By Adrian Davies.
Good news from France, as the Front National continues to make impressive progress in establishing itself as the new third force in French politics.
Less than two months before the European elections, in which the Front National is expected to run neck and neck with the establishment right UMP party, leaving the ruling Socialist Party (Parti Socialiste, PS ) a poor third, the FN has taken control of twelve town halls under a voting system much less favourable to it than the system which will apply in the Euros on 25th May (France votes on a Sunday, as do most continental countries, who view our tradition of holding elections on a working day as eccentric!)
Whereas elections to the European Parliament take place under a form of proportional representation, other elections in France are held under a two round elimination system, which is (probably intentionally) disadvantageous to radical parties outside the establishment consensus. It works like this.
Unless a candidate polls more than 50% of the votes in the first round, the lower placed candidates are eliminated, and there is a run off the next Sunday. The first round of the local elections took place on 23rd March, the second following on 30th March, except in those few towns where the first round was decisive.
Historically, whenever a candidate from the FN has gone through to the second round, the system parties such as the UMP and the PS have put aside their supposed “differences” to gang up against the patriotic candidate in a “republican front”.
That trick no longer works so well, for a mixture of good reasons and bad. The good reason is that there are genuine patriots in the ranks of the UMP, who will not line up with the Socialists against the FN for ideological reasons.
The bad reason is that the UMP is so riven with internecine hatreds that in some areas it has splintered into rival lists, which cannot agree on anything, including which candidate to support in the second round if their preferred candidate does not survive the first!
What is more, the tactic is beginning to help the FN as much as it hurts it, by showing the French people that the FN is right when it says that the supposed “differences” between the system parties are superficial, and they are all really no more than aspects of a single establishment party, which quickly comes together when faced with real opposition.
In the result, the FN took the depressed industrial town of Hénin-Beaumont without the need for a run-off, polling just over 50% of the votes in the first round, adding eleven more towns in the second, including the Seventh Arrondissement of Marseilles, the second (and very enriched) city of France, where the indigenous French are rapidly being reduced to a minority (think Birmingham by the sea, and with better weather!).
The FN now controls twelve town halls and has 1,546 elected representatives at a level equivalent to borough councillors in England, and 459 at a level equivalent to county councillors.
What is more, contrary to some opinion, the FN has achieved all these things while remaining true to the essence of its patriotic and openly nationalist ideology, though sensibly presenting itself in a modern, media friendly fashion.
Unfortunately, some few, but very influential opinion formers in France have reacted to the complete failure of Socialist President François Hollande, the most unpopular and least respected President of France under the Fifth Republic, by turning to what we call neo-conservatism, but the French (who are more intellectually rigorous, or perhaps simply more intellectually honest than Anglo-Saxons) call neo-liberalism, a combination of dogmatic belief in the free market with a most un-Gaullist drift into the orbit of American led interventionist foreign policy.
The PS has itself now apparently turned in a Blairite direction by choosing as prime minister Manuel Valls, an open admirer of the repulsive war criminal, willing executioner of American and Ziocon imperialist projects, and fantastically greedy self-enricher who, to our shame, was three times prime minister of the United Kingdom.
The FN rejects that option comprehensively, noting in its official press release of 31st March that the new PS administration is morbidly fascinated to the point of obsession by neo-liberalism, and hell bent on subjecting France to the rule of alien financial interests and dogmatic market fundamentalism at the cost of its sovereignty. The PS has nothing to offer France, says the FN, but austerity, unemployment, public debt, unchecked criminality and mass immigration.
We should wish our comrades and counterparts in the FN well and hope that under the inspirational leadership of the admirable Marine Le Pen, it emerges as the largest single party in France when the votes are counted on 25th May.
Why it is that an authentically nationalist alternative to the system flourishes in France, while in England we have in effect only the well-intentioned but ideologically unformed and confused UKIP (as will become even more clear after the votes are counted here in May to anyone who still harbours any illusions about the family business of an one-eyed twice bankrupt) is a big subject for another article on another day.
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The following stats may also be of interest.
2008 BNP had around 50 elected councillors, the FN around 80.
2014 BNP has 2 remaining elected councilors, the FN over 2,000.
Where did the BNP go wrong? That”s a rhetorical question of course – as we all know the answer.The real question surely must be – where do we, the fractured remnants of British nationalism, go post the EU Elections on 22 May when the BNP loses whatever credibility it may still possess?
That is an illuminating contrast. You also put the real question well. I do not think that it can be answered till the votes are counted and we have taken some time for reflection.
Where things went wrong in Britain was I think in the concept of politics which has dogged the patriotic movement from the start.
The core belief has been in preparing for a collapse when power could be seized rather than participating in the current system and trying to gain traction within it.
When efforts have been made to use the political routes which exist in a system not suffering a terminal event hearts were never really quite in it. The refrain endlessly repeated was that the system won’t let us win. T
This is not a syndrome confined to the right. Lenin wrote a little book about it complaining that many communists regarded participating in the existing system as a betrayal of the purity of the cause. That left waiting for a collapse as the sole option.
Yes Mike you are correct. How often did we hear the ‘one eyed monster’ go on about the Bolsheviks picking power up out of the gutter in 1917 after having a meeting in a café in Paris. The hard left are consistent about the demise of capitalism and some of the right too. The rich are getting richer etc, the point is the rich are getting more power and protection.
