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Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 12:58:07 +0000

Woo-hoo! Right on, [url=http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/commanders/c_fournier.html]General Fournier[/url]! ...I also found [url=http://my.webmd.com/hw/infection/nord1137.asp]something icky[/url] when I Googled your name in an attempt to find your ancestor from [url=http://www.napoleon-series.org/images/military/organization/fournier.jpg]the Louvre painting[/url]...

Posted by frame609 on 2005-07-14 16:54:44 +0000

Man, there is a disease with my name all over it!

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 16:55:34 +0000

And baby, it's [i]nasty[/i]!

Posted by frame609 on 2005-07-14 17:02:18 +0000

Couldn't hear you- I was washing my dick in the sink. What?

Posted by rladew on 2005-07-14 17:06:27 +0000

Eddie Murphy fagens rule. Its cold in here, BTW... _______________________________

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 17:07:57 +0000

More than just chortle-inducing, my friend.

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 17:08:24 +0000

Get in the hot tub!

Posted by frame609 on 2005-07-14 17:08:38 +0000

I am so glad the board is back up, have I mentioned that?

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 17:14:28 +0000

I have no idea how I filled my days during The Black-Out. Honestly. Scrabble? Hungry, Hungry Hippos?

Posted by frame609 on 2005-07-14 17:21:13 +0000

I was trying to chew through a leather strap.

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 17:24:13 +0000

Sounds like you had more fun than I did...

Posted by rladew on 2005-07-14 17:28:35 +0000

speaking of Bastille Day, me and frame just had a nice and lengthy discussion on the joys of listening to more than one live RUSH album in a row.... In other news, I'll have to eat some "freedom fries" today and contemplate France's gaping, close-to 10% Unemployment rate ... yeesh _______________________________

Posted by frame609 on 2005-07-14 17:42:27 +0000

I was gonna make a Rush comment but decided not to. Nice catch!

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 17:50:24 +0000

Ugh, there you two go again - flaunting the fruits of noble birth. Geez!

Posted by frame609 on 2005-07-14 17:55:13 +0000

We generals are SUCH dandies.

Posted by tgl on 2005-07-14 19:24:29 +0000

The French are lazy, they are more than happy to have a 10% unemployment rate. They also get six weeks vacation, are poorer (on average) and have a lower standard of living than the US. They're also a happy bunch of frogs, though. What's the unemployment rate of RUSH right now?

Posted by rladew on 2005-07-14 19:30:36 +0000

LAZY SOCIALISTS _______________________________

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 19:34:42 +0000

You're baiting me. I [i]know[/i] you're baiting me.

Posted by rladew on 2005-07-14 19:47:31 +0000

Well, 35 Hour Working week, population of 60.4 million in 2004 times 10% Isn't 604 thousand people close to the population of Michigan or something? Maybe those who do work make up for all those who dont, but I havent seen any evidence of that yet... _______________________________

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 20:07:53 +0000

The 35-hour working week was introduced partly in an attempt to curb the rise in unemployment figures. Worldwide, unemployment is an increasing problem. The [url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/1518720.stm]BBC[/url] has a good article on the French unemployment situation. I agree, welfare (especially in socialised countries) needs an overhaul in order to stem its abuse (rife in certain European countries - my current residence very much included). But it's a complex issue. And I will always be grateful to the French for their continued protection of workers' rights. They can strike all they want, and my hat is still off to them.

Posted by tgl on 2005-07-14 20:18:12 +0000

The French have decided that France is a better off with higher unemployment. Much like the U.S. does not care that France disdains it's foreign policy, I can't see how the French give a foie gras that the people in the U.S. think that they are lazy. What would the evidence be that those who do work make up for those who don't? A per capita GDP on par with the US? I repeat: I can't see why the French would particularly care they are not ranked 'nombre un'. Is it that France might not be able to afford the welfare system needed to support that 10%? ---- How much of France's economy is controlled by central Banks in Asia?

