Is the Forum becoming unbalanced away from French topics?

[Kitty]

[quote user="Bugbear"][quote user="Ron Avery"] [/quote]

[quote user="Clair"] There is also a degree of bullying by some posters, who do not seem to be able to accept that not everyone shares their view and express this in a personal and confrontational manner.
[/quote] Oh so true..............
[/quote]

I second that, BB.  I wish that the bullies (and one in particular) would stay away.  The Forum would be a nicer place without him/them.

Norman - I was surprised when you reacted as you did in another thread because your responses usually seem thoughtful and sometimes very amusing.  When I first joined this Forum, I had no idea that one could post about British matters.  But as most contributors to this Forum are British, news from Blighty is going to be of interest.  In fact, sometimes, it is through the Forum that I find out what is going on back 'home'.  If it wasn't for Wooly, for example, I would have missed out on a whole raft of interesting issues.

For me, if something doesn't interest me, I don't read it.

[mint]

Well said, Cathy.  It's like the on-off switch on the TV or radio.

If you don't like it, just switch it OFF.

There's so much diversity on the forum that you can nearly always find something to respond to if you feel so inclined.

[Renaud]

As ever I am with Cathy and Sweets.

[Kitty]

[quote user="Renaud"]As ever I am with Cathy and Sweets.[/quote]

Ahhhhhhh, Renaud.  And I'm with Sweets and you too.  Oh dear, are we going off the thread?

Going back on, shall we paraphrase G Brown Esq and say 'French threads for French fora"?  I would, of course, paraphrase Monsieur N Sarkozy but don't know what he has said lately......

[Mme poivre]

I personally read this forum for the great and interesting diversity of topics that are found on it. 

When I look though if the topic does not interest me then as others have stated on here Idon't look at it. 

It is a personal choice thing which we all have.

[BJSLIV]

There has certainly been an increase in the number of topics which do not match the remit of the Forum ie "France and French lifestyle" as the stated aim in the Terms and Conditions.

Simply because someone adds"What do people living in the Dordogne think?" to a debate on  road gritting policies in Herefordshire,  doesn't make the thing appropriate. The forum is supposed to complement the Archant magazines.  So as I see it, if the subject couldn't in some tiny way support an item in the magazines it probably doesn't belong here.

If people want to debate general UK politics then they can do it on the Daily Mail, the Sun, or the Telegraph sites.  On the other hand if, for example,  a UK Government were to propose to withdraw E106s then that would be highly appropriate for discussion.

As far as discussing French politics is concerned the Forum seems an ideal place to discuss such matters at a "Janet and John"  level so that people may begin to understand some of the things that surround them.

A couple of years ago  deviations from  "France and French lifestyle" were ruthlessly suppressed, perhaps too heavy handedly , now I think things have gone too far the other way.

 

 

[woolybanana]

As of 0032hrs, all the topics on the first page are French or French related.

[Russethouse]

  Firstly having a section where 'Other topics' could be discussed was at forum members own request.

 While there is a group of fairly regular members who post frequently, others come and go or drift in and and out. Which topics take off, or do not attract very many replies depends on the make up of the group posting at any particular time.

As others have said - no one forces anyone to read any topic or even visit every section, perhaps those that are complaining should try to think of some topics that would interest them and that are French based and see what happens........ ?

 

[Will]

As far as I am concerned, the numerous topics that seem to exist for the sole purpose of whingeing about Britain are of no interest to me and I usually ignore them. That doesn't mean to say that people should not discuss them if they wish, but I do agree that the Daily Mail website would probably be a more appropriate place.

[Ron Avery]

[quote user="Cathy"]

[quote user="Bugbear"][quote user="Ron Avery"] [/quote]

[quote user="Clair"] There is also a degree of bullying by some posters, who do not seem to be able to accept that not everyone shares their view and express this in a personal and confrontational manner.
[/quote] Oh so true..............
[/quote]

I second that, BB.  I wish that the bullies (and one in particular) would stay away.  The Forum would be a nicer place without him/them.

[/quote]

 

Sitting on hands so as not to upset drama queen.

[woolybanana]

Ron, I love your moue, but is it a French moue? If not, you should not be showing it!

Perhaps it might be useful if those who use French Language forums could post some addresses so that people can have some fun getting to grips with them.

