89 thoughts on “Eau

  1. CoderNerd

    Meh, he goes on and encourages the kid to get the best possible grades in school, not just what it takes to pass.
    As far as presidential behavour goes, not the worst I’ve seen this week.

  2. Janet, I ate my Avatar

    it’s a far more formal country in this regard
    people expect to be treated correctly tu/ vous …Madame etc, then kiss or handshake depending on your relationship
    I remember being terribly offended when the bank teller called me Janet here
    I didn’t think we were on a first name basis and still had my Paris hat on where it would automatically be Madame

    1. Andyourpointiswhatexactly?

      My mother calls bank tellers out on that. “No, I’m Mrs Andyourp,” she says, scoldingly. Old school.

      1. Janet, I ate my Avatar

        I confess I did too
        disclaimer: I had only been back a week
        And she had been incredibly unprofessional and inefficient so up until the name poi t I was lulled into feeling ” at home ” :)

        1. Andyourpointiswhatexactly?

          Ointiswhatexactly, rather.
          But no. I go by my surname. My first name is Beryl.

          1. Brother Barnabas

            I’m going to stand at leonard’s corner and shout “beryyyyylllll” at every cyclist that passes

          2. realPolithicks

            I think you’re missing the point here Brother, you need to shout “Mrs Ointiswhatexactly” at every cyclist that passes.

  3. David

    Teenagers do not address unacquainted elders by their first name in France (never mind the President; never mind a casual form of his first name). It is simply not acceptable. You may criticize Macron for being stuffy, pompous, not down with the kids, etc, but he is French after all and reacting the way any French dude would to a deliberate show of disrespect. “Fermes ta gueule, petit con” would be another (appropriate) response.

    1. Janet, I ate my Avatar

      oh Lord I’m going to do it
      I’m going to agree with David ( if that’s you David)

        1. Janet, I ate my Avatar

          so David
          while we are here chewing the fat
          answer me a wee question,
          what’s the deal with the non stop name changes ? Why ?

          1. The Old Boy

            David (majuscule D) is not that david (miniscule d) as far as I am aware. The former has been around longer and rather less belligerently.

    2. Lush

      Totally agree. Here in France, it’s the height of bad manners and shows a huge lack of respect. The poor kid; it’s been all over the media here for days. In the full clip, someone further back in the crowd asks the kid “what stupid, f**king thing have you done this time?”
      So he’s obviously got form.

    1. Friscondo

      Exactly. Macron likes to portray this hip, unconventional approach to the presidency, but scratch the surface and he’s a neoliberal, right wing, friend of the usual ruling classes. Same as it ever was.

      1. Janet, I ate my Avatar

        manners have nothing to do with your ” class”
        as the old saying goes
        they cost nothing

    1. missred

      I’d feel grand and some of us would think it was gas. Micky D, on the other hand….

  4. Sheik Yahbouti

    I once shouted “Howyah, Fitzgargle” at the late Garret Fitzgerald, on Dawson Street, in my drunken youth. Feel a bit remorseful now. :-/

    1. Papi

      On a school trip to Leinster House, I saw Dick Spring and Emmet Bergin (Dick from Glenroe) and said “Howya Dicks!”
      The thump I got from the teacher was heard around the world.

  5. Friscondo

    Interesting to see how Macron’s shallow stage managed shtick has reeled so many gullible, ingenue’s in. If it was Teresa May, comments would be filled with “Brit stuffiness” and “Bullying Tory.” Unthinking deference is not a good quality, which is what is being defended here. He is the president of France, and thought it OK to publicly humiliate a child. Weird.

    1. Janet, I ate my Avatar

      it’s not deference
      you are missing the point
      it is a cultural difference
      A big one
      I would be Vous and Madame to this stranger plus a minor not Jan until he had been given spoken permission to address me as such

      1. Friscondo

        Exactly. What a load of horse manure. So the French are even worse than upper class Brits with this nonsense. Merci beaucoup.

        1. Janet, I ate my Avatar

          it’s called civilised
          live squashed like a rat and you will find that manners become more and more important
          they are the oil that helps society slide along

          1. Friscondo

            Hey Janet, don’t punch down. That’s what shows true class and “manners” that you seem to be so obsessed with, like some pearl clutching maiden aunt.

          2. Rob_G

            Friscondo – you are showing your ignorance of the world outside of your own narrow field of reference.

            A lawyer and a binman would both be ‘Monsieur’ to one another; nothing to with the class struggle, merely manners. If a child is addressing any grown-up that they aren’t close with, they would certainly say ‘monsieur’; nevermind a President.

          1. Janet, I ate my Avatar

            dismissing another culture as horse manure is a little short sighted
            would you say the same of the Japanese?

          2. Veronica

            humiliating a child isn’t culture janet and if the japanese carried on this way I’d say the same

          3. Janet, I ate my Avatar

            humiliated
            give over would you
            this ” child ” has grown up in France and was chancing his teenage arm
            he got politely reminded of his manners
            basta

          4. Veronica

            janet come back to us when you have a child of your own your opinion is null and void on this matter

          5. Janet, I ate my Avatar

            what makes you assume I don’t?
            you haven’t a clue mate
            come back to me when you have your facts straight

          6. ReproBertie

            Hahahah! In fact don’t come back until you have a child and raise them in France and have them address the president in an informal matter and be corrected for it and have the incident caught on camera. Until then your opinion is meaningless.

