Comments on: Buy French cars…if you want to http://www.francethisway.com/wp/buy-french-cars/2009/02/ Living in France and daily life for a UK expat in the French blog! Fri, 10 Feb 2012 07:42:23 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Boris http://www.francethisway.com/wp/buy-french-cars/2009/02/comment-page-1/#comment-15372 Boris Tue, 10 Feb 2009 09:03:51 +0000 http://www.francethisway.com/wp/?p=579#comment-15372 After watching his interview last week I suspect that Sarkozy has grasped the issues pretty well, but hasn't quite worked out what comes next. The part of the thousands we all pay that goes to health and education I don't really have an issue with - it costs a lot but provides a very good service), but the very large part that goes to keep 1 in 4 adults in France employed as government civil servants, including a very large number of unnecessary bureacrats, that I do object do. But I appreciate that making one million unnecessary fonctionnaires redundant may not be very politically easy at the moment... After watching his interview last week I suspect that Sarkozy has grasped the issues pretty well, but hasn’t quite worked out what comes next.
The part of the thousands we all pay that goes to health and education I don’t really have an issue with – it costs a lot but provides a very good service), but the very large part that goes to keep 1 in 4 adults in France employed as government civil servants, including a very large number of unnecessary bureacrats, that I do object do. But I appreciate that making one million unnecessary fonctionnaires redundant may not be very politically easy at the moment…

]]> By: Jon in France http://www.francethisway.com/wp/buy-french-cars/2009/02/comment-page-1/#comment-15370 Jon in France Mon, 09 Feb 2009 19:20:02 +0000 http://www.francethisway.com/wp/?p=579#comment-15370 France is, as you say, bloody expensive. And the problem - as far as I can see - stems from the social security Black Hole into which I and everyone else seems to pour endless thousands upon thousands of euros. Everyone wants good social services, but many French politicians seem to be unable to grasp the idea that it is impossible to continue to bolster these to the growing detriment of the rest of the economy. Particularly, it must be said, on the Left of the spectrum, where the understanding of basic economics is laughable and there remains a consistant belief that the "rich" (ie anyone who is either self employed or an employer of others) have infanitely deep pockets in which they hide riches stolen from the masses. Mind you, I do love it here and will continue to buy French (or at least European) made stuff wherever I can. France is, as you say, bloody expensive. And the problem – as far as I can see – stems from the social security Black Hole into which I and everyone else seems to pour endless thousands upon thousands of euros.

Everyone wants good social services, but many French politicians seem to be unable to grasp the idea that it is impossible to continue to bolster these to the growing detriment of the rest of the economy. Particularly, it must be said, on the Left of the spectrum, where the understanding of basic economics is laughable and there remains a consistant belief that the “rich” (ie anyone who is either self employed or an employer of others) have infanitely deep pockets in which they hide riches stolen from the masses.

Mind you, I do love it here and will continue to buy French (or at least European) made stuff wherever I can.

]]> By: AdB http://www.francethisway.com/wp/buy-french-cars/2009/02/comment-page-1/#comment-15363 AdB Sat, 07 Feb 2009 03:43:57 +0000 http://www.francethisway.com/wp/?p=579#comment-15363 My daughter who's at uni in the UK refuses to buy her shoes (and most of her clothes) in the UK and would rather spend a bit more but have the right "pompes". She thinks the shoes she can afford to buy are better looking and fit better in Paris than the ones she sees in the UK for more or less the same amount. I've always been wary of the "imported" stuff, particularly from China and would rather spend a few francs (then) or a few euros today on something that I know is made in Europe (not necessarily in France only) for the simple reason that I trust the quality of many products (at least those that we at home buy) made in Europe. My daughter who’s at uni in the UK refuses to buy her shoes (and most of her clothes) in the UK and would rather spend a bit more but have the right “pompes”. She thinks the shoes she can afford to buy are better looking and fit better in Paris than the ones she sees in the UK for more or less the same amount.

I’ve always been wary of the “imported” stuff, particularly from China and would rather spend a few francs (then) or a few euros today on something that I know is made in Europe (not necessarily in France only) for the simple reason that I trust the quality of many products (at least those that we at home buy) made in Europe.

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