinner yesterday I was sitting right next to President Trump, so I’ve no doubt in my mind, the level of agreement there was in relation to the words that were then issued immediately after."

"So this goes back to 2017 when President Trump was in Paris and watched France's Bastille Day military parade. There were tanks..."

"... there were troops, and they're marching down Champs d'Elysee. There were war planes, there were fighter jets. And he watched this with President Emmanuel Macron of France, and he loved it. So he came back and announced to the Pentagon that he wanted his own military parade. And the response he got from the Pentagon during his first term was: We don't do this, Sir. Jim Mattis, who was then his defense secretary, said he'd rather swallow acid. In a meeting in the Pentagon, Paul Selva, who was the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Mr. Trump that Mr. President, he said, dictatorships do that. Democracies do not..... [D]ictators need to frighten their population... with this show of ostentatious military might. And they want to frighten their adversaries too and make them think that they're very strong. I don't really get the France part because France is a democracy...."

I'm listening to the new episode of the NYT "Daily" podcast, an interview with Helene Cooper about tomorrow's military parade. Audio and transcript at Podscribe, here. (I do listen to the audio and tweak the transcript. Otherwise, instead of of "Champs d'Elysee," you'd be seeing "Sean.")

I loved the line "I don't really get the France part because France is a democracy."

And by the way, Cooper goes on to describe the many military parades we've had in the United States over the years.

Maybe reexamine the premise:

"Billionaire Elon Musk stunned the White House press corps Friday by sporting a black eye to an Oval Office event to mark the end of his 130 days in the Trump administration."

The NY Post reports.

Oh.. ha ha... I see he made the joke I was about to make: He "wasn’t anywhere near France."

"I’m surprised by it, it turns into some kind of global catastrophe where people are even coming up with theories to explain it.... It’s nonsense...."

"[T]here are people who have watched the videos and believe that I shared a bag of cocaine, that I had a 'mano a mano' with a Turkish president and that right now I’m having a fight with my wife. None of this is true.... So everyone needs to calm down and focus on the real news...."

Said Emmanuel Macron, quoted in "'It’s Nonsense': Macron Plays Down Video of Shove From Wife/The French president, Emmanuel Macron, was pushed in the face as he left a plane in Vietnam. The bigger issue, he said, was the reaction, part of a string of disinformation by 'crazy people'" (NYT).

How can so many things NOT be true? Such wacky things — all involving hands — and all caught on camera?

1. Here's the hand thing with Erdogan. Come on. That's not nothing!

2. Here's the hide-the-cocaine sleight of hand.

3. And here's the hand of his wife pushing him in the face.

How do all these things happen to one man?

"I was bickering, or rather joking, with my wife. It's nothing."

Said Emmanuel Macron, quoted in "The giveaway sign that Macron was 'furious' with wife Brigitte for viral push in face... as he tries to brush it off as 'joking around'" (Daily Mail).

I'm sure you've seen the video:

French President Emmanuel Macron responds after he apparently got assaulted in the face by his wife Brigitte while stepping off of a plane in Vietnam.

Macron was seen getting shoved in the face before getting off the plane as if nothing happened.

Macron has since responded to… pic.twitter.com/YeEAwdLcxF

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) May 26, 2025

My favorite part is his "Oh, hi" gesture, when he sees that the face push got caught on camera. And that you only see Brigitte's hand, not the rest of her — in the manner of Soupy Sales and White Fang:

ADDED: Here's a different angle:

"Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain said Sunday that he would work with the leaders of Ukraine and France on a cease-fire plan to end Russia’s war in Ukraine...."

"Mr. Starmer told the BBC on Sunday that he had spoken to President Trump by phone a day earlier. 'I’m clear in my mind he does want lasting peace, he does want an end to the fighting in Ukraine'.... The prime minister said that he, Mr. Zelensky and President Emmanuel Macron of France had agreed they 'would work on a plan for stopping the fighting and then discuss that plan with the U.S.' Any peace agreement 'is going to need a U.S. backstop,' Mr. Starmer added, saying that British and U.S. teams were discussing the idea.... Since Friday, European leaders have lined up behind Ukraine and lauded its embattled president. Mr. Zelensky is also set to meet King Charles III later on Sunday."

