You Had Me at A**hole

I have a new favorite politician. I have no interest in his policy stance or effectiveness, but somehow that doesn’t matter. My new hero is French President Sarkozy.

Recently he was making his way through a crowd for some public event and went to shake the hand of a man who said, “Don’t touch me. You’ll make me dirty.” Sarkozy replied, “Then get out of here, you total a**hole.” Some have interpreted it as “jerk” and not “a**hole,” but that only makes the story better, knowing there is more than one interpretation. You get your reasonable deniability delivered on the fly. Impressive.

Here’s a link: http://blog.eitb24.com/odds/2008/02/24/-casse-toi-alors-pauvre-con-/

So I went to Wikipedia to see more about the Sarkozy cat, and found this gem:  “As mayor of Neuilly-sur-Seine, Sarkozy met former fashion model and public relations executive Cécilia Ciganer-Albéniz (great-granddaughter of composer Isaac Albéniz and of a Russian father), when he officiated at her wedding[15] to television host Jacques Martin. In 1988, she left her husband for Sarkozy, and divorced Martin one year later.”

Dude.

Sarkozy officiated at the former fashion model’s wedding and, I’m guessing, slipped the bride his phone number. Apparently that worked.

But the marriage didn’t, so after Sarkozy wore out one former model, he traded up to another, Carla Bruni, and married her recently.

I’m sure I would find plenty to dislike about Sarkozy if I bothered to read about his political views. But I’d hate to ruin a good first impression.

My point is that you shouldn’t let a French guy officiate your wedding.

Comments

[asdkjhuewr24]

asdkjhuewr2 .... You'd think that with mammoths, saber-tooth tigers, and large, screeching birds you wouldn't need much more to deliver an entertaining romp through yester-epoch, but 10,000 B.C. proves that merely having an exotic setting as your premise won't get you over a mundane plot and more mundane characters. The film begins with a blue-eyed girl coming to live with a clan of "manuk" (that's "mammoth" to you and me) hunters after her tribe is wiped out by what appear to be the bad guys from Conan the Barbarian. The tribe elder (Mona Hammond) declares that this girl is part of some prophecy while the son of the tribe's #1 hunter looks on....[url=http://asdkjhuewr2.webs28.com/?]asdkjhuewr2[/url]

asdkjhuewr2 .... That little boy grows up to be D'Leh (Steven Strait), but not before his dad runs off for no apparent reason, leaving his son an outcast. The little girl grows up to be Evolet (Camilla Belle), on whom D'Leh has a pretty serious crush, but, tribes being what they are, he must take down a woolly manuk in order to win her. Seriously. D'Leh actually accomplishes this goal, albeit accidentally, but no sooner is he confessing the truth about his ill-gotten laurels than the marauders from Evolet's past come along and ruin it all by kidnapping just about everyone in the tribe, including Evolet. The rest of the movie is D'Leh, with some help from the current #1 hunter Tic'Tic (Cliff Curtis) and others, trying to track down and retrieve his beloved.....[url=http://asdkjhuewr2.freehostplace.com/?]asdkjhuewr2[/url]

[Memmorium]

Good idea!
P.S. A U realy girl?

[Arthur]

Actually "pauvre con" translates to "small brained wiper of other peoples bottoms" when coupled with "casse toi" it becomes " I blow my nose in your general direction you small brained wiper of other peoples bottoms"

[John]

My grandfather officiated my wedding. He is getting old and senile. He actually slipped ME his number, I was pretty sure he meant it for my bride so I went ahead and passed it along. I felt like I owed it to the guy.

http://awritersblock.com

[emre]

Good

[Pierre, Switzerland]

"Google "French military victories" --- it will make you laugh."

Well, the people it will make laugh are mostly the ones who last opened a history book when they were 8 years old, and those with an IQ lower or equal to their anal temperature.

