Why Does France Suck so Bad?

[Cort Haus]

Machine-made baguette : 50c
Hand-made baguette : 1 Euro
KH getting his panties in a twist over something trivial that really doesn't affect his life in any way : Priceless.

[KrazyHorse]

It's called a slippery slope, son.

Pretty soon you're living in 1984

[BeBMan]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse


First they came for the Communists...

No, first they came for the machine-made-baguette sellers.

[Nubclear]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse
It's called a slippery slope, son.

Pretty soon you're living in 1984

Throughout history, we can notice that whenever the label "baguette" is regulated, the nation collapses into despotism shortly thereafter

[MikeH]

Does anyone else have any idea what KH is going on aboot?

[BeBMan]

There is, of course, a much better way to real baguettes. First the governement should sponsor a campaign to educate people about the benefits of real baguettes.

Part of that would be the creation of a new superhero called Baguetteman who comes in as warrior for the good with his big....hm... baguette....whenever a real baguette is in danger (there need to be some bad guys too, one could be a real-baguette-killing KH with his physics powers).

It could start out simple, with little tv ads, but would grow bigger with the overall success of the campaign, and so we can expect also movies, and maybe a Disneyworld-like Baguetteland, with lots of small outposts, called Boulangeries. Merchandizing will be done by selling baguettes of different sizes.

After some time, people will be convinced that the real baguette is the only way to go, and these real baguettes will be available everywhere then. Kids on the streets will imitate Baguetteman and how he defeats the evil KH. Teens will bring real baguettes to their first date. And old people will tell stories how hard life was when you couldn't buy real baguettes anywhere.

[KrazyHorse]

In fifty years when you're being crushed under the iron heel we're going to have to come rescue you from yourselves. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be.

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse
What a bunch of monkey-ass bull****. I speak French quite well, and have since I was a small child.

"Boulangerie" just means bakery. It's a place where you buy bread, tarts, pies and other baked goods. It doesn't mean anything else.

To your Canadian self, obviously. To a Frenchman: no. Remember that France and Québec are as different as Britain and the US. Over here, bakeries are handled by craftsmen. Craftsmanship is implied in the word, for French people (now, if we had that North American culture of having processed food even in our mom and pop shops, that'd be different).

If you want your bakery to bake stuff by hand then they're more than free to advertise that fact. Why the **** do you think a subset of bakeries should be allowed to coopt the word to only mean baking according to their methods?

Because it's not a "subset". Bakeries had been about craftsmanship for aeons. And the word impllies a recognition of that fact.

You know how important brand-recognition is to advertising: you try hard to have a good brand-recognition, and if a usurper comes and leeches off your name (while damagin its reputation), you sue the usurper to oblivion. And the law is on your side.

Obviously, a smallscale activity that can't develop too far (like an artisanal bakery) doesn't have the means to protect its brand name. So, in order to protect brand-recognition of these craftsmen, we need legal ways that are different from current trademark laws. Thus we protect the very name of the activity, so that it doesn't get usurped.

This is the same reason why we protect the name of wineries: some French regions, such as Champagne, have worked hard to produce quality wine for centuries, and enjoy a good reputation as a result. Just like coke doesn't want its reputation to be tarnished by a competitor selling something even more terrible labelled "coke", we don't want some crappy sparkling wine from wherever to pass as "champagne", get plenty of money and ruin the reputation of the Champagne region in the process (thus ruining the people who are actually dedicated to make good wine).

I'd like to add that we have several chains that sell bread-products over here. They have stopped calling themselves "bakeries" years ago, and yet they have a strong brand recognition. In particular, Paul enjoys a good reputation, has stores everywhere in France, and absolutely doesn't need to be labelled "bakery" for it to attract customers.

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by BeBro
There is, of course, a much better way to real baguettes. First the governement should sponsor a campaign to educate people about the benefits of real baguettes.

Part of that would be the creation of a new superhero called Baguetteman who comes in as warrior for the good with his big....hm... baguette....whenever a real baguette is in danger (there need to be some bad guys too, one could be a real-baguette-killing KH with his physics powers).

It could start out simple, with little tv ads, but would grow bigger with the overall success of the campaign, and so we can expect also movies, and maybe a Disneyworld-like Baguetteland, with lots of small outposts, called Boulangeries. Merchandizing will be done by selling baguettes of different sizes.

After some time, people will be convinced that the real baguette is the only way to go, and these real baguettes will be available everywhere then. Kids on the streets will imitate Baguetteman and how he defeats the evil KH. Teens will bring real baguettes to their first date. And old people will tell stories how hard life was when you couldn't buy real baguettes anywhere.

[MikeH]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse
In fifty years when you're being crushed under the iron heel we're going to have to come rescue you from yourselves. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be.

In 50 years, you'll all be dead from your terrible diets of machine made bread.

[Flubber]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse


I've only had the misfortune to visit Alberta one time in my life.

Hey

Seriously-- You didn't like sun-soaked prairies with beautiful mountains on the horizon

[Flubber]

Originally posted by BeBro




The freedom to buy machine made baguettes

hey In Canada its clause 43 (b)(iii) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. BUt for some reason it only appears in the French version

[General Ludd]

Yet another reason why the french are culturally superior to anglos.

[Flubber]

I am just trying to recall if KH has ever gotten this upset about Canadian Margarine laws?

[Sandman]

Why Does France Suck so Bad?

They're forever coddling their petty bourgeoisie for sentimental nationalist reasons.