The NYT reports.

What will Zelensky wear for his audience with the King? He's met with the King twice before — February 8, 2023 and July 18, 2024 — and both times he wore those dark green "wartime" clothes and not a suit.  Zelensky has met with other European royalty —Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia (Sweden), King Harald V, Queen Sonja, Crown Prince Haakon, and Crown Princess Mette-Marit (Norway), King Philippe (Belgium) — and each time, he wore the "wartime" outfit that he was called out for wearing in the Oval Office.

Of course, royalty is a game played through outfits. But Trump has his outfits too. Indeed, questioned about his military getup, Zelensky said that after the war, he could wear a "costume," and by "costume," he meant a suit: "I will wear a costume after this war will finish. Maybe something like yours, maybe something better."

But enough about clothing, what do we think about Europe stepping up to make the peace deal? Who will give Trump credit for making that happen and for, more generally, requiring Europe to take charge of the defense of Europe? Whether the Europeans can close a peace deal is another matter, but they concede in advance that any peace agreement "is going to need a U.S. backstop." Could they, instead, just flow endless money into Ukraine? They've counted on our money for so long. 

Greeted.

President Donald J. Trump welcomes French President @EmmanuelMacron to the White House. 🇺🇸🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/puvyxx3Kmk

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 24, 2025

PREVIOUSLY: I had this:

"Trump is returning as a colossus."

Writes Maureen Dowd, in "Trump Brings a Chill to Washington" (NYT).

He has brought Washington — Democrats and Republicans — to heel, teamed up with Elon Musk and slapped a gold “Trump” sign on Silicon Valley. The lords of the cloud helped fund the coronation, and they are making a pilgrimage here to bow to their new overlord. (This includes the C.E.O. of TikTok, who is surely hoping that his company’s sponsoring of an inauguration party and his online flattery about Trump’s 60 billion TikTok views will lead the new president to save the social media platform.) But not everyone is looking forward to what’s in store. It will be hard to forget Trump’s day of infamy, Jan. 6, as he gets sworn in at the Capitol, which was smeared with blood and feces by rioters recast by Trump and his acolytes as “hostages,” “patriots,” “tourists” and “grandmothers.”...

As for Biden:  

[H]e will be merely a footnote in the vertiginous saga of how Trump won the White House again.... [T]he chip on Biden’s shoulder devoured his judgment about what was good for him, for his party and for the country. His narcissism trumped his patriotism.... Many noticed that Biden was in a fog, or “dans les vapes,” as an aide to President Emmanuel Macron of France called it....

The intensely visual and emotional Trumpian view of the landscape of war.

From the transcript of yesterday's press conference:

We're trying to get the war stopped, that horrible war that's going on in Ukraine with Russia, Ukraine. We've got a little progress. It's a tough one. It's a nasty one. It's nasty. People are being killed at levels that nobody's ever seen. It's very level fields. And the only thing that stops a bullet is a body, a human body. And the number of soldiers that are being killed on both sides is astronomical. I've never seen anything like that. And rapidly. I get reports every week and it's not even… It's like just… They're going down. Nobody's seen anything like it. It's a very flat surface, a very flat land. That's why it's great farming land. It's the breadbasket for the world actually. But it's very flat and there's nothing to stop a bullet but a body.

Count the many emotions that cross Trump's face in a few seconds.

Let the actors cast to play Trump in future movies study this clip and despair.

🚨 #BREAKING: President Trump has just met with Emmanuel Macron in France

It’s clear how much Macron respects Trump. America FINALLY has strong leadership again. pic.twitter.com/dfjeuz3A8N

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) December 7, 2024

"France is braced for its 'most consequential' election in decades after the country’s president, Emmanuel Macron, stunned politicians and the public..."

"by announcing snap legislative elections following a drubbing at the hands of the far-right National Rally (RN) in Sunday’s European parliamentary elections. The RN won about 32% of the vote on Sunday, more than double the 15% or so scored by Macron’s allies, according to exit polls. The Socialists on 14% came within a whisker of the Macron group... The unexpected decision... could hand major political power to the far right after years on the sidelines and neuter his presidency three years before it ends...."