Read this:
http://old.exile.ru/2003-October-02/war_nerd.html

[TwoFiftyFive]

Sarkosy managed to turn up drunk to a G8 press conference after some "late night negotiations" with Vladimir Putin:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article1923579.ece
And the YouTube video (in French of course):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uxb0JHqzlA

[Nyx]

I agree with Michel."pauvre con" is not as offensive or vulgar as everyone in the US media seems to think. If Sarkozy had really called the man an a$$hole, he would have used the term "trou de cul". "Con" does not mean "twat" or "vagina" as some of you seem to think. It means "moron" or "idiot".

From another French-Canadian in Québec.

[BobUK]

With respect to all those French speakers who have commented, my half-French school chum once told me that the literal translation of "pauvre con" was "poor c*nt".

Idiomatic French may receive this as a different meaning but I kind of like the way my understanding of it is going.

[Tuzo]

So he's French, rude, and likes the ladies; sounds like the stereotypical Frenchman to me. ;)

[Fin]

Pantera,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US_invasions

Bolivia, Panama, Grenada. Lots of success. Arguable politics but lots of success. When the US throws its weight around especially when the opponent is a small island nation.

Try wiki search on "UK invasions" instead and you get 'Pitch invasion' as top with 100% relevance. Nice!

Fin

[Stig]

Typically French - Sarkozy refusing to get physical with the guy. Not like that towering colossus of a British statesman John Prescott, who as Deputy Prime Minister to Tony Blair actually punched a guy in a crowd (on live TV of course) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRQDnGTcc4A

Sadam should have seen them coming...

[Mike]

*AND* they were right about Iraq not having any Weapons of Mass Destruction. They actually got some hostages released by making it very clear that these guys were FRENCH and not just some random Westerners.

Get over it. They have a nicer lifestyle, mistresses and extra-marital affairs are expected and not considered sleazy, they need something to do during their longer holidays. They eat butter, cream, drink and smoke and have lower levels of illness than everyone else. The country is beautiful. Healthcare is free and amongst the best in the world. Their films are genuinely erotic and thought provoking. I'm a Brit, we already hated them when you Yanks were saying "Thanks" for the Statue of Liberty (yes - the French gave you that - or did you know already?). Rita Mae if it wasn't for the French helping *you* out during your War of Independence you'd all be speaking English....DOH!

[Clement]

Hello all of you french lovers,

First, linguistics : "con" has many possible translations, each depending widely on the tone in which the word is spoken. Many famous french singers used the "con" word in a humorous way, and that wasn't shocking at all. Concerning Sarkozy's intervention, it was more the "F*ck off" idea, as Jack said below.

Secondly, on our dear President's noble attitude : the morning before his saying the f word to a stranger, Sarkozy was advocating for politeness to be taught back into classrooms... What kind of example is that ?

The main thing which is disturbing about Sarkozy is that he says one thing, and does another. Like many politicians, one could argue, but he does it in so plain a way that it's quite unnerving.

I don't think that politicians should always be impeccable, but we didn't elect just anyone, did we ? This man is supposed to represent France all around the world. I mean, since when did France become a banana republic, that our president should screw around insulting people, mating with top models for the hype of it and making a fool of himself in the press by sending text-messages to his ex-wife going like "I love you, come back to me ...".

Sad era, when I'm near being ashamed of being French.

Thirdly : About French and sex, hey guys, our girls don't try to f*ck everything that they can see, you just met the wrong ones :) If we had that much sex, don't you think that we would be much more numerous than the chinese ? :P

Clement,

a french Scott Adams fan.

P.S. : There were many French men at the last wedding I went to... no problem since then. I think you're over-reacting Scott :D

[Nono]

You might also want to check Sarkozy's drunken G8 video.

[good]

goodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgoodgood

[Whoever]

Chirac in a similar situation a few years back had a better reply. To someone who called him "Asshole" during a meeting, he answered with "No, the name is Jacques Chirac"...

[simon]

If you think thats something , UK deputy pm (the guy who would have taken over if Tony Blair did the decent thing and dropped down dead ) once punched a protester in front of the press

http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/16/newsid_4098000/4098929.stm

[Armando Esteban]

Sarkozy is my hero too

[Muthu Ramadoss]

LOL. Back to your very best scott. We need more like this ;)

[Bas Brouwer]

Sarkozy is my favorite politician too. I don't care for his, pretty right-wing, politics, but here's something that triggered me:

As mayor of Neuilly-sur-Seine, Sarkozy walked into a hostage situation in a school. After he negotiated the release of the children, he walked out and held the door open for a dozen special forces who killed the guy.