As a footnote I thought ‘Farage’ got in some good blows last night and it shows even with a very moderate Nationalist viewpoint, you can beat the political elite in a major debate by a wide margin.
I believe you are spot-on, Mike. In very general terms, the Nationalist political cause in Britain has spent too many years, much effort, much funding and too much personal scheming by individuals, in fashioning itself into a blunt instrument! Whatever else we may think of him, Nigel Farage (just for example) shows what a sharp instrument can accomplish. So does Marine lePen. Such observations inevitably lead to the conclusion that the era of Nationalist “leadership by blunt instrument” is overdue for reform. Other Nationalist Parties please take note – else remain led by cavemen wielding big clubs trying to play a complex game of chess! I name no names, but the rhyme Mick Biffin flits vividly through one’s mind.
(Party Member) The latest success for Nationalism is a great morale booster for us. Our brand of decent Nationalism is the way forward.
By decent do you mean tame?
Depends on what you mean by tame does it not? Putting things in a moderate way which does not frighten people off is certainly considered tame by some on all sides of politics. The lack of success of those not considered tame by this definition does not seem to trouble them.
That was very interesting, as is the comparison between Frances growing, successful nationalist movement, and Britains’ splintered, and increasingly pathetic nationalist movement.
France seem to have conquered- or at least controlled- the egomania that so often stops the UKs myriad nationalist groups from working together, and of course our other major problem is that far too many British nationalists spend far too much time writing and talking about what we should do, and far too little time actually doing it.
I am deeply embarrassed by the thought that the best we can produce in the general nationalist arena, is that beer swilling, insanely grinning village idiot Farage, who is cast from the exact same die as the rest of the Westminster liars and traitors.
Exactly. Nigel Farage invents most of his absurd ‘policies’ (many of which don’t have any principles behind them) on the back of beer-stained mats in his local. The fact is UKIP is merely the ultra-Thatcherite (and hence economically GLOBALIST) anti-EU, Atlanticist wing of the Conservative Party in exile which no doubt explains the fact his party has yet to make any real kind of breakthrough in Labour-voting areas.
As said above its a game of tactics. Patriots of all parties need not agree on certain points but to win but they must agree to destroy the opposition in the same way they have tried to destroy patriots. At the moment its working but not as well as it should. The key area is to finish off whats left of the Labour white vote.
(Party Member) Good point vic. However our Policy document is anything but tame.
PS has itself now apparently turned in a Blairite direction by choosing as prime minister Manuel Valls, an open admirer of the repulsive war criminal, willing executioner of American and Ziocon imperialist projects, and fantastically greedy self-enricher who, to our shame, was three times prime minister of the United Kingdom.
I have a great fondness for the French they tell it as it is, where as the British have become a sly tell it behind your back type of people. I hope the FN go on to change the French political landscape, I also hope the British people wake up and reject that Idiotic Thatcher clone Farage sadly however I feel he is going to do quite well and that will be sad day for all true Patriots.
Hopefully the French will lead the way with nationalist politics in Europe. If ordinary people in Britain see what can be done in France perhaps there will not be such an attitude of “Oh well… What can we do?” and “It’s too late to do anything now”. The defeatist attitude of modern day Britons is simply shameful when compared with those true patriots of France who are fighting back against the political class who have betrayed them. We need to learn from the French, and I agree with the previous comments that have stated that it has been a mistake for British nationalists to believe that we should need to wait for a collapse in the system before we can assert ourselves. We must also learn that it is critical that we unite as one force against those who wish to destroy our nations ethnic and cultural historical identity. Only by acting now, together, can we hope to save what we all deeply love.
Good luck to the FN. Good letter from Mike in Camden New Journal.
My hope is that once the dust has settled following the European Elections and the wasteland that is British nationalism is laid bare for even the most blinkered to see, that all strive to work together to build a viable nationalist alternative that is avoids the problems, pitfalls and individuals that have done so much damage to our cause.
(Party Member) The constitution of our B.D.P. is designed to avoid the mistakes of the past rightly referred to by James. Our Policy document is Pure Nationalism and our Integrity and Presentation is very Professional. After just under ten years in the old party and forty as a Nationalist I was very Impressed with the people on the steering committee who are ego free and take nothing out but just work hard for the cause.
(Party Member) In another French lesson, Marine Le Pen of France’s Front National, has lead the way for us in Britain. She pointed out that French Law does not allow any religious DEMANDS within the PUBLIC SPHERE and that includes SCHOOL MENUS! I am sure our Party agrees with this and Britain should, on this occasion, follow French Law and not pander to any MINORITIES WITHIN OUR SCHOOL SYSTEM!
France is a secular nation in terms of how it applies the law to its citizens. We can follow that in many ways. In France, if you want to get married you go to a register office to be married in the eyes of the state and then if you have religious beliefs you go to the local Roman Catholic church (about 90% or more of the French are Roman Catholics) and have a religious blessing of it. Perhaps, if we had done this in this country we could have avoided a lot of the controversy over same-sex CIVIL marriages.
(Party Member) More good news from abroad for us Nationalists as the Hungarian Nationalist Party, called Jobbik , secured 21.25% of the vote on 6/4/2014 ! More evidence that it can be done, so let’s renew our efforts to build our British Democratic Party.