The problem is that many people still have a strong interest in UK matters whilst others do either not read/understand French or French matters  well enough to be able to debate them. Their interests are therefore necessarily fairly limited to nuts and bolts issues.

There are however a number of people who can do so, such as NormanH or our tame bilinguals ([;-)]), and one wishes they would take the lead in introducing topics in, say French culture and current affairs, with a little patience, which would perhaps be a springboard pour encourager les autres. However, there is a danger that a small number might use this as a means of showing off their knowledge which would be unfortunate.

Now, about banana growing in the Camargue.

 

[woolybanana]

Whilst I was replying, a missive from RA seems to have gone missing and he is now sitting on his hands which is very painful. But I'll leave my post as it stands because he made a lovely little French moue.

Ron, if you have had your fingers slapped, run cold water over them to stop the stinging.

[Bugsy]

Quote:

Life is Laughter. Don't waste it being Serious

Seriousness

is a deadly disease, Osho says. If you get it, your life is doomed. Oh!

Have I been a little serious saying that? Seems so. Ok let me go around

the other way. Laughter is a very good healer. It just not only heals

our life but also makes our life feel light and happy. Think of life as

a game and take it in game spirit, then you don’t have worries in your

life. Life is a game. You have nothing to lose… even if you lose, it’s

not real. It is just a part of the game…. You will get it somewhere

else… Here is what Osho Rajeesh says on Laughter and Seriousness:

"Laughter is one of the things most repressed by society

all over the world, in all the ages.Society wants you to be serious.

Parents want their children to be serious, teachers want their students

to be serious, the bosses want their servants to be serious, the

commanders want their armies to be serious. Seriousness is required of

everybody. Laughter is dangerous and rebellious.When the teacher is

teaching you and you start laughing, it will be taken as an insult.

Your parents are saying something to you and you start laughing -- it

will be taken as an insult. Seriousness is thought to be honor,

respect. Naturally laughter has been repressed so much that even though

life all around is hilarious, nobody is laughing. If your laughter is

freed from its chains, from its bondage, you will be surprised -- on

each step there is something hilarious happening. Life is not serious.

Only graveyards are serious, death is serious. Life is love, life is

laughter, life is dance, song.The constant repression of laughter has

made you laughter blind. Situations are happening everywhere, but you

cannot see that there is any reason to laugh. If your laughter is freed

from its bondage, the whole world will be full of laughter. It needs to

be full of laughter; it will change almost everything in human life.

You will not be as miserable as you are. In fact, you are not as

miserable as you look -- it is misery plus seriousness that makes you

look so miserable. Just misery plus laughter, and you will not look so

miserable!” - Beyond Enlightenment, Chapter #27

Osho Rajeesh.

[NormanH]

Thanks to everybody for expressing a genuinely wide range of replies in a reasoned and well tempered way.

I can see that there is a much greater diversity of reasons for reading or posting on this board than I had imagined.

[Weedon]

Going bananas in the Camargue could be a possibility, except that once you start looking into it you find there are more variations than you can shake a stick at.  I thought a banana was a banana until I looked here my personal favourites are the Velutina (which gets a good write up) and the French Horn.

[Cat]

[quote user="woolybanana"]

Whilst I was replying, a missive from RA seems to have gone missing and he is now sitting on his hands which is very painful. But I'll leave my post as it stands because he made a lovely little French moue.

Ron, if you have had your fingers slapped, run cold water over them to stop the stinging.

[/quote]

Not guilty m'lord [:)]

I think he slapped his own fingers, and then edited his post.

[chessfou]

[quote]Now, about banana growing in the Camargue.[/quote]

Well, if you can grow 'em in Pas-de-Calais & Lyon ...

http://209.85.229.132/search?q=cache:5LVTui8EbCwJ:www.tvmag.com/article/jardinage/37089/des-bananes-chez-les-ch-tis.html%3FarList%3D1%26sat%3D6%26sac%3D26%26saf%3D2%26sj%3D00%26sm%3D00%26sa%3D0%26sq%3D%26page%3D1+bananes+poussent+en+france&hl=fr&ct=clnk&cd=11&gl=fr

NB that's dated the 25th of the month (not the 1st).

[5-element]

[quote user="Frenchie"]

I understand what Clair and Cooperlola mean, but at the same time I must admit that, as a French native , I am always a bit surprised at the lack of interest shown about big French political events such as Sarko's speech  on TV the other day .

