Saturday, December 8, 2018

So Long, Marianne


This hellish image is the visage of Marianne. The icon of Liberty on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Originally, triumphant. A fearless warrior shouting a battlecry.  Now she looks like she's screaming in agony.

The Yellow Vests defaced her. Literally. Some heartless bastard smashed the right side of her face with a sledge hammer. But that's OK, right?

See, it's a political statement, not a form of art criticism.

The Yellow Jackets are upset at President Macron's gas tax. Hell, I don't blame them. The tax unfairly targets France's rural regions where folks have to travel long distances in cars and trucks, as opposed to the urban swells in Paris and other major cities who rely on subsidized mass transportation.

Take it to the streets. Stop the machine. Grind the city to a halt.

The ends don't justify the means. It's the other way around. The means justify the ends. People who like to torture and smashing shit up find a political justification. They like breaking eggs, so they start cooking omelets.

And the means are what matter. You are what you do. If you act like a fascist.

Progressive goals don't wash the blood off your hands.

Do what I want or I'll hurt you or destroy something you love is not a progressive tactic. It's the essence of fascism.

Yellow vest, brown shirt. What's the difference?