The Guardian reports.

Did The Guardian properly paraphrase Trump here: "Donald Trump says he would encourage Russia to attack Nato allies who pay too little."

I'm skeptical. 

Let's find the actual quote in the text of the article. By the way, I watched the rally last night, and I heard the line in context and reacted at the time. I think I said something like "Did Trump just say he told Russia to attack NATO countries?"

I wish I'd rewound and made my own transcription at the time and blogged it fresh, but I will do with this Guardian article:

Oh, but it's Elton John. We've got to go.

While French police officers are being molested by illegal immigrants Emmanuel Macron and his wife are enjoying themselves at an Elton John concert.

Priorities...
🥴🥴🥴#emeutes#parisriots#Paris#FranceRiots#FranceHasFallen#franceViolence#Marseille#Nanterre#Nahel pic.twitter.com/xheFDEXe88

— Richard (@ricwe123) July 1, 2023

"No violence is legitimate, whether verbal or against people. We have to work in depth to counter this process of decivilisation."

Said President Macron, quoted in "Radical left threatens civilisation in France, says Macron/President speaks out after pension reform protests and attacks on elected officials" (London Times).

Presidential advisers said the term was a reference to Norbert Elias, the 20th century German sociologist who described how self-restraint and social inhibitions had civilised Europe, first in royal courts and then among the rest of the population, in his book The Civilizing Process.

This resonates with me because I once used the word "civilized" in the presence of sociologists and experienced the iciest silence of my entire life. Used it jocosely... I'd thought. 

Macron is said to believe the process has gone into reverse in what one adviser called a “Trumpisation of minds and a denial of reality”. 

Trump gets blame for what the left is doing... in France.  

"Donald Trump has vowed he would 'never drop out' of next year’s presidential race, even if he is convicted on criminal charges...."

"'I’d never drop out,' Trump told Carlson yesterday. 'It’s not my thing. I wouldn’t do it'" (London Times).

The former president claimed staff and officers at the lower Manhattan courthouse where he was booked were visibly emotional. 

“They were incredible,” said Trump. “When I went to the courthouse, which is also a prison in a sense, they signed me in and I’ll tell you people were crying, people that . . . professionally work there, that have no problems putting in murderers and they see everybody.”

And he had this to say about Macron's trip to China: “You got this crazy world, it’s blowing up and the United States has absolutely no say. And Macron, who’s a friend of mine, is over with China, kissing his ass. ‘OK, in China!’ I said. ‘France is now going to China!’”

Video:

"Though 'obscurantism' may be a word that is, well, obscure, to Americans, [Macron] is right. The line between the fight for freedom..."

"... and the surrender to hatred is absolute. The assault on Rushdie only clarifies its contours."

Writes Adam Gopnik, reacting to what Emmanuel Macron, the President of France, said on Friday evening:

“For 33 years, Salman Rushdie has embodied freedom and the fight against obscurantism. He has just been the victim of a cowardly attack by the forces of hatred and barbarism. His fight is our fight; it is universal.”

That comes at the end of "Salman Rushdie and the Power of Words/Efforts are bound to be made to somehow equalize or level the acts of Rushdie and his tormentors and would-be executioners. This is a despicable viewpoint" (in The New Yorker).

"French President Emmanuel Macron defeated far-right leader Marine Le Pen to win re-election Sunday, with projections as polls closed showing him winning 58% to 42%."

 Axios reports.

"President Emmanuel Macron will face Marine Le Pen, the French far-right leader, in the runoff of France’s presidential elections."

"With 92 percent of the ballots cast on Sunday counted, Mr. Macron, a centrist, was leading with about 27.4 percent of the vote to Ms. Le Pen’s 24.3 percent. Ms. Le Pen benefited from a late surge that reflected widespread disaffection over rising prices, security and immigration. With war raging in Ukraine and Western unity likely to be tested as the fighting continues, Ms. Le Pen’s strong performance demonstrated the enduring appeal of nationalist and xenophobic currents in Europe. Extreme parties of the right and left took some 51 percent of the vote, a clear sign of the extent of French anger and frustration."

The NYT reports.