A local town for local people?

The decision by the French socialist government to expel Roma from a makeshift camp near the town of Roubaix near the Belgian border does not reflect on a Europe purporting to espouse integration. The French have been pilloried by everybody from Human Rights groups to the European Commission. The objection to certain ethnic groups which precipitated the second world war is apparently alive and kicking. The only surprise is that a socialist government is behind it. As George Orwell famously wrote in Animal Farm, "All animals are equal except some are more equal than others". The Roma, like you and I, are human beings. Like us, they need food and somewhere to live. Whatever others think of their lifestyle, they remain humans. If we claim also to be humans, it is the obligation of us all to do the right thing. Moving them on is pathetic. What do the French think will happen? Do they think the Roma will just evaporate in to thin air? At best this is Nimbyism but at worst it is something far more sinister. At worst, it is xenophobia pure and simple. If this is the new Europe, we might have been better off with the original version. The last socialist leader of France was Francois Mitterand. He died due to prostate cancer in the new year of 1996. Knowing he was nearing the end of his life, the President elected to indulge himself in a gourmand's last meal. Each to his own but the contents of that meal and the location perhaps tell us a little more about the man himself rather than the politics he pertained to espouse. His meal was taken in the remote hamlet of Latche in Bordeaux. The meal was arranged by Henri Emmanuelli - the very politician who today speaks out in defence of one of the most cruel practices to take place in France. Mitterand began his last meal with 30 Marennes oysters, foie gras and capons washed down with Sauternes and local red wine. I needn't remind you of the natural history of foie gras. He then moved on to the piece de resistance. He then moved on to the ortolans. It is not illegal to eat one but it is illegal to catch or trap one. Each ortolan (bunting) weighs less than an ounce (28g). When caught it is locked in a darkened room (memories of veal) and fed with millet until fit to burst (memories of geese). The stuffed bird is then drowned in armagnac and roasted for 8 minutes. It is then often eaten whole. It would be very difficult to concoct a more barbaric preparation of any food anywhere in the world. In accordance with French custom, Mitterand hid his head under his napkin after eating each bird. I assume the head is hidden in shame but the French tradition claims that the head is hidden to hide their greed from God. I would like to think that God is a little less fickle than that. So as the present socialist incumbent seeks to remove aspects of society which are not to his taste, I would point him to the final actions of his more illustrious predecessor and question whether they, the French socialists, or the Roma hold the moral high ground? I resist the temptation to label the French as cruel in spite of so much evidence to the contrary.