{OT} It's Going to Get Harder ...

.... to enjoy a smoke in France

(or ... Another 'Dear Diary', musing out loud post)

As it stands right now, the mere possession of a joint here in France, can
get you ten years pokey and a 7,500,000 EUR fine [1] (life in gaol if
you're caught dealing).

That law has been virtually disregarded by all, to the point where it
exists on paper only. Get stopped with some dope, and the police will tell
you to throw it into the gutter, and send you on your way. At the Techno
Parade the other day, I stood chatting to two cops on rollerblades, whilst
two blokes walked past, calmly puffing away. Yesterday, at the Fête de
l'Humanité [2], we sat on the grass, tolking away with impunity, listening
to sounds, eating, admiring young, student totty.

All this is going to change.

The disaster which befell our country on 21 April last year, is familiar to
all: a fascist, murdering thug almost became President [4]. We escaped
that, but got a right-wing President, who appointed a moralistic Parisian
lawyer as ~Home Secretary. His pronouncement of just after, that 'there
are no such things as soft drugs', did not augur well for the future.

So now, the police are being told to crack down, even on 'personal usage',
and the minimum fine for possession now looks to be 1,500 EUR for a first
offence (Class V offence), with the threat of prison for subsequent
offences, and 'drug addict [sic] counselling' being made mandatory.

So all in ... arse. :-(


[1] Art. 222-34, Penal Code
[2] organised by the French Communist Party, and their 'unofficial organ',
Humanité magazine [3], and with 'stalls' from all over the world,
a concert where some white reggae band gave renditions of Marley's
stuff, and where we got to munch Russian, Tunisian and Madagascarien
(?) specialities
[3] http://www.humanite.fr/
[4] France, my Belovèd France, what possessed you ????

 

<snip dopehead ramblings>

Is this a preamble to the forthcoming post "That's it, I'm moving back
to good ol' Blighty"?

 

As if it will make any difference whatsoever. The cannabis farmers will
go on strike demanding more subsidies from the government. Then the
lorry drivers who deliver the cannabis will join in and blockade the
ports. Then the trains will go on strike. Before long it will be like a
normal day in France.

The French government will then back down as they always do. Subsidies
will not be provided but the police won't enforce the law hence
restoring economic equilibrium for the cannabis farmers, suppliers and
users. Meanwhile the French will carry on drinking strong coffee, eating
cheese, smoking dope, ignoring the economic rules applying to the Euro,
pretending British Beef doesn't exist and everyone will live happily
ever after.

Vive La France.

 

I fail to see how the above description

Can be reconciled with this (apart from the term "fascist", of course)

 

Desmond Coughlan wrote

Commiserations but you must've seen it coming. I mean how could the
frogs justify creaming so much out of the EEC if you lot give up on the
tipple and start serious consumer toking instead. The country would go
bankrupt in days were it not for the financial support we are forced to
donate,

 

Holy crap!

[snip]

Indeed. Move back to the UK?
;-)

 

don't people point and laugh?

 

For the first couple of minutes, the cops were pointing and
laughing at Des, but after that they were perfectly pleasent.

 

Yeah, but I'm used to it.

 

Oops ... you got there before me.

 

'freezes', 'over', and 'Hell' come to mind.

Not in that order.

 

LOL ... *quality*

 

There was no link between the two. My going to the Fête de l'Humanité had
nothing to do with the election of 21 April 2002.

Or have I been whooshed again ?

 

There's a superfluous word in there, Children ......

 

*snort*

 

Cab wrote

Maybe but nobody is disagreeing with it.

 

After reading this there will be a thud. That will mean I am dead due to
shock.

*thud*