By David Futrelle
Some days I just can’t, when if comes to the misogynists. So instead of one of my regular posts, here are a bunch of fantastic French singer ladies, mostly recording in the 1960s, starting with the amazing Brigitte Fontaine (whose later, less poppy stuff with the Art Ensemble of Chicago is also great).
Oh, and consider this an open thread. Obviously, there’s a lot going on. No trolls.
Fans of Mad Men will recognize this one:
And here’s a ringer: April March is an American who was a tiny baby when most of these songs were released, but who records a lot of songs in French 60s style. She did an English version of this song as well *”Chick Habit”).
If you want more of this kind of music, well, here’s 9 hours of it. Hit “shuffle” for more variety.
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I like those tunes.
May I crave another title suggestions favour?
This one is an article about undercover investigations and private prosecutions.
The key issues are something called the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act. That covers covert evidence gathering etc; and bringing criminal cases against offenders without getting the authorities involved.
All suggestions as always gratefully received. Cheers.
Songs are catchy enough. I don’t speak French so I don’t understand the lyrics, but the music is good.
@Alan Robertshaw
A couple suggestions:
Do-It-Yourself Policing
Stay Under the Radar
Whoa. “Private prosecutions” sounds like something that shouldn’t exist outside of feudalism, cyberpunk dystopias and ancap wet dreams (same diff?) where giant megacorps openly rule the world, and Singapore.
You’re saying the UK has such a thing?
Gee, it sure slid downhill fast if shit like this is going on before the ink is even dry on Brexit.
@ Surplus
Private prosecutions are nothing new in the UK, but I’ve only ever known about high – profile cases where the authorities have slipped up (and I’m being generous to the authorities here) over high profile homicide investigations. One example was (I believe) the racist murder of black teenager Stephen Lawrence in London in 1993.
Generally they look to me like the cases were effectively crowdfunded, though I could be mistaken. Alan would know a lot more.
I’ve always like Fleur de saison
@Surplus
Canada allows private prosecutions as well, as do some states in the US (it stopped being allowed in Federal cases here in 1981). It’s just that generally nobody does, because it’s expensive, a pain in the ass, and likely to fail unless you’ve got (or are) a quite qood barrister. Plus, these days the courts have got plenty of prosecuters of their own, and usually if a serious offence has been comitted they’ll look into it/squash your efforts to look into it, depending. I expect Alan’s talking about things like fox hunting, which is illegal these days but not a high priority for the authorities.
Hello.
If you like the old sound, you may also like Françoise Hardy, Colette Renard, Marie-Paule Belle, Les Parisiennes (the old version of the band. But i never heard the new one, so i can not tell for them)… If you like songs a bit harsher in their thematics, there is also Barbara, of course.
Have a nice day.
“Retro” might be pushing it, but I have a soft spot for Les Rita Mitsouko.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAfPxmqjVaI
No, they aren’t japaneses, and you aren’t having a stroke.
Private prosecutions actually predate public prosecutions here; all this the state getting involved is pretty new-fangled. Bring back the wergeld; that’s what I say!
But they’re not uncommon. For example the RSPCA prosecutes animal cruelty offences as a private prosecutor; and a lot of IP cases are brought by the relevant industries.
There are advantages for activists going down the criminal rather than civil route. You don’t have to pay court fees; if you are successful the defendant has to pay all your costs; but if you lose then the defendant has to try to get their costs back from the state (although it’s a private prosecution; it’s a public act.)
Theoretically activists could just hand over any evidence gathered to the relevant authorities; but a lot of my client base aren’t keen on the police. Also there are advantages in that, unlike for state bodies, it’s easier to get unlawfully obtained evidence admitted. Although it is a bit complex; hence the article. See here for example…
https://www.horseandhound.co.uk/hunting/hunt-monitors-are-breaking-human-rights-legislation-293594
People may also find this interesting.
http://womenagainstrape.net/inthemedia/landmark-rape-prosecution-revisited-courtroom-dram
And if you want to get really technical…
https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/private-prosecutions
Ugh, dealin’ with another obnoxious cold. I think the worst part of colds is just that malaise that leaves you feel like half a functional human being. It’s bad enough to feel that way, but then a huge snowstorm to deal with… man, I wish I could stay home today. Ah well, somehow I find the energy to put in an 8 hour day, write 500-1000 words, practice guitar and fix up old sketches in Photoshop. Even work in some gaming there too.
