More than just "Hello Bonjour"

It's a good day for school. While I did have to skip my 8am French and the 10am Situating Ourselves courses so I could start to figure out how to get a doctor's appointment, it was still a good day for class. (Don't worry mom, it's just a normal ol' sinus infection or something. I hear the French have great health care so I should be good to go at a cheap rate in no time.)

I do love my Le Gales "State Restructuring and Policy Change: Government and Governance" course. (you can read the PDF at the bottom of this website if you're so inclined.) Today, he gave a few minutes away from the (ahem, boring) readings on State Regulation Within the State to discuss our final policy papers (4,000 words our choice of topics) and then talked for about an hour with us on the state of France and the strike and Sarkozy. I guess it was the first time I really spoke up in class - since I was the one who emailed the request to discuss. Finally, I guess we all decided that it's definitely time for France to reform and catch up to the globalization playing field, but we're not sure if Sarkozy will do (or has been doing) it in the best manner possible. The French don't necessarily support the strikes this time around, but they're not all out counter-protesting (although some are) since they recognize that sometime in the future it might be their retirement plan Sarkozy comes after.

I caught my #68 bus this morning just as I was about to duck down into the metro to give it a try. I got the #68 back home - totally jammed crowded and crawling slowly through traffic jams. I'm sure the air pollution is doing wonders for my skin and lungs. Regardless, I totally support those folks on strike and I sympathize (especially since I have no idea what it's like to be a train operator), but I do agree that




The Times They ARE A'Changing
(c/o micoolcho in Singapore)

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Yeah, so I'm struggling with which policy I'll pick. He's recommended we do a comparative analysis of a policy in 2 countries/areas. We're also not supposed to do something we're familiar with - there goes CCRV. And, of course, we can't do overlapping projects either, ie turn this paper into my "Regulation, Adjudication and Dispute Settlement Beyond the State" class. (I'm thinking about looking at the recent cybercrimes in different countries and analyzing how they're being handled legally and with which international orgs.) In my "Managing Innovation in the Globalising Learning Economy" we're working in groups. I've been spending about 4-6 hours a week with these guys, one from Berlin and the other from Seoul - very cool. We're conducting a survey of future policy makers and current decision-makers, analyzing the impact of pop culture on Seoul and the cultural growth in Berlin after Reunification. It's called "Investment in Social Capital and Cultural Industry - An Argument for Advancing Policy to Enhance Economies of Metropoles." (I invented the title while looking over the application process to UNESCO - they ask for projects, papers, thesis in the CVs of potential interns.)

Whew. And then there's group work in Econ and some paper we're supposed to write in Stats, too. Thankfully our "Situating Ourselves in Complex Settings" class (Organizational Theory) is over tomorrow and it was more of a workshop than a class. We did group work (ugh) to analyze a colleague's previous work dilemma. We're all sworn to secrecy not to reveal any details as it could compromise the person and the institution. But basically it had to do with a large institution not following its own HR policies versus possible corruption with some folks pocketing money skimmed from around the edges. I'm not sure we resolved this one. But it was nothing compared to some dude who talked about the levels of corruption and outright illegal activity he witnessed in an unnamed South American country. Not so much 'org theory' as down-right f'd up ness.

I do like the way this program is really hands-on, not just theoretical, philosophical but we're digging in and doing. This Saturday we'll start four (voluntary) courses on Econometrics and really see how to analyze policy with statistics etc.. or something like that. Then, since there weren't enough 2nd year students signed up for one of the concentrations, "Political Economy of Welfare Reform" will be a lecture series open to all. I'm definitely doing both of these voluntary classes. I figure it's the only chance I'll get so why not. I'll see Paris soon.

Oh, and if you can't keep up - it's all updated on the Mac calendar. Including the Paris Photo exhibition that I did squeeze in for 4 hours on Thursday. I skipped out after my 2-min presentation to the presentation skills course (pass/fail, "taught" by a consultant, really lame). Lisa, I'll have you know I got my "grades" back today and all the students and the consultant chick gave me scores of good to very good. Thanks to you it's old hat, I guess. The calendar also includes the Interpol concert I hope to make on Wednesday night - metros and my health willing.