As finance secretary he had his mind set on lowering inflation. He called in all the CEOs of France's largest supermarkets and got them into a room. He asked them to significantly lower their prices. One of the CEOs asked "Why would we?".

Sarkozy answered, "Because in 5 minutes I'm walking to the press room and I'm announcing on prime time who didn't."

Love that guy.

[Thomas]

I am French and let me tell you, "casse-toi alors pauvre con" has only one very clear possible interpretation in French. Translation however can vary.

Brian M, I don't totally agree with the explanation you quote. It is true that "con" was a slang word for vagina in the distant past, but it is almost never used with that meaning nowadays. I think that numerous French people don't even know that it can have that meaning. It has become now just a rude word to mean "jerk" or "dumbass" and is quite commonly emloyed, however very rude.

[James Hansen]

Sarkozy gets around. You might be interested in the nice snap appearing here: http://www.upperitaly.net/index.php?id=137; of him "copping a feel" with respect to an attractive woman he is decorating for some important sporting accomplishment.

By the way, though the Brits writing in are for some reason translating "con" as "twat", technically speaking the word means "testicle". The expression is entirely equivalent to the Italian "coglione".

[PH1]

At a bucks night once I thought I'd break the ice with a French guy who was in attendance so said to him "Tell me then Jacques, why do you slippery Frogs think you're entitled to sleep with everyone else's wives?" Instead of getting all defensive he started waffling on about how "you Australian's don't know how to treat your women properly" blah blah blah. Simple: Don't trust them!

[Phil]

John Prescott, then Deputy Prime Minister.

Now that's a proper British politician:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=VRQDnGTcc4A

I see him from time to time walking to work, he scares the hell out of me.

[SJ]

Well let's say he moved to a newer model. HAR HAR.

[Joe]

"I think it's funny that Sarkozy was elected as a right-winger wanting France to be closer to the USA, and nobody in the USA has noticed or would care, probably."

This is a problem, USA needs to learn to care about the world!

If this had happened in the USA, he probably would have been impeached, or nearly so, boring.

It is also interesting the animosity Americans have towards French after they played such a big role in independence wars.

[bapesta]

LOL! That is so funny.
I guess a lot of things are lost in translation.
The French can not be trusted. LOL!

[Kevin Kunreuther]

[You do realise that the last victory the US had on their own was when they were part of the British Empire, don't you?

Which wars did you win?

WW2 was Russia, so that doesn't count.

Posted by: Mark | February 26, 2008 at 09:24 AM ]

Mark, you should have Googled U.S. war victories before you posted.

Oddly enough, your picture comes up when I Google "dumbass".

[terry k]

Cool!

Oh by the way, where can I officiate a French/ex-model bride of Russian descent? Any ceremony with Italian models in attendance would be fine.

[D. Mented]

I guess it's classier than Cheney's "go fuck yourself", and there was more provocation, but still, I'm just not that impressed with the decline and fall of dignity. It was fresh and funny 50 years or so ago when people were a lot stuffier.
D. Mented

[Richard]

This is simple.

[Richard]

Very simply. http://g-70dv5bc1d.looble.net

[Scott2]

-10 points for supporting the French.

[Cathy Dee]

Whatever about Sarkozy, the title of this post is just really funny.

[-]

I'm also from Quebec.

"con" translates to "cunt":
http://www.cnrtl.fr/lexicographie/con?

It's a common insult around here.

[KiwiAtaahua]

>>Tim Hall: Here in Great Britain, all persons of substance know that the French are our natural enemies. As such, we are not at all surprised by this sort of behaviour, which is entertaining only to those of base morality and upbringing (and, of course, foreigners)

So which English politician was it a couple of years ago who, during campaigning, had an egg thrown at him and he responded by punching the guy?

[jerry w.]

I mentioned to an old man in Paris how much I liked the beautiful trees along the streets.