            Amadán.

          7. Veronica

            anyone with a child would not have the time or interest that you do for flouncing and showing off on a website, wouldn’t be so selfobsessed plus they wouldn’t be running up the country chasing a man that had no interest

          8. Janet, I ate my Avatar

            aww darling
            like I said when you have your facts straight
            ps I’m not as young as I look and kids grow up but thanks
            you seem like a happy person
            maybe you should try a little running for the craic like too
            heartily recommend it :)
            never too old for adventure and new conquests

          9. Janet, I ate my Avatar

            and another French cultural fact
            is that children fit into your life not yours into there’s
            the upside is mothers keep their mental and physical health
            And children grow up not expecting the world to revolve around them
            And guess what woth a little deference you can bring your child to a restaurant or the theatre without them making a show of you

          10. Veronica

            how many ‘uncles’ does your child have, I can imagine the poor thing shoehorned into your social calendar alright, no wonder you were flat out campaigning. I attend spin and kettle bell classes I just don’t broadcast it. I’m a good bit younger than you but thanks for the plastic fantastic advice

          11. Janet, I ate my Avatar

            I love how your Posative imagination regarding my personal life works, it’s entertaining stuff

            Do you know how visibility for charities works ? I was happy to help Will, hope you were able to quietly donate.

          12. mildred st meadowlark

            Veronica is likely ‘Ron’ from the other day, and if I do say so myself, a Grade A conne.

            Alright Ronnie? You any relation of that utter boo boo Paul who was hanging around the week of the ref?

          13. Brother Barnabas

            there’s a touch of ‘david’ to ‘Veronica’

            either way, doesn’t matter- the personal nature of the comments are about as low as i’ve seen on BS

          14. Janet, I ate my Avatar

            Don’t worry my lovely brother,
            to be personal it would have to be even close to the mark,
            plus the day I care about a frustrated trolls judgement is never
            And I knew if I made myself visible you are sure to draw some nastiness
            the good heads here way outweigh this pathetic hot air
            fist bump and relevant emoji ;)

          15. mildred st meadowlark

            I must say, J, I think you’re quite the enigma. A lovely, funny enigma.

            Don’t ever change my dear.

          16. Andyourpointiswhatexactly?

            Jeez, Veronica. Plenty of sand wedged in there, it seems. Have a slice of chill cake.

          17. Rob_G

            Jaysus – I wouldn’t like to be sitting next to Veronica and her kids in a restaurant…

        2. Lush

          It’s not about class, it’s about respect. And it’s also cultural; here in France things are much more formal. Doesn’t matter what social strata you hail from. It takes quite a bit of getting used to, but like Janet, you grow to appreciate it. Another one is always saying Hello and Goodbye when you enter a premises, shop whatever. Always, without fail! Not doing so is considered rude.

          1. Janet, I ate my Avatar

            now that is interesting
            some striking differences that have shed some light on attitudes here I was a bit miffed at
            thanks for this :)

  6. Gabby

    La jeunesse francaise n’est pas En Marche. Macon parle avec hauteur comme un prof à l’école.

  7. markgdub

    He told the kid it wasn’t cool to call him Manu.

    He told the kid why it wasn’t cool.

    He told the kid if he wants to start a revolution, stay in school, get the grades and get to the best possible position to start said revolution.

    I’m not seeing a problem here.

    Teenagers are the biggest collective bunch of dootly-pootles on the planets and have been since society decided 12 was a terrible age to start work.

    1. shortforBob

      The children now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. ….. Socrates circa 390 BC

  8. was ron

    I said previously it was fortunate for your neice that autism can’t be detected in scans. my cousin is autistic and I help out and donate plenty without the showboating

    1. Janet, I ate my Avatar

      was Ron
      was Veronica
      is someone who sees the negative in a beautiful world around them

  9. Sheik Yahbouti

    I’m already elderly and confused. Why does the same person appear as four or five other persons all the time? He/She or It is/are confusing and annoying me.

  10. Dinny Do Well?

    I lived in Paris for 3 years (near Bois du Bologne, much changed now) and visit there every couple of months for a decent run and fag afterwards.

    In France you show respect to the state, the flag, the army, others, addressed as tu/vous, and so on, even when being rude: Never say “‘Allez vous faire foutre” to a close friend or group for example.

    And by the way when the French are being “polite” to the rest of you, they’re actually taking the mickey out of you. Next time, you hear “Pardon mademoiselle” in Paris, you’ll know, they really mean “Oh, get the out of the way, Rosbif” or “Va te faire foutre” (if accompanied with some kind of animated arm/hand gesture).

    Macron is spot on.
    Draft the pup as into the Legion in Djibouti. Or send him to Dublin to stand outside McDonalds on Grafton Street irritating the heck out of rest of us.

  11. Papi

    If anyone thinks this is acting like a conceited asshat, you’ve never taught a classroom of teenagers. One sign of weakness and they will strip you to the bone. Even the nice ones. It’s like a frenzy.

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