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french toast .....

french toast .....

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has confirmed that he will attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics on 8 August. 

He was speaking after meeting Chinese President Hu Jintao at the G8 summit. 

There had been speculation that the French President would stay away in protest over Chinese actions in Tibet. 

France currently holds the European Union presidency, and President Sarkozy will represent the 27-nation bloc at the ceremony in Beijing. 

Human rights' groups have urged world leaders to register their disapproval by refusing to attend. 

Reporters Without Borders has said that Mr Sarkozy would pour 'scorn on his commitments to the French people', if he went to Beijing. 

Sarkozy Decides To Go To Olympics

climate of unpleasance

J'accuse! Ségolène links Sarkozy 'clan' with break-in at apartment

By John Lichfield in Paris
Thursday, 10 July 2008

A vitriolic political row has exploded in France after the defeated presidential candidate, Ségolène Royal, accused President Sarkozy's "clan" of being "linked" to a break-in at her flat.

Mme Royal's words, on the main nightly news programme of the state-owned television channel France 2, came close to a direct accusation of a "Ségogate" – a break-in at the home of a senior opposition leader inspired by the President.

Her comments were immediately dismissed by politicians close to M. Sarkozy who said they were the result of a "martyr complex". The Prime Minister, François Fillon, said it was "absolutely shameful" to make accusations against the President, "without any shred of proof".

However, senior opposition figures sprang to Mme Royal's defence. Jean-Marc Ayrault, the leader of the Socialist group in the lower house of parliament, said that President Sarkozy's 14 months in power had created a "climate" which "recalled the most unpleasant periods of French political history". Once such a climate is created, he said, "anything can happen".

Mme Royal's apartment, in the quiet suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt, just outside Paris, was broken into just under two weeks ago. Her flat was also burgled during her campaign to become the first woman president of France in the spring of last year. On both occasions, nothing appeared to have been stolen.

no hot dogs...

China bans dog from Olympic menu

China has ordered dog meat to be taken off the menu at its 112 official Olympic restaurants in order to avoid offending foreign visitors.

Restaurant workers are advised to "patiently" suggest other options to diners who order dog.

Any restaurant found violating the ban would be black-listed, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Dog - known as "fragrant meat" - is eaten by some Chinese for purported medicinal properties.

The ban, issued by the Beijing Catering Trade Association, forbids all designated Olympic restaurants from offering dog and urges other food outlets to remove the meat from menus.

"If a customer orders dog meat, restaurant staff should patiently suggest another entree," said Xiong Yumei, deputy director of the Beijing Tourism Bureau told Xinhua.

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when in Rome...

Democracy can be made of broad brush strokes, such as socialism, communism or the Westminster system. But it is the small details that give any of these the reality of their purpose and sets limit of their decided freedoms and the purpose of their individuals. In this we've seen Bushit take the illegal power of spying on US citizens — seeking similar powers destroyed the French government in 1969 — and others doing some strange gymnastic to regulate "values". See Howard and the entrance exam to Aussieship... How far can we regulate our freedoms to enforce freedoms contrary to someone's willingness to be totally submissive...? Is this desire to absolute submission made in full knowledge of rights, in exclusive knowledge of situation or by simple desire not to know anything through laziness of not wanting to know anything, especially on a broad scale?

Can we enforce our rights not to be free? Or not to know? Or when in Rome... (or Paris)...

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France rejects Muslim woman over radical practice of Islam

· Expert says Moroccan lives 'almost as a recluse'
· Case reopens debate about freedom of religion

The president, Nicolas Sarkozy, has stressed the importance of "integration" into French life. Part of his heightened controls on immigrants is a new law to make foreigners who want to join their families sit an exam on French language and values before leaving their countries.