He said they gave nice shade to sit in and watch the Germans march through next time.

http://boskolives.wordpress.com/

[Bill Tkach]

Don't believe everything you read in an online encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

[Andy]

Our politicians are even less polite:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=VRQDnGTcc4A

[Zarna]

There's this series of ads here in australia where they have all these overconfident people doing ridiculous stuff and that tagline is something about 'you'd be confident to if you had a homeloan from...' (I can't remember the company, shows how effective their advertising is lol)
One of the ads has this bride getting out of the car outside the church and this guy in running gear comes up and does the whole 'I don't normally do this kind of thing but what are you doing tonight' the bride stands there dumbfounded and the guy grabs a pen out of the father of the brides pocket and writes down his phone number and says 'anyway just give me a call later'
Whatever advertising exec came up with that idea must have been at the wedding of this dudes wife.

[Conchúir]

Yeah, Sarkozy's a bit of a dick'ead

[KickMe]

I think "casse-toi" is between "beat it" and "fuck off".

A lesser known fact is that he added "Now go away, or I shall taunt you a second time". I can't believe anyone brought this one up before me :)

[DK]

We've had a few prime ministers in Canada that were not always politically correct. One example is Pierre-Elliot Trudeau, as stated in a previous comment. My favorite though would be Jean Chretien. (also mentionned in a previous comment but the link is down)

There's even an article on wikipedia for what he did to Bill Clennett. It's called a "Shawinigan handshake", called thus because that's where Chretien comes from.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shawinigan_Handshake

I mean, look at his sunglassed angry face, this guy means business! :)

[KiwiAtaahua]

Always choose a leader who is quick-witted - then even if he/she is a jerk, you can still laugh at the quips.

Take former NZ Prime Minister David Lange: When a reporter came up to him and asked for a word, he said "Possum" and walked off in the other direction.

[Bruce Harrison]

Oh, Scott, you would DEFINITELY not like his political views. He's a conservative who likes the US. He beat a socialist for the office, which also should make you dislike him.

One area where you agree, though, which should warm the cockles of your little heart, is that he is a believer in the anthropogenic global warming myth. Here's him being quoted, from his victory speech: "He then called on the United States "not to impede" in the fight against global warming. "On the contrary, they must lead this fight because humanity's fate is at stake here." Sure it is. The fact that the temperature of the Earth plateaued in 1998 has stayed steady until this year, and appears now to be actually cooling shouldn't impact his beliefs - or yours. Don't let the facts get in the way of your only religion.

He also understands economics, particularly the law of supply and demand. He leaned on French grocery stores to lower their prices 2-3% and Voila! (That's French, by the way), a mini-spending spree ensued that contributed to an estimated 2% growth in France's stagnant economy this year. This is sure to get him despised by all the socialist heads of other EU states.

He also plans on lowering taxes, making labor markets more flexible, providing a better environment for enterprise, and more equality for minorities (France, in case you didn't know it, is a racist society now, a big change since WWII).

Don't let Hillary or Barack know what's going on there, or their first action as president, assuming one of them wins, will be to declare war on France. Hmmm. Not that bad an idea. Unless Sarkozy stays in office, that is.

It's interesting that in our rush to socialism we fail to look at what it's done to old Europe, but hey, why should we? Everyone knows that America is the most horrible, unfair country on Earth. Everyone except Sarkozy, that is.

And thank you, once again, for not voting.

[Jonas EL]

Sarkozy is well-known to have a taste for beautiful women. Most men do actually, but few have the chance to prove it. I'm sure, i'd be easier being the president, especially in France. I'm told, that for an American president, having an affair would be a disgrace. For a French president, NOT having an affair would be a similar disgrace.

[joel]

Kind a funny these blogs : seem like the last time some of the peoples posting anything on history and politic was when they were in kidengarden at a show and tell of former US President totally irrelevant to todays life . What is amuszing all these Idiots posting insulting and negative message have forgotten to look at France economic situation , in a nut shell should the French a Nation barely the size of Texas may I add ,the US economy would simply collapse as they demonstrated by shutting down the mortgage industry and that is a fact .