Could just be the cold making me particularly irritable, but I’m really having it out with Twitter liberals these days. It’s like Bernie Sanders’ recent victories has broken their brains to the point that they’re finding any little silly reason to oppose him. “Russia! Bernie Bros! He’s too old! Too white! Too yelly! Too hot! Too cold!”
I’m really glad that the podcasters I listen to have mmmmostly kept perspective and are like “Yeah, the progressive candidate winning is a good thing” but holy crap, folks like former Majority Report guest Cliff Schecter is losing it. He haaaaates him some Bernie Sanders. I suspect his work on gun safety measures brought him into Bloomberg’s orbit and kept him there, which I guess if he’s a political mercenary, fine, but it’s one of those mask-off moments where you realize you completely misjudged somebody.
And what’s really telling? The standard response isn’t to ignore my replies (or actually address them), it’s to say “Why do you care, CANADIAN? Fix your own country!” I’ve got that response no less than 3 times.
I get that not all progressives are gonna be as taken with Sanders and it’s not like Sanders is perfect on every issue, but the progressive candidate racking up victories should be a cause for celebration if you care about making people’s lives better… right? Apparently not for the very-online Russia-obsessed liberals who believe Bernie Sanders is just like Donald Trump because they’re loud old white dudes. It’s just flabbergasting to me. If they’re not for the policy goals Bernie stands for… what are they for?
I’m really learning a lot about who people are underneath the rhetoric. I’m not mad, just… disappointed.
Seconding the suggestion of some Francoise Hardy:
https://youtu.be/fywooUlcXXc
https://youtu.be/s7wIzUOaJ4I
Not French, but punk marching band Mucca Pazza do a great instrumental version of “Chick Habit”:
https://youtu.be/2NiLFS2VlU4
O/T: A kind of interesting set of twitter screenshots about Pete Buttigieg:
@Katamount:
Well, at least you’re not dealing with my local power company, which after a month of being on its best behavior has suddenly decided to start capriciously switching random things off and on at random times again for no good reason.
@Surplus
Yeah, a repeat of 2013 would just be the icing on the cake. 😀
I had a French music video introduced to me by a friend who said ‘If you want a French cartoon mouse, this woman has the perfect voice:’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3fhav0K9cg
It’s an a capella duet cover of a Joe Dassin song.
Sharing some good news.
My baby sister is back home and NOT in the country where they just reported a case of the coronavirus.
One of these days I’ll remember to actually put the RETURN DATE on the calendar for a loved one who’s traveling.
@Ohlmann
Well that CGI is retro, if nothing else.
Well today my work email saw fit to bless me at 6:06AM with pictures of animals on fire, without any warning whatsoever that the email was going to contain graphic pictures of animals on fire. I was up at that time to see it because of a horrible stomach flu I was already feeling awful from. I sent in what I hope was a blistering complaint email. What even the fuck.
The coronvirus is spreading rapidly through Okinawa Japan so my husband base is like on defcon 4 disease epidemic panic. He’s reassuring me that he’s going to be fine “U.S. protects its property” and all. But basically the vacation I was planning in June is probably not going to happen depending on the state of things.
Trying to stay positive but I’m really missing him and was really looking forward to our get away.
