Wait, France still has an army??

Yes it's true, the French not only have an army, they are not afraid to use it.  French troops are currently on the ground in Mali where they are fighting rebels who many analysts say are linked to Al Qaeda in North Africa.

In many ways this military action is a double win for the French government--they get to show their resolve against Islamic extremism and they get to help out an old French colonial possession.  Indeed, President Hollande's once abysmal approval rating has rebounded as a result of the French intervention, with 75 % of French citizens supporting the military action.  In this way, it seems President Hollande has hit on the same issues that former President Sarkozy used to gain popularity, but has approached them in a fundamentally different way.

Sarkozy targeted Islamic "extremism" within France, focusing especially on how the attire of Muslim women, and the problems associated with the unemployed youths of the suburbs were an affront to the Republic.  Hollande is focusing on self-professed Islamists who seek to overthrow the Malian government.  This threat is external to France (unifying the nation), and it presents a more real and present danger (although the danger is external). Likewise, Sarkozy also placed maintaining strong relations with the former French colonies at the center of his foreign policy, but he did so without renouncing the many of the problems associated with French colonial rule.  Sarkozy refused to apologize for the atrocities committed during the war with Algeria (although he did say the atrocities of the war committed by both sides were bad).  Hollande, on the other hand, is combining French influence in its former colonies with a repudiation of the dark side of colonialism.  For example, he traveled to Algeria during its independence celebrations and officially apologized for the massacres during the war and the "suffering the colonial system has inflicted."
It is important to note that both issues push very important buttons in the French electorate, each President has used those issues in very different ways to increase their popularity.
In other news, the Die Welt article about student loan debt in the U.S. that I was interviewed for has been published and can be seen here if you're interested (it is in German).

Want to get into a recession proof profession? Prostitution may be your answer!

Everyone heard a few months back about how Greece was at the center of the European fiscal crisis.  What, with their always relaxing instead of working (maybe, but probably not and definitely not as much as Germans seem to think), and the national sport of tax evasion (this is a more accurate accusation), things haven't been looking too great in Greece the last few years.

Well, with rough economic times, come difficult times for aspiring athletes who depend on local sponsors to pay for gear and playing time on the pitch (soccer field).  Now that the local shopkeepers are paying their taxes (or at least I've heard that some of them are now that Germany threatened to send tax collectors to the Greeks to teach them how it's done) and folks aren't buying as many of their goods, lower level soccer teams are at risk of not playing because of a lack of sponsors.

In steps the one industry where the economic downturn has not had a negative impact:  brothels.  As the New York Times reports in this rather tongue in cheek video, a local madam has become the sponsor of a team in Larissa, Greece.

The new "Villa Erotica" team was really happy to receive the sponsorship, but the local community was less thrilled to hear that the brothel's name would be on the soccer jerseys.  Even though prostitution is legal and regulated in Greece, there has been an outcry about the sponsorship (the madame has also tried to give money to local schools desperate for help, but they returned it).

The New York Times notes that Madam Soula "considers her support a natural thing to do, maybe even a patriotic gesture"  You can read more about the real impact of the economic downturn on this local soccer club here.  

Student Loan Debt or Those Darn Americans!

A friend of a friend who is a journalist in Germany called me recently to interview me for a forthcoming newspaper article on student loan debt in America.  The poor journalist could not hide her astonishment when I explained that I owe the government enough money to buy a house.  "In Germany this could never happen!" she exclaimed.  "The only way people would have such a loan would be if they had a family and were buying a house."  Of course I had the same reaction the first time I met a European scholar who has almost the same education as I, but no student loan debt.  "How is that possible?!" I exclaimed.  I'm looking forward to the article, and also to talking more about the comparative cost of education.  When she asked me if I thought it was worth it (since most of my debt was incurred in graduate school), I did not know how to answer.  Is my Ph.D. worth a house?  Not in economic terms, not at all.  On the other hand, it is quite valuable to me.  Perhaps there should be a follow up interview in twenty years when I'm still sending the government a check each month?

Stephen Colbert is not the next senator from South Carolina...but a black man is.

Which outcome would have been more surprising to you?  South Carolina governor Nikki Haley nominating television personality Stephen Colbert to replace the outgoing tea-party Republican Jim DeMint, or South Carolina sending a black senator to Washington?

Some of you might think I'm overly obsessed with race by writing that question, but Tim Scott becomes the first, the first, black senator from the South since the late 1800s.  Yes, the 1800s, that is not a typo.

Mr. Scott also becomes only the seventh black senator ever--and one of a total of five who have taken office in the last 50 years.  For more on the appointment of Mr. Scott, you can check out the story here.  Or on Mr. Colbert's run here here.

Berlusconi is Back!!!

As part of my revamping of my courses for next semester, I had begun thinking about deleting my Italian political history case study from my European Politics course.  That was before I heard that Silvio Berlusconi's party had withdrawn its support from the current Italian government.  Oh Silvio, you are truly the gift that keeps on giving.

This video is from when he was the Prime Minister.  Even The Daily Show, which doesn't cover the escapades of European politicians quite as much as the Colbert Report, could not resist the Berlusconi story.  Jon has an excellent summary of Berlusconi's return to the political stage, although at the end you'll notice a fundamental misunderstanding of parliamentary politics.  Go ahead, check it out and see what I"m talking about.  I'll wait.  (this may be NSFW).  The Daily Show's "The Bungover 4"
You'll notice Jon says "who would take this seriously" before showing that Monti has stepped down from the PM (prime minister) position "before the end of his term" says the newscaster.  Jon seems to be suggesting that Prime Minister Monti was acting hastily.  Yet, in parliamentary systems, the PM rules at the pleasure of a majority of the directly elected legislature (parliament).  It is common enough, especially in Italy, for a PM to lose his/her coalition support and be forced to call an early election.
Sadly, Berlusconi's grip on Italian political life is not simply amusing.  Instead it reflects his near control of the media in Italy, as well as the criminal activities he has undertaken to gain and maintain power.  Thankfully, it appears Berlusconi may have over-played his cards, as he recently announced that he would actually support Mr. Monti as a candidate for PM if he led a more 'moderate' coalition government.  I suggest we all stay tuned.  I doubt this is the last we have heard of Silvio.