[Astrid]

Also from Wikipedia:

The tragedy of Africa is that the African has never really entered into history... They have never really launched themselves into the future... The African peasant, who for thousands of years has lived according to the seasons, whose life ideal was to be in harmony with nature, only knew the eternal renewal of time... In this imaginary world, where everything starts over and over again, there is room neither for human endeavor, nor for the idea of progress... The problem of Africa... is to be found here. Africa's challenge is to enter to a greater extent into history... It is to realize that the golden age that Africa is forever recalling will not return, because it has never existed. ”

—Sarkozy, at a speech in Senegal, [89]

[Patti]

Patti ponders this some more.
Gee. I am wondering, now.
Maybe, the French President was cheating on that poor man. Maybe, he said "don't touch me" kind of like .... a wife!
"I'll feel dirty" .."you'll make me dirty touching me with THAT HAND!" or something closely sounding like that.
So I ask you, "exactly, where HAS HIS HAND ... BEEN?? ..
Oh-oh. I DO think we could be, on to something?
SLAP HIS DIRTY FACE!!

[Yuriy]

According to babelfish, the translation is "Break then, poor idiot."

[Thomas]

Well, caisse-toi pauvre con does not literally translate to a**hole. More to a poor pig. But that is my french for ya. Personally, I like Sarko (that's what he's called in France - and the french speaking part of Switzerland...) is that he actually managed to marry Carla Bruni. A well known top model after his divorce with Cecilia. And guess what. It was only to make the French headlines for say two or three days. I love the French for their nonchalance...

[Blake]

Here's some footage of Sarkozy drunk at the G8 summit. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uxb0JHqzlA

Quite the party dude.

[David Chapman]

Yeah, having lived here in France for some ten years now, the best translation is dumbass. You poor dumb ass, and it's a condensending insult. However, insults are not taken lightly--they are still considered impolite here--and are scandleous. In the ten years I've worked here, I have only ONCE heard of some boss call anyone a con...to his face that is. No co-workers insulting each other (quite the opposite in fact), no friends and no neighbors either.

[arby]

Why are we always surprised when our great and famous leaders turn out to be human? Any man, or woman for that matter, who doesn’t as Jimmy Carter once said have “lust in their heart” is near brain-dead and has no imagination. Think of any deprivation that a person can aspire to or even actually participate in and I’ll bet at sometime they indulged in it. It just wasn’t reported.

Mostly they do no harm to their office and retire to private life or die. We always put forth these high and unobtainable standards and are surprised when they falter.

Anyone that aspires to high office has by their nature an ego the size of Mount Everest or they wouldn’t make it very far. So who should care if the leader of the Free World discreetly maybe shops at Victoria Secret or has a proclivity for sheep as an outlet. Being a character is not always a bad thing. Nobody likes goody-two-shoes.

[friskybeaver]

You shouldn't let a french guy anything.

[SRR]

Rita Mae said:
"If it wasn't for us, the French would be speaking German."

But Rita, if it weren't for the French, you'd have lost the American Revolution, and you'd be speaking English.

[rita mae]

MARK -- oops, my bad. The joke wasn't funny now that I look back. I take your chastisement with total chagrin.

Rita Mae

[Jean]

Merci beaucoup, monsieur (Thank you very much, Sir). As a French citizen, it is in the name of the French Republic that I thank you for this moving (and true) hommage to my beloved President for whom I voted (and about whom I am starting to have some second thougts, but hey, that's the way it goes). What is said is "Casse toi, alors, pauvre con" which I would translate as "Get the hell out of here, then, damn jerk", but your translation is also acceptable. Everything else you said is true. Thank you, then, for reinforcing my support for my President. You demonstrate that, even though Sarkozy's economic policies may seem not to have any result yet, and even though his approval ratings went from 65% to 35% in 9 months, Sarkozy is still, in the eyes of the all world, the living proof that no matter how small, ugly and rude a French man is, he can always hope to marry two ex-super models. This, as you recognize, is sure to bring respect, admiration and awe from all of the unfortunate 6,000,000,000 people in the world who are not French (poor fellows). Thank you.

