France

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Obama's Apologies Create a Sorry Situation: Rove

No reason for contrition in GOP pundit's mind

(Newser) - Barack Obama has finished his "international confession tour," and Karl Rove can’t figure out what it was supposed to accomplish. After his public apologies on two continents, "our adversaries rejoiced," Rove writes in the Wall Street Journal. David Axelrod swears this will yield “very,...

Economy Saps Sarkozy's Approval Ratings
Economy Saps Sarkozy's Approval Ratings
ANALYSIS
Apr 17, 2009 3:14 PM CDT

Economy Saps Sarkozy's Approval Ratings

'Action-man president' looks powerless on crisis

(Newser) - Nicolas Sarkozy should be well positioned to gain political capital from the global recession, having warned against capitalist excess years before the crisis quashed pro- deregulation argument. But the French president’s approval rating keeps dropping, the Economist reports. It fell another 2% in April, to 36%. As the crisis...

Mais Non! French Ditch the Champagne Cork

Don't fret: new metal cork will still create pop and fizz

(Newser) - Fed up with imperfect corks tainting its high-end Champagne, one French winemaker is tossing tradition aside in favor of a—gasp!—aluminum cork. BBC reports. Before you faint in horror, Duval-Leroy stresses that this is no screw-top cap: the new plug will make the same pop and spray a...

Sarko: Obama's Not So Hot
 Sarko: Obama's Not So Hot 
Apr 16, 2009 7:26 PM CDT

Sarko: Obama's Not So Hot

(Newser) - Someone sounds a little jealous the international media has found a new darling. Nicolas Sarkozy sniped today at President Obama for being inexperienced and indecisive, the Times of London reports. While praising Obama's "clever" mind, the French president complained to party members that "he was elected two months...

French Nab Pirate 'Mother Ship'
 French Nab Pirate 'Mother Ship' 
Apr 15, 2009 10:03 AM CDT

French Nab Pirate 'Mother Ship'

(Newser) - French forces launched an attack on a 30-foot-long pirate "mother ship" early today, detaining 11 pirates and thwarting a pirate attack on a Liberian-registered vessel, the AP reports. The pirates are being held aboard the Nivose, a French frigate taking part in a European mission to protect shipping in...

Pirate Hostage Dies as French Rescue 4

Operation successfully rescues four others

(Newser) - French forces rescued four hostages from a yacht held by pirates off the coast of Somalia, but one hostage was killed during today's operation, the BBC reports. Two couples and a child were on a yacht captured by pirates last week in the Gulf of Aden. The child was among...

Assembly Votes Surprise Non on French Web Piracy Law

(Newser) - The French legislature has put a stop—for now—to an anti-piracy law that would deny Internet access to repeat offenders, AFP reports. The law, a pet of President Nicolas Sarkozy, would deal the ultimate blow to illegal downloaders after three strikes, and replace the current regime of fines and...

France Plans to Monitor, Foil Illegal Downloaders

(Newser) - France is poised to enact a far-reaching crackdown on those who illegally download music and movies, the New York Times reports. A new law expected to be approved tomorrow allows the music and film industry to monitor the downloads of individual users and report any violations to a new copyright...

British Execs Released After Latest French 'Bossnapping'

(Newser) - In the latest demonstration of French employees refusing to take job losses sitting down, workers at a glue factory took 3 British execs and their French manager hostage last night, and released them today, the BBC reports. The “bossnappers” demanded a renegotiation of their severance package from Scapa, which...

Business Is Booming for French 'Protest Coach'

Parisian makes a living schooling dissenters in the art of civil disobedience

(Newser) - France's leading "protest consultant" has never been busier, he tells the Wall Street Journal. Xavier Renou provides—for a discretionary fee—tips and training courses for anticapitalist protesters on making sure their message is heard. Renou sticks to nonviolent means, but has plenty of practical advice on everything from...

Burn Victim Gets New Face, Hands

Landmark operation in clinic where docs performed world's first face transplant

(Newser) - A burn victim has received a new face and hands in a ground-breaking transplant surgery in France, reports the Times of London. A team of 40 doctors worked 30 hours in the same Paris hospital that performed the world's first face transplant in 2005 and first hand transplant in 1998....

On Tough EU Trip, French Oddly Likeable

Obama has headaches on both sides of Atlantic

(Newser) - How's Obama doing on his first big diplomatic foray? Americans are relieved to have a president who doesn't embarrass us—no more spontaneous massages for German Chancellor Angela Merkel. But Europe is positively swooning. Perhaps EU leaders are secretly loving President Obama's "willingness to be a good loser,"...

First Ladies' Event Canceled as NATO Protests Get Ugly

Anti-NATO demonstators clash with Police in Germany

(Newser) - Protesters clashed with police in Strasbourg today less than 2 miles from where NATO’s leaders were gathering for the alliance’s 60th anniversary summit. French police decked out in body armor fired tear gas and flash bombs, while protesters lobbed Molotov cocktails and rocks, the AP reports. Organizers canceled...

Obama Sets No-Nukes Goal at Town-Hall Forum in France

Calls for renewed Europe-US partnership

(Newser) - President Obama told a European audience today that he’s set sights on "a world without nuclear weapons,” the AP reports. Obama opened a town-hall meeting in France with the declaration, saying he would outline details in Prague in the coming days. "The spread of nuclear weapons...

In Fashion, Michelle Wins Round 1 Over Carla

The winner? Michelle

(Newser) - As fashionistas everywhere watched anxiously, two of the world’s most glamorous first ladies met today in France. High-fashion lover Carla Bruni-Sarkozy would never be seen in the available-to-the-masses brands Michelle Obama sometimes wears (think J Crew). Yet Michelle won the first round of today’s face-off in a cheerful,...

Obama, Sarko Pledge United Front

(Newser) - Nicolas Sarkozy and President Obama pledged cooperation today on a host of international issues, from Afghanistan to Iranian nukes, the AP reports. “It feels really good to work with a US president who wants to change the world,” said Sarkozy at their press conference. It’s a “...

Screaming Crowds Greet Obama in France

Ahead of NATO summit, president sits down with Sarkozy

(Newser) - Barack Obama left Britain for France today, arriving to cheering crowds in Strasbourg along the Franco-German border. Ahead of this weekend's NATO summit, Obama held a meeting with Nicolas Sarkozy, who recently returned France to full membership of the military alliance after decades on the sidelines. Obama will be pushing...

French Cops Battle NATO Rioters

Violence follows G20 leaders to Strasbourg for NATO summit

(Newser) - French cops clashed violently with rioters in Strasbourg last night as G20 leaders prepared to head there for a NATO summit today. Hundreds were detained by police, who fired tear gas and rubber bullets at rampaging masked protesters, reports the BBC. Shop windows were smashed and cars and bus stops...

Boss Hijackings Spike in France

Anger moves to menace as economic tensions mount

(Newser) - Worrisome "hijackings" of bosses are spiking in France, underlining the threatening tensions within a staggering economy, reports the Wall Street Journal. Workers angered by layoffs surrounded the car of Salma Hayek's retail tycoon hubby François Pinault in Paris yesterday for over an hour until they were dispersed by...

The Best Prison Breaks
 The Best Prison Breaks 
OPINION
Mar 31, 2009 4:43 PM CDT

The Best Prison Breaks

Frenchman's joins infamous company with clever escape

(Newser) - A Frenchman’s daring escape from a London prison—Julien Chautard turned himself in yesterday after busting out by gripping the bottom of a prisoner transport van as it left the courtyard—gets Jon Henley, in the Guardian, thinking about the best such tries ever. His highlights:

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