Dude, Nicole, were you around when I was obsessed with trying to win the KEXP giveaway for tickets to see them in Paris? I sent like a postcard a day - and even had to run over to the capitol to buy lame capitol postcards so I wouldn't miss a day. And then I found out they only wanted 1 postcard per person for the drawing. I was crushed. Well... It's Paris. It's Interpol. I hope I get some good drugs from the doctor. Mannnn...

PS. A short, funny description of the difference between strikes in Paris and the USA. I love the description of a manifestation - the one I witnessed on Wednesday near school, I'm almost 100% positive the striker guys were drunk.

Greve can tear people apart or bring them together

I'm not sure how I feel about La Greve. I haven't had enough time to process it really - which sounds utterly pathetic. I think I've found myself in a vicious circle - school is overwhelming which makes me feel overwhelmed by school which makes school overwhelming. I'm not sure what I lack (or have) that the other students have (don't have) in this capacity. They seem to have a lot more time to party and hang out and drink ans socialize and I feel like I'm constantly tiring my eyeballs out to read as much as possible. I'm starving for this information but now it's been heaped so high on my plate I can't even conceive of seconds or thirds or a whole 'nuther year and a half of dishing it out!

Anyway... Anne and I had a tense moment yesterday during the Greve. She said she didn't support the unions organizing to keep their retirement benefits and age and actually said she wanted to help Sarkozy because this lowered retirement age is affecting France's power to be competitive, etc. Since my days at PP I've been in favor of unions and I think if they don't stand up to Sarkozy now it's really downhill for their culture and interests. Anne comes from a private industry background, I'm from a non-profit background. Debate is good.

It took me 1-1/2 hours to walk to school on Wednesday morning (left at 8am). I was going to meet Magdalena and her girlfriend at l'Opera at 9am but I got there at 8:30am so I grabbed a bathroom stop via getting a coffee - Starbucks yuck, but convenient. We met up and walked - a lot more leisurely pace than I had carried down the hill - through the Louvre Tuileries, over the Seine as the sun was really starting to show its glow behind the buildings, and down through the city to Blvd Saint Germain.

A few buses were running but mostly it was a speedy parade of bikes, cars, scooters, motorcycles, rollerbladers, rollerskaters, and walkers. We got to school a bit early and ran into a portion of the Greve unions.



Global Governance class was all about cybersquatting: Judicial Globalization
1. World Intellectual Property Organization, Arbitration and Mediation Center, UDRP – Domain Name Dispute Resolution
2. Administrative Panel Decision, Excelentisimo Ayuntamiento de Barcelona v. Barcelona.com Inc., Case no. D2000-0505
3. United States Court Of Appeals for The Fourth Circuit, Barcelona.com Inc. v. Excelentisimo Ayuntamiento de Barcelona, no. 02-1396
4. ICANN-Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy

It hurts my brain, invigorates my thinking, and astounds me - as I'm sitting there - that I'm learning about this stuff. Which starts that vicious cycle again. But, oh no, woe is me... poor me... walking 2.25 miles to school IN PARIS, feeling insecure about global law IN PARIS. It's still very surreal and still a gigantic rollercoaster. One day total self-assurance, the next complete insecurity.

I walked back after classes. My ipod wasn't working properly so I did without which is such a good thing. (No, no, I don't walk around the whole time with my ipod but it is good for the walk/run work-out to and from places sometimes.) There was so much noise and sound and discussion - so much LIFE in this city walking home in the dark.

Today, I tried the metro as RATP said they'd started running more frequently. But, of course, running metros means crowds and crowds. I watched a guy hold the doors open to the car for like 4 minutes while he really tried to shove himself in. The second metro and I tried to shove myself in - making a fool of myself no doubt. The third metro came empty! I got a seat which was fantastic and good viewing for the sardine action. It's comical but annoying, dangerous and community all at once. It took me 1-1/2 hours to get to school. HA!

