First death as French riots widen

First death as French riots widen - Europe - MSNBC.com: "The violence has prompted soul-searching about how to ease anger and frustration among troubled youths in France’s grim public housing estates, where many residents are minorities. Educators met the French prime minister to think of ways to help.
“These are young people who are generally resigned, they face discrimination everywhere, for housing and work, and their malaise gets expressed in violence,” said Ahmed Touabi, principal of an elementary school in the Paris suburb of Argenteuil. The troublemakers “feel rejected by France, and they want to spit on France.”"

This has become such a major crisis that I finally had to get around to commenting on it. There a couple of things that we need to understand. Civil unrest is the norm in France. Minor riots, strikes, pelting the police with rocks are regular activities. Disaffected youth, without a doubt--especially minority youth. These are the suburbs of Paris where people on government assistance are shoved in to high rises that are full of the same sorts of problems with see in the US.

What makes this worth noting is the escalating nature of the riots. Much as these youths are bored, they should also get bored with rioting. But what we're seeing is something more coordinated and organized. It should be particularly disturbing. Now you can put the problem off on standard French appeasement, or the socialist state, but I think this is too simple. The trouble there is a result of unemployment, lack of government assistance, and racism.

What also makes this thing troubling to me is the glee with which the Right Wing in this country talks about it. Rush Limbaugh had a particularly disturbing commentary on Friday, liking the riots to the Iraq insurgency. He was, of course, trying to show the left as sympathizers to the terrorists. The situation is no way comparable. What we have in France is civil unrest; what we have in Iraq is terrorism in the face of an occupying force. Neither should make anyone happy.