[General Tekno]

Scott, you would have loved Ralph Klein then when he was premier of Alberta.

The guy did all kinds of off-the cuff stuff.

Mind you, his actual policy accomplishments can be contested, and it can be argued easily that he left a mess for the next guy. But he was pretty popular for that same reason you like Sarkozy.

[Michel]

I'm also from Quebec, and my literal translation for "pauvre con" would easily be "poor idiot". It is an insult we'd use as early as kindergarten, and many songs that are far from controversial feature the word, so it hardly has any weight to it. Again, I'm from Quebec, and our French is mildly different than France's. For all I know, it is like how fanny means different things in different places in the world.

[Michel]

I'm also from Quebec, and my literal translation for "pauvre con" would easily be "poor idiot". It is an insult we'd use as early as kindergarten, and many songs that are far from controversial feature the word, so it hardly has any weight to it. Again, I'm from Quebec, and our French is mildly different than France's. For all I know, it is like how fanny means different things in different places in the world.

[rpk]

To quote Al Bundy:

"Ah, the French...more people we should have killed..."

[David]

A long, long time ago France was at the forefront of the Enlightenment. It brought us great advances in philosophy poetry and democracy and helped America fight for its independence.

Today it is the country that has inspired the newest character in the Mr. Men series whose name seems even more poignant today. Meet Mr. Rude:

http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSL1373765120080214?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews

[T.G.]

Well, maybe the blame is not all on the guy. Many years ago, when I had all my hair in my head and for the surprise of some female friends looking old pictures, seems I was actually not that ugly. We had a young French couple, family of mine, visiting us. Well, I saw near all what was to see in the bride of my cousin, to my consternation and her frustration as I was (and I am) completely faithfull to my wife and have enough respect for family. You only need one proof to believe what they say about sex and Frenchs :).

[Patti]

Patti says:

Scott, the French President's response was much more offensive than you stated. But he's our friend. So, we'll lighten it a bit!

Now, we must try to imagine THIS scene:
A man comes up-close to the French President and extends his delicate hand ...just so he can say "don't touch me, you'll make me dirty" (or something close to that)
It sounds like a set-up to me.
In fact I believe that the delicate hand was supposed to be .. the hand of a female (and bride-to-be) whose wedding French President Sarkozy will be officiating soon.
Yes! She was to have an outburst and pretend not to want to be dirtied by his touch. (To hide the fact that they were soon-to-be ..lovers)
They would both wait until her wedding was over and then.. he finally WOULD touch her and make his move. Claiming her as ..his own!!

C'est la vie! Another marriage down the tubes...and another new wife for the amorous French President.

However, I believe she truly was afraid of not following through with her wedding vows, at all, once he actually touched her ...anywhere. I have heard that his "touch" is simply irresistible!
SO? The male substitute stepped in and in shock.. the French President stated those very dirty little phrases.

And now, I say, " Voila'" .. and... "Vive la France"

[Lindsey ^_^]

I like to study US presidents, being a nerd, and I've been surprised to see that a LOT of our past presidents have done things like this. It's nothing new. But back in the day that kind of thing just didn't get reported. How many people did Andrew Jackson kill in a duel? 12+? Nice. Anyway, you usually don't find out about this stuff until after they're dead, so I applaud the French media for taking a proactive approach to show the "badasser side" of their president. It instills hope in future generations. I guess.

[Jack]

Sorry, but this is kinda weak. (says The Topper)

Our current prime-minister (CZ) once during parliament session gave a finger to communists (and I totally agreed with him), while later arguing it was meant for his Minister of Finance, saying that he is "number one". When asked, the MoF later actually confirmed it! Now this I call a teamplay...

http://www.praguemonitor.com/en/21/czech_politics/1099/

And during presidential election (done by parliament in our case) he wasnt aware of turned on mic and as a result of tragic progress of the election quite loudly said that everyone should just now go fuck themselves (literally go to ass-hole). And again I couldnt agree more...

