President Emmanuel Macron's government faced a backlash Wednesday after the centrist leader called for powers to "cut off" social media in case of widespread violence like riots over the past week.
For all his flaws I don’t believe Macron is fundamentally a fascist. I think he’s a corporate stooge appealing to the wealthy, the old, and the business types. France has indeed had fascism creeping in, especially with the likes of Le Pen. But France also has a long history of leftist movements and protests. So the pendulum could really swing either way at this point for them. Macron is shitty, but he’s not Le Pen. Hopefully at the next election, people vote leftwards and don’t fall for the typical fascist tactics of convincing people that immigrants and LGBT people are the real problem. Le Pen particularly scares me because she’s very cozy with Putin and has isolationist, anti-NATO tendencies. The west is already struggling to maintain a united front in support of democracy and in opposition to global authoritarianism. If France elected Le Pen, pandora’s box may be opened and there may be no coming back for France.
He almost certainly isn’t, in his heart, a fascist. But if he increases state power and wields against the left in a time of crisis, what difference do his personal values make?
For all his flaws I don’t believe Macron is fundamentally a fascist. I think he’s a corporate stooge appealing to the wealthy, the old, and the business types. France has indeed had fascism creeping in, especially with the likes of Le Pen. But France also has a long history of leftist movements and protests. So the pendulum could really swing either way at this point for them. Macron is shitty, but he’s not Le Pen. Hopefully at the next election, people vote leftwards and don’t fall for the typical fascist tactics of convincing people that immigrants and LGBT people are the real problem. Le Pen particularly scares me because she’s very cozy with Putin and has isolationist, anti-NATO tendencies. The west is already struggling to maintain a united front in support of democracy and in opposition to global authoritarianism. If France elected Le Pen, pandora’s box may be opened and there may be no coming back for France.
He almost certainly isn’t, in his heart, a fascist. But if he increases state power and wields against the left in a time of crisis, what difference do his personal values make?