Posted by G lib on 2005-07-14 20:57:02 +0000

It's a quality of life issue-- the French put quality of life as #1, and most people in the US put it at #50. . My father works a French schedule-- He asked his company to consider him semi-retired. He works 11-5 Monday through Thursday, has 8 weeks off a year, and works half-time. . Who wouldn't like that? I'm too geeky to be French, but I would work that kind of schedule any time. ________________ --Feminazi

Posted by rladew on 2005-07-14 21:26:15 +0000

So by putting a premium of working for a living, I put my quality of life on the back burner? I dont get it.... _______________________________

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 21:31:30 +0000

Think of how your life would be different if you worked 10am to 5pm or 9am to 4pm instead of 9am to 5pm or (let's be honest) even longer hours. The French are more productive per person than Americans are (this is per a 3-year-old study done by WHO - I'll try to find it). That means that in a 7-hour day they get more done than we do in our 9 or 10 hours a day. Plus they have extra time in the morning for grocery shopping or walking the dog, and/or extra time at the end of the day to enjoy a coffee with friends or work on their garden project. If you could get by on the money you'd make if you worked 7-hour days (and wouldn't be demonised by your employer), wouldn't you do it? Edited to add: (from www.nationmaster.com) [i]France is also the second most productive country in the OECD (excluding Norway and Luxembourg where productivity data are inflated by oil revenues in Norway, and by investments in off-shore banks in Luxembourg). In 2003, the GDP per hour worked in France was 47.2 USD, ranking France behind Belgium (48 USD per hour worked), but above the United States (43.5 USD per hour worked), Germany (40.6 USD per hour worked), the United Kingdom (37.7 USD per hour worked), or Japan (30.9 USD per hour worked). Despite a higher productivity than in the US, France's GDP per capita is significantly lower than the US GDP per capita, being in fact comparable to the GDP per capita of the other European countries, which is on average 30% below US level. The reason for this is because a much smaller percentage of the French population is working compared to the US, which sinks the GDP per capita of France, despite its high productivity. In fact, France has one of the lowest percentage of its population at work among the OECD countries. In 2003, 41.5% of the French population was working, compared to 50.7% in the US, and 47.3% in the UK. This phenomenon is the result of almost thirty years of massive unemployment in France, which has led to three consequences reducing the size of the working population: about 10% of the active population is without a job; students delay as long as possible their entry into labour market; and finally the French government gives various incentives to workers to retire in their early 50s. As many economists have stressed repeatedly over the years, the main issue with the French economy is not an issue of productivity. It is an issue of structural reforms, in order to increase the size of the working population in the overall population. Liberal and Keynesian economists have different answers to that issue.[/i]

Posted by tgl on 2005-07-14 21:41:37 +0000

Sounds like 90% of France works for a living. I really don't know if your average Frenchie is more content than your average American. They seem to be getting by with less, that's about all you can say.

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-14 21:44:34 +0000

We're definitely more driven than the average European. I know people (managers) who only hire Americans or Brits, and they're honest about why: we're happy to work long hours and are committed to getting the job done well, even if that means making compromises in our personal lives. At a European workplace, don't stand by the door at 4:59pm - you'll get trampled by the stampede to leave on time.

Posted by bizquig3000 on 2005-07-14 21:50:47 +0000

[img]http://www.codepuppies.com/~ben/photos/people/sleeping.jpg[/img]

Posted by tgl on 2005-07-15 00:54:04 +0000

That man is so French.

Posted by frame609 on 2005-07-15 06:21:25 +0000

I can get by working 25 hours a week, am wicked French, and my quality of life is pretty fly. Booyah!

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-15 07:27:31 +0000

In their collective faces!

Posted by frame609 on 2005-07-15 07:47:16 +0000

I shit in your beret, America!

Posted by pamsterdam on 2005-07-15 07:52:46 +0000

Mike, you're only truly European if your tipping is for shit.

Posted by frame609 on 2005-07-15 07:59:59 +0000

Curses! I guess I'm more Canadian than French after all. I still shit in yr. collective beret, though.

Posted by tgl on 2005-07-29 16:12:43 +0000

Boy Wonder emphasizes the pro-family nature of France's workplaces.

Posted by dyedon8 on 2008-07-14 19:35:14 +0000

Top. Happy Bastille Day!

Posted by TheFullCleveland on 2008-07-14 20:07:40 +0000