(sorry, couldnt find a link in english for this one)

And of course, about a year ago he ditched his wife a married his former secretary and current MP. Just B.e.a.u.t.i.f.u.l.

[Dave]

The translation of "con" is difficult because it can be anything from jerk to @$$**** depending on context. However, the only time "con" is used lightly is with friends who are being stubborn about something or difficult. When you tell your drunk friend at the bar "stop being a jerk", it's the same thing. The minute you use "con" with a stranger, it means "you F***ing @$$hole", especially if used in conjunction with "casse-toi" (which literally means "break-you", a "make a like a tree and split" comment). "Casse-toi, con" pretty much means "Make like a tree and F*** off"

[Pantera]

I hear that in Taiwan they have fistfights during the Congressional meetings. If that happened in America, we all know that McCain would go Rambo on everyone and kill them all. Which would be fun to watch.

[Mark]

[Google "French military victories" --- it will make you laugh.

Rita Mae]

You do realise that the last victory the US had on their own was when they were part of the British Empire, don't you?

Which wars did you win?

WW2 was Russia, so that doesn't count.

[Michael]

I think I would have said pretty much the same if someone had told me that shaking my hand would make them dirty. The article talks about "his temper," yet at the same time talks about how unfailingly calm he was.

What's wrong with being human once in a while? I honestly don't expect more of politicians than I would of myself, with the exception of their increased accountability.

[ArAgost]

Italian newspapers are full of Sarkozy's epic adventures since when he started dating Carla Bruni (can't blame him though), and now that they are almost stopping filling pages about french love stories you start writing about it? That's like the last place I expected to find news about this ;)

[Ryan Waddell]

All I can think of after reading this is that character from Cheers, the french one, who was always saying "Woody, I'm going to steal your girlfriend!"

[ND]

I think that politicians who occasionally drop the politically-correct facade are automatically likeable. Most of us understand that politics is largely bullsh*t, so it's refreshing when a politician gets "real" every so often.

In this example, the unnamed target of Sarkozy's vitriol definitely deserved the rebuke. I mean, what else can you call a guy who goes to a political gathering and then tells the man of the hour not to touch him lest he make him dirty?

One of Canada's most popular prime ministers (at least in hindsight) was Pierre Elliott Trudeau. The man was witty and intelligent and he was also known to drop the gloves when people either got on his nerves or just plain said or did stupid things.

I mean, here was a man who was known to give the press the finger. They made T-Shirts depicting Trudea lifting his middle finger and emblazoned with the slogan "Welcome to Canada. Wish you were here" after that episode.

When a Newfoundland MP annoyed him during question period, Trudeau told him to F*ck Off. However, unlike Sarkozy, Trudea was smart enough to stay clear of any microphones. When the wannabe lip readers asked him what he'd said later on, he told them that he might have said "fuddle duddle".

I mean, here was a man who was referred to as "That a**hole from Canada" by Richard Nixon. You've got to be good to be called an a**hold by Richard Nixon!

I think more politicians should take their examples from people like Sarkozy and Trudeau.

[jerry w.]

It could have been worse, he could have been Greek.

Talk about having someone watch your ass.

http://boskolives.wordpress.com/

[blah]

French politics has really degenerated! Twenty years ago our President had more polished manners:
Journalist : "A newspaper recently stated you had wiretapped various personalities..."
President François Mitterrand : "Had I known you'd be mentioning such a vile subject I wouldn't have come here today. This conversation is over."
Really, politicians knew how to behave back then...

[Brian M]

I love the explanation of the phrase below the article. This sounds like a lot more offensive than calling someone a jerk. I imagine most of the French get called a jerk multiple times a day.

"3. "pauvre con", offensive slang for "poor vagina", is even worse, by far; it is a very rude and offensive insult (felt at least like offending one's mother), even between ordinary persons. Anyone saying that to any sort of person in any circumstances and after any precedent would expect being hit with fist - or even with knife from certain people. Most people never said this once in their whole life."