On the way to the metro this morning, I walked from M: Blanche to M: Barbes. I must have looked too serious or pinched-face because all of a sudden I had this silly teenage boy's face in mine, fingers spread out from his head and tongue out. It definitely had the right effect. I started laughing and laughing while walking totally caught off guard! Perfect!

It is indeed the little things.

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Tomorrow I'm off to the doctor visit and tax payment for the official carte de sejour - long-stay visa. I hear there's an x-ray, blood pressure check, tax payment of 55E, and then done deal.
3.07 miles to the doctor.
2.20 miles to school.
2.17 miles back home.

Between school and home, I think I might treat myself to a leisurely stroll through the Carrousel du Louvre for the Paris Photo exhibition.

I often wonder if there's some part of photography and writing that is playing itself out loudly within this grad school plan. Perhaps some of my struggle is in integrating all the pieces and right now only a few aspects are receiving the most attention in the 'grad school plan.' I've heard of many students attending Global Public Policy or Public Affairs programs to augment careers in journalism. I need to investigate that more.

greve

some photos

ABCnews.com

BBC.com

there was some protesting at the corner of my school, Rue du Bac and Blvd Saint Germain. I'll post those later this weekend.

Hey, Ben & Kat - I put all our summer galavanting pics into one folder. I'm starting to go through the older pics and put 'em up. So, Em & Mike, yours will be up soon I hope!

xoxo

La grève

It's kind of like a snow day here today. Not that there's any snow but school was canceled due to "la greve." It sounds like a deadly disease or a very serious, grave decision. Instead, it's power of the people!

I have to reiterate how incredibly helpful it was to read "Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong" before coming over here. So, when people started whispering about "la greve" I knew what they were talking about.

It's French culture. It's amazing. It's community. It's using your voice. It's solidarity. It's a huge "stand up and be counted" and a massive "take notice" to the government. Essentially, it's a strike and a protest and a march.

So, my understanding is that Sarkozy is attempting to raise the age of retirement from 55 to 60 or somesuch of all the employees of the major mass transit systems: the train (RER), the metro, and the buses. Apparently they're wondering if this will be like the strke in 1995 which lasted for 3 weeks. Since that time, when then-President Jacques Chirac attempted to reform retirement pensions and ages, no one has attempted to confront the transit workers. See, I don't think we really get it in the States because we all have cars. But maybe some of my pals in NYC could relate (although even there there's like a buhzillion taxis which is not the case here). Imagine if there were 3/4 less taxis in NYC, 1/2 the amount of personal cars, and then put a halt to all subway, buses, and trains coming in and out of the city to places like DC, Boston, Cleveland, etc. It would paralyze the city. Industry, economy, everything is affected. So, the longer this goes the harder it hits the country, the Euro Union, the world (think: wine, cheese, fashion, machinery, platics -- Fra is the 2nd largest exporter of services and farm products), and Sarkozy.

I guess we'll see what happens. I was able to have a nice night out and make it back on the metro by 11:45pm. As I was heading up the stairs out of M: Blanche some metro security workers were heading down, presumably to clear it out and lock it up. I wouldn't have been trapped across town or anything (while I can't get a Velib yet, I can hail a taxi -- if they weren't all taken like the other night when I tried to get home during Fashion Week and every taxi was taken at 2am so I had to walk to Place Opera where this guy told me about taxi lines. After walking 2.5km/1.5mi I was pooped and tired and cold and kind of lonely so I just didn't want to hoof it all the way home). But it's nice to hop on the fast and cheap metro to get home.

Well, since they canceled my one class I figure I'll walk on over to the manifestation and check it out. My friend Sarah told me last night ithttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif's better to check out the beginning than the ending because of rioting, but .. well... isn't that the fun part? Of course, I'll be careful. And, as I'm sure you can imagine, I'll report back with photos.

Speaking of photos, here are a few I've uploaded of late (400 more to upload -- man, digicams make life so much easier and more proliferative).

Valle de la Loire

Valle de la Loire

Before "La Nuit Blanche" [Rue de Douai / 9eme folder]

Car washing in Paris [Rue de Douai / 9eme folder]

Mushrooms on Rue Lepic [Montmartre / 18eme folder]