Sometimes even I can be sickened by the banality of evil:
The government has decided to cut reimbursements for “heavy users” of healthcare. The purchase of medications and consultations are targeted by this trim. But who is affected? #JT13h
— franceinfo (@franceinfo) July 23, 2026
“Heavy users of healthcare”, aka: the sickest people.
Always it is the weakest who are targeted. Once we taxed the rich to help the poor, now we kill the poor so the rich can afford another vacation property or mega-yacht, or, really, keep up with the Musks.
When the revolution comes, people like Macron need to be charged with mass homicide, and either be executed or sent to prison if (when) they are found guilty.
The West’s rich are in a red-Queen’s race with each other. If you fall behind, you get bought out and even if you still have lots of money, you’re no longer a player in the game. To keep their place in this game they must immiserate everyone else. The other option, to stop playing the game and put in controls over buying out other members of the elite never serious occurs to them.
It’s similar to how carbon taxes are always regressive, rather than massively hitting private jets and private mega-yachts and people with multiple homes. Nope, hit farmers and ordinary people. Certainly don’t really tax oil majors.
The West has only one inviolable rule during this sub-ideological period: the rich must always get richer. Everything else is sacrificed to that goal.
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spud
great article, and its covered by this youtube. the rich are called parasites, and the ones who did it, are clearly called out. this started in earnest in 1993.
remember, fascism is the capitalist response to socialism. the towering intellectual mental midget macron, just proved it. just like germany in 1930.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NN_AVL2_w80
The world is quietly betting on America
Yanis Varoufakis and Wolfgang Munchau expose how decades of central bank bailouts and Quantitative Easing have fuelled an inflated wealth bubble that leaves a fragile Western financial system dangerously vulnerable and dependent on US asset inflation.
cc
Plutocracy.
The root cause of the West’s problems, and impacting by extension the rest of the world.
Feral Finster
Overeducated Americans loved to fawn before europe, so civilized, so humane! The reason europe offered social democracy wasn’t because of any superior level of civilization – it was that the fear of communism forced the european elites to offer the populace a better deal.
Now that the Soviet Union is gone, the elites are renegotiating the old deal. And why shouldn’t they?
The french political class has no present goal other than the War On Russia. They are quite happy to sacrifice freedom of speech, association, elections, the social safety net, etc. in pursuit of that goal.
mago
Concomitant with the short sighted greed and stupidity is the rise of head cracking authoritarianism. Everywhere you look there’s trouble, although the view from my window is breathtaking. Wish I could share it.
dsrcwt
People don’t understand big numbers and non-linearity. They think “if I had 5 or 10 million dollars, I’d never have to do anything I don’t want to”. So-called “fuck you money”. They project that onto the billionaires and think that it is just mega-fuck-you money. But at a certain point it changes from, “nobody can tell me what to do” to “I can make people do things they don’t want to do”. No it is reaching a societal scale where a few individuals can force their will on millions, and are getting off on it.
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When the revolution comes, people like Macron need to be charged with mass homicide, and either be executed or sent to prison if (when) they are found guilty.
YES! This!
However, will that day ever come? No, sadly. Why?
Watch this movie, it provides the answer — as metaphor. Such an excellent movie. As far as the metaphor is concerned, the disparate passengers on the train aside from the two criminal thugs collectively represent the peons. The two criminal ,taunting, harassing, terrorizing thugs represent the wealthy elite and their courtiers.
The point? They have us so pitted against one another and so divided, we cannot collectively overcome the deliberate fragmentation and factionalism to easily thwart and thump the wealthy elite for good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izeXpm0opIg
Oakchair
The oligarchs control the government, spy agencies, the internet, the news, Hollywood, the justice system, the banks, the medical industry and so on.
They have no moral qualms whatsoever about committing genocide, and go to Epstein parties for fun.
Let’s assume they want to depopulate the world and wipe out 90% of the population.
Assume they are capable of planning long term, working together and thinking several steps ahead. Assume they are competent and extremely intelligent.
How would they do that?
Taking healthcare away from people is deadly but it doesn’t accomplish the overall goal (mass depopulation). It doesn’t meet the criteria of a well organized, intelligent, several steps ahead plan that utilizes the means the oligarch possess.
Maybe it’s time to remember that TV is fiction and those fumbling cartoon oligarchs are characters being played for a purpose.
Jan Wiklund
Particularly since there is another way of saving in the healthcare system. France has an idiotic insurance system – a state insurance, which however only pays for 60 %, and if you want to cover more you will have to take a private insurance. Just think of all the bureaucracy this creates in the system when it tries to figure out which insurance the patient have and exactly what it covers.
I don’t want to sound overly patriotic, but the Swedish system is better. You pay the equivalent of 20 USD for each treatment, and the state insurance pays the rest, whatever. The implication is that you don’t run to the doctor for a trifle, but that a cancer treatment will cost you exactly 20 USD, medicaments not included. You will have to pay up to 200 USD for that per year, the rest is free.
But of course the political class has expressed their desire for a French system. Always keen for more bureaucracy.
spud
Feral Finster:
and all true. the naive complacent russian leadership should have known full well, that the cold war was on again when biden blew the gas line, then seized their money, and tried to sanction them into oblivion.
but the communists built a to strong economic model that could not only resist that, but thrive.
the problem that the neo-liberals, conservatives and libertarians cannot understand is, that russia was not cuba.
they just cannot wrap their wittle minds around the facts, that the soviet union way way out produced fascist europe.
the current leadership is getting it, even as they themselves were shocked.
commons.wikimedia.org
Vladimir Putin has expressed gratitude towards the Soviet collectives, highlighting their role in shaping Russia’s history and influence. He often emphasizes the importance of collective security and cooperation among former Soviet states in his speeches.
Wikipedia americanrhetoric.com
Putin’s Acknowledgment of Soviet Collectives
Vladimir Putin has frequently expressed gratitude towards the Soviet collectives, recognizing their significant role in shaping Russia’s historical and cultural landscape. His speeches often reflect a deep appreciation for the contributions of these collectives to the nation’s development.
Historical Influence: Putin emphasizes how the Soviet collectives have influenced Russia’s identity and its position in the world.
Collective Security: He highlights the importance of collective security among former Soviet states, advocating for cooperation and unity in addressing common challenges.
Cultural Legacy: Putin often refers to the achievements of the Soviet era, portraying them as foundational to contemporary Russian society and governance.
Importance of Collective Security
Putin’s focus on collective security is evident in his discussions about the need for collaboration among post-Soviet states. This approach is seen as vital for maintaining stability and addressing regional threats.
Aspect Description
Historical Context Recognition of the Soviet era’s contributions
Security Cooperation Advocacy for unity among former Soviet states
Cultural Significance Emphasis on the legacy of Soviet collectives
Putin’s gratitude towards the Soviet collectives serves as a cornerstone of his political narrative, reinforcing the idea of a shared past that can guide future cooperation among nations in the region.
Wikipedia nti.org
Feral Finster
@Spud: it should have been obvious to the Russian leadership that the west seeks their destruction, starting at the latest with the Georgian attack on South Ossetia and Abkhazia in 2008, if not the 2005 coup in Kiev.
That the Russian leadership refused to wake up and smell the coffee in 2014 is a true testament to the Russian leadership hiding their proverbial head in the sand.