I broke off my first relationship ever on Saturday because there were some things about him that were beginning to scare me. Nothing he actually did to me (not overtly anyway) but things I knew he was capable of, because he told me. Coupled with a knowledge of his abusive upbringing (and him insisting that it hadn’t affected him, he didn’t need therapy, he was fine just fiiiiiine) and a sense of deep dread from looking into his eyes, I basically panicked and cut it off over the phone. Looking back, I think I stand by my decision. He was a troubled soul with a refusal to introspect himself, far more insecure than he wanted to let on (he believed that showing insecurity was “weakness” on his behalf, though he didn’t think the same of others). He had demons that I sensed in my gut would one day rise up and overwhelm him, hurting me in the process – I think this was the driving factor behind my action to be honest. Also I have anxious attachment style and a hunger for external validation so yeah, there was an objective risk of me becoming too emotionally enmeshed with him and the relationship turning into a train wreck. He couldn’t see it at the time, so the breakup was a pretty big shock to him, but I could no longer ignore the darkness I sensed in him.
It’s a crying shame, because I have also seen the goodness in him (don’t even think about making a Star Wars reference yet, hear me out!). He’s a beautiful soul underneath, and I held on to that for months. I still believe it. He was good to me, and I was attracted to him, and I really didn’t give him enough credit I think when we did that whole “wrapping up” postmortem thing. I could tell he was hurt and there were some ugly sparks during that conversation but we did end it with a mutual “thanks for the memories, I’ll miss you.”
In other ways he really wanted to escape his background, and I think he saw me as an inspiration. So I feel guilty for calling it off out of the blue. I also did it in the worst way possible, because I was acting mostly out of fear. I said things that contradicted other things I’d said in the relationship. I was insensitive and at one point accidentally insulting. I babbled some shit that made it sound like I hadn’t loved him at all, which wasn’t actually true. I wasn’t as passionate as him, sure, but it was a fairly new relationship (and he had a faster pace in mind than I did, but I digress). I tend to connect with people on a quieter, deeper level. I don’t do head over heels. Basically, instead of landing the plane in a reasonable manner I nosedived it into a mountain. I feel terrible for it.
And now, because of course, I really want to message him. One of the last things he said was that even though he didn’t normally believe in exes being friends he’d keep the line open for me. He hasn’t blocked me, I haven’t blocked him. I said I might message him. It hasn’t even been a week and I want to tell him I’m sorry for the way I handled things, that I genuinely mean it when I said I wanted him to be happy, I’d like to hear updates from him and tell him mine. I think he thinks that I had a sudden change of heart and turned into an ice queen, but the truth is I did feel a connection to him and I’m also struggling to get over what there was. I dated him for a reason!
I don’t know if I should, what to say, or when to do it if ever. It’s eating me alive.
@Big Titty Demon
What the fuck indeed! Who does that??
@Lainy
I hope all is well with your husband, and that he stays well until he’s home with you again.
@sunnysombrera
I really don’t suggest contacting your ex. Yes, it seems likely from what you say that it will get stuck in your head, but if you felt unsafe then please believe yourself. Your instincts just told you “The call is coming from inside the house” and you did yourself a great service by getting out. I know it can be difficult, but please try not to second guess decisions that you made to keep you safe. More often than not they’re the right choice (especially given the myriad amount of red flags your ex has raised.)
@Sunnnysombrera : I prefer to not give advice, but good luck nonetheless.
@Sunnysombrera
I think breaking up with someone is a skill that gets better with experience, like everything else. It sounds like your breakup probably won’t go down in the books as one of the most masterful breakups in history, but that’s okay, and it makes sense since it was your first time doing a really hard thing. I’m also not sure it was as bad as you think it was. If you were that hurtful, why would he leave the door open for contact?
I would suggest not contacting him to apologize for how it went down. Give both of you some time to get used to not having the relationship anymore.
Also, you didn’t really directly say anything about this, but I thought I saw shades of it in some of what you said, so I want to address it. If I’m misreading you, I’m sorry, and please feel free to ignore this bit.
You don’t need to have a good enough reason for it to be okay to get out of a relationship. It sounds like this guy might have been dangerous, and your instincts were telling you to leave, and it’s really good that you listened to those instincts. However, if you find yourself thinking, “Well, but he never actually hurt me,” and “Maybe I misjudged him and that wasn’t fair,” it is still okay that you broke up with him. You don’t owe it to anybody to stay with them until they have fully and verifiably showed themselves to be scum. Something in you said that you do not want to be with this guy anymore, and that’s enough.