[SarahJane]

My personal favourite French politician is Francois Mitterand. A couple of years back, Mitterand is President of France, and there's a big meeting with European Foreign Ministers. Mitterand is standing, greeting all the various ministers from all over Europe, including several beautifully dressed and elegant women. A notorious old fox, he greets each lady with a tender kiss on the cheek, until suddenly he is faced with the British Foreign Minister, Margaret Beckett....

Faced with the Oxfam reject gorgon, even Mitterand's customary savoir faire deserts him. So flummoxed by the appearance of this scruff bag, he almost forgets to shake her hand.....

[James]

He also endded a 60-Minute interview, probaby one of the shortest interview Leslie Stahl has ever done.

http://www.showbuzz.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/10/29/tv/main3423194.shtml

[Zoran Tasin]

good point. very good.

[Derek]

That's funny. I think you'd be pleasantly surprised with Sarko, though. I know that I wish he could run to become our president.

[dsg]

Hi Scott,

Were you a Gary Hart supporter? Perhaps you could use this as your criteria for choosing a presidential candidate. I don't think we currently have anyone with such credentials, at least publicly admitted. But as you pointed out previously, most decisions are based on guesses about the unknown, so why not philandering as a guideline. It would make doing political research more interesting.

Thanks for the post,
dsg

[Adam]

But you should DEFINITELY let them cater your wedding :-)

http://www.livingwithanerd.com

[rob kay]

I bet you were a Clinton fan. And is McCain in the running for your favor now?

[mr anonymous]

"sale con" translates literally as "dirty twat". So someone like GWB would have said "Beat it, you f*ink twat"

[teflonjedi]

All I can say is, yikes!

[Jesse Raub]

All the French people hate him because he jogs. I read about it in the NYT. He doesn't take contemplative walks. This is enough for the French to dislike the man.

[rita mae]

"Oh, those French. They have a different word for everything."

"Help me. I'm choking. No, I guess I just tried to speak French."
[Credit to Steve Martin.]

If it wasn't for us, the French would be speaking German. Right? The French are arrogant and have so much to be humble about. But that's just me.........just saying.

Google "French military victories" --- it will make you laugh.

Rita Mae

[Tim Hall]

Here in Great Britain, all persons of substance know that the French are our natural enemies. As such, we are not at all surprised by this sort of behaviour, which is entertaining only to those of base morality and upbringing (and, of course, foreigners)

[Joe Otten]

I think it's funny that Sarkozy was elected as a right-winger wanting France to be closer to the USA, and nobody in the USA has noticed or would care, probably.

[Cardamome]

He got married (for the 3d time) two months after his (second) divorce.

Oh, and don't miss that he (may or may not have) sent a SMS to his second wife one week before getting re-married, saying "if you come back I'm cancelling everything".

(He's suing the newspaper on that one. The rumor has it for sure.)

[DF]

Good moral to the story. I think you should go one step further and not invite any french guys to the wedding, period.

However, more importantly, does Sarkozy have nice hair?

[Muppet]

Dude...ha ha ha

[Real Live Girl]

I hear France has quite a lot of French guys, so kind of hard not to have one officiate at your wedding if you live there. But hopefully, he won't be a total asshole on top of it.

[MathieuB]

You would have loved our ex prime minister here in Canada.

The honorable Jean Chrétien had a more hands-on approach when dealing with protesters. As you can see on this picture from the CTV (http://images.ctv.ca/archives/CTVNews/img2/20070304/160_cp_clennet2_070304.jpg), he grabbed Bill Clennett (a notorious protester) by the throat when he would move out of his way.

[gabe]

dude, you try that kind of turdle head move at my wedding and french or not I'm gonna... oh wait,.. you said officiate.. my bad.

[Stephane]

"Casse-toi alors, pauvre con"

Actually, I think "A**hole" is pushing it a little. It's kinda stronger than "pauvre con", which I don't think Sarkozy would have used.

It is open to interpretation, like you said, so I will go with my own...to me "pauvre con" is more like "dumbass". You're telling the guy he's dumb, without actually telling him he's worth less than your O-ring. My 2 cents from a French-Canadian guy living in Quebec ;)

[Mr. Wampus]

Wow, I'm sure the question on everyone's mind right now is, "Hey, how can I become a french politician?"