Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis |
"France is Not a Cash Cow"; Riots Over Ecotax Continue; Is Anyone Happy? Posted: 03 Nov 2013 07:34 PM PST French farmers are still not happy even though French president Francois Hollande decided to roll back the "ecotax" on large trucks following riots last week. Riots continued on Saturday, after the announced rollback. For the prelude to this story please see my Thursday, October 31, post, Hollande's Tax Everything Plan Blows Sky High With Riots by Farmers. French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault on Tuesday indefinitely suspended the introduction of a green tax on trucks following riots at the weekend in the Brittany region.Indefinite Not Good Enough The "indefinite rollback" on the "ecotax" (an allegedly environmentally friendly commercial transport, tax on French and foreign vehicles weighing over 3.5 tonnes) was not acceptable to the farmers, artisans and distributors. They demanded a permanent rollback. Riots resumed on Saturday prompting French riot police use tear gas on anti-tax protesters. French riot police fired tear gas at thousands of demonstrators in north-west France on Saturday, after some protesters hurled stones and iron bars at them in a rally against a controversial green tax and layoffs.No One Is Happy What the hell was Hollande thinking when his officials announce the suspension for "at least several months"? Was everyone but the environmentalists supposed to be happy? "France is Not a Cash Cow" Whoever coined the phrase "France is Not a Cash Cow" sure has that correct. Then again, no country is a cash cow. They all tax their citizens to death then redistribute the proceeds with graft, cronyism, fraud, and plain government inefficiencies wasting most of the money. France is so adept at wasting taxpayers' money that even the socialists are rioting. Mike "Mish" Shedlock http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com |
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