France Starts Shutting Down Alternative Media

Every time there’s a huge terrorist threat, the public gives up their freedoms for protection from the Government. And every time, our leaders use these new laws to destroy civil liberties.

What happened to ordinary French people (and their way of life) after the recent Paris attacks? All the mainstream media are concerned with 10 days after the event is making sure that public support for the increased war effort is high. We need more footage of ambulances, their sirens blaring and lights flashing. Put it on loop, 24 hours a day, with sad images of people crying and laying wreaths, then throw in some fear in the form of some ugly-looking jihadists, and the population will be cheering on another foreign mission in no time at all.

While all that’s going on, the Government invariably rush through tougher new laws against terrorism. And if history can teach us one thing, it’s that modern terrorism laws are actually anti-civil liberty laws in disguise. Today, with perfect timing, the French version of We Are Change was censored. This is a worrying and unprecedented crackdown on the alternative media in Europe, and one which French bloggers fear is the beginning of the end for freedom of speech.

‘Le Blog De Resistance‘ is a popular French-language alternative news source with over 10 million hits and thousands of regular subscribers. The author, who calls himself Z, has been in panic mode since a state of emergency was called after the Paris attacks. This high-level alert was extended for three months, along with a pro-war propaganda campaign and the media under strict orders to terrify the population like never before. While chaos continued outside, the French Government locked themselves away to discuss new legislation which would affect the alternative media in a very negative way. Today, Z’s greatest fear was realized, and he writes:

“And so it begins. How long will this blog remain open? The worst is that the French do not care, they are totally obsessed with more security at the expense of their freedoms. The world mocks the terrible secrets revealed by Snowden. Amazing – in France, the ‘land of liberty’. Today once again I repeat, I am very afraid for freedom of expression and the alternative media. I don’t know how much longer I can write and report freely. I fear for myself. Risk taking was already intense, made worse with the slew of laws passed since the beginning of the year (anti-terrorism law, intelligence …) now, it’s huge. It’s very hard for us to write under the state of emergency. Stress and tension are everywhere.”

The tone is clear. It’s fearful and worried. It’s eerie. It sounds like it was written in Nazi Germany in 1939, not France in 2015.

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