Of course I understand that most of you can't vote, but you live in this country, and the decisions taken may affect you. ( social security, carte vitale, benefits, taxes, etc..............)

It is not criticism from me, just my perception of things.

 

[/quote]

Sorry to get in so late, I missed on all the fun.

I would like to echo what Frenchie says - I am frequently surprised by the paucity of responses to matters that are French, (not just political or presidential speeches, but also current events, which affect all people who are either living in France or with assets here).

I never maintained a high level of interest in France and things French  while I was living and working in the UK.

But maybe this is the whole point: unless you are actively living in France, i.e., working in a French environment,  interacting continuously with French people, then you don't necessarily know (or want to know) what is happening around you, especially if you are not at ease with the language. 

 

 

[5-element]

[quote user="Weedon"]

Going bananas in the Camargue could be a possibility,

[/quote]

But you can go bananas anywhere these days, can't you?

[Maricopa]

[quote user="5-element"]But maybe this is the whole point: unless you are actively living in France, i.e., working in a French environment,  interacting continuously with French people, then you don't necessarily know (or want to know) what is happening around you, especially if you are not at ease with the language.[/quote]

IMVHO, I would have thought this would have been a very good reason to watch French news and find out what is going on, i.e. to improve your language skills and then be able to interact with people around you (even if only hesitantly at first). 

[Clair]

[quote user="5-element"]I never maintained a high level of interest in France and things French  while I was living and working in the UK. [/quote]

Same for me.

At first, it was because I wanted to be able to speak and understand the language as much and as quickly as possible; later because I had lost track of who was doing what and why...

[quote user="5-element"]But maybe this is the whole point: unless you are actively living in France, i.e., working in a French environment,  interacting continuously with French people, then you don't necessarily know (or want to know) what is happening around you, especially if you are not at ease with the language.[/quote]Snap...

[Scooby]

[quote user="Maricopa"]

IMVHO, I would have thought this would have been a very good reason to watch French news and find out what is going on, i.e. to improve your language skills and then be able to interact with people around you (even if only hesitantly at first). 

[/quote]

We don't have a problem with language skills - I read Le Monde regularly but the detail of french life is mostly not relevant to us.   As has already been mentioned, once you have your second home up and running, have all the utilities etc set up, many of the detailed questions in this area are no longer of import.  When you can't vote in France and do not intend on becoming resident in France, the politics (largely) don't really impact either.  

[Catalpa]

Those of you who are French and lived in the UK - if I remember correctly (or even at all [:P]) you moved there in your 20s? I believe one is less "wedded" to country of birth at that time. Providing one is happy - not homesick - the focus at that age is on where you are, not where you've come from.

Contrarily, many people on this forum will have spent the first 40 / 50 / 60 years in the UK before moving to France. That's a lot of life and history to lose interest in. If someone has been interested in British politics (for eg) for the past 30 years, they're not going to turn that interest off - or switch it to French politics - over night. And why should they? Which isn't to say some émigrés won't immediately lose interest in the UK but I suspect they are in the minority.

I'm not arguing that the Little Englander approach is right at all (good grief, no!) but continued interest in the country in which people have spent half their lives - and from where the funds for their life in France will originate - is hardly surprising... and really rather balanced, in my view.

For us specifically, as time progresses and aspects of current French life are experienced during our time here, events like the Sarkosy presidency become part of "my" life in France because I experienced them. I didn't vote in the presidential elections, obviously, but I was part of the local discussions, I went to the count... it felt - and of course is - very relevant to me. He's my president... and whereas Tony Blair felt like my prime minister, Gordon Brown does not. I used to get friends to bring me copies of the weekend newspapers from England... now when they do I find I don't read them, or only cursorily. We get le Figaro by mail on Friday and Saturday and I get my fix of news and analysis from that - and from the website during the week. And I love Mme Figaro. [8-|]

What I can certainly do without on all the fora, not just this one, are the links to "deteriorating Britain", to "this could only happen in Britain" Daily Mail type negative comment. I detest those. But of course, no one forces me to click... or to read the ensuing thread. [;-)]

[Clair]

[quote user="Catalpa"]Those of you who are French and lived in the UK - if I remember correctly (or even at all [:P]) you moved there in your 20s?[/quote]

Not even 20![blink]

[woolybanana]

She was kidnapped by small green people