What Paris wants Moscow? Isn’t that obvious? Master to was away from her, and only for them, masters of life. Or servile, so you can continue to laugh like a fist over their inflatable, not real life. All as in the old days. But do we not experience the hour of greatest tension, the greatest crisis since the end of the 1920-ies of the last century or over a century, experienced by France and Europe April 23, 2017 — the day the first round of elections of the President of the French Republic?
In the eyes of the Frenchman, it may not be as dramatic, but from Moscow, yesterday snow-covered Moscow in April 2017, where every political movement froze and did twenty years ago, and nobody knows how will look the unfrozen policy knows what future, from Moscow to our little French electoral voyeurism is justified historically.
Before my eyes a 1913 photo of the 8 volumes of the collected works of Anatole France. “Anatole France, famous French writer, arrived in St. Petersburg on the square of St. Isaac’s Cathedral”. The photo was published in the “Exchange news” shortly before the outbreak of the First world war. Anatole France was the favorite in the USSR, the French writer of the century. First, he was a socialist. Second, he always spoke in support of the oppressed — the workers and intellectuals, starving and falling on hard labor. They say that even his Nobel prize for literature, received in 1921, France has spent on famine relief.
And for Russian, and for many Soviet — and even more so, Anatole France for decades served as Cicerone for political of France preceding generations. Of course, biased and outdated, but still. In his articles, speeches, letters, and the last segment of his life and the first quarter of our twentieth century was apparent very convenient for the new Soviet government ideology. Between whom and who is there in France, fighting? Here they are, the clerics and the nationalists, bourgeois Republicans and socialists. Against the war are only the socialists, but after the assassination of Jean jaurès they have no chance, and France is sinking into a world war as well as neighboring States.
Russia was then an ally of France, but Anatole France to assess realistically the capacity of the dying Empire. Published in 1925 in Leningrad the book of memories Marcel Le Goff “Anatole France 1914-1924.” is the reaction of the writer on expectations of a quick victory of Russia over Germany: “Russian! Just incredible, how the French love to persist in their delusions, despite the fact that the events ruthlessly disprove them. Constantly reviving this ridiculous hope: “the Russians are next spring in Berlin!” And Newspapers repeat it ad nauseam. Understand once and for all that Russia is waiting for nothing; it has only men and no guns, no guns, no shells. We ship to Arkhangelsk piles of shells, but if they accidentally drown and comes to destination, the Russian generals and Grand Dukes will resell them to the enemy to get money.”
As Trotsky and Lenin, Anatole France requires the creation of a “United States of Europe”. Instead of the old empires need not a nation state, which will tear the world apart, and the new Union of peoples across national boundaries. After the revolutions of 1917 Anatole France will want to see signs of the new in Soviet Russia — the ruins of the Empire, immigrants from where he was welcomed before world war II. In November 1922, almost exactly 95 years ago, Anatole France so will mark the fifth anniversary of the October revolution in Russia (translation N. M. Lyubimova):
“8 Nov 1922. Five years ago, the Soviet Republic was born in poverty. Invincible, she was the bearer of a new spirit, threatening death to all governments of injustice and oppression, which divide among themselves the earth.
The old world was not mistaken in his fears. Its leaders immediately guessed her as his enemy. They moved against the Soviet Republic slander, wealth, power. They wanted to strangle her; they sent her against a gang of robbers. The Soviet Republic closed ranks of the red fighters and rogues were broken.
If in Europe, there are friends of justice, they should respectfully bow before this Revolution, which for the first time in the history of mankind has tried to establish people’s power, acting in the interests of the people. Born in deprivation, increased among famine and war, the Soviet government had not yet completed the design of its vast, not yet carried out a Kingdom of justice. But she, at least, laid its foundations.
She sowed the seeds, which under favorable conditions germinate abundantly in Russia and, perhaps someday fertilize Europe.”
It took almost a hundred years, the lessons of history seemed to have changed characters. Russian social experiment of the twentieth century failed. Berlin was taken in 1915 and 1945. The Soviet government survived only two main pillars of Russian public life — corruption and the reliance on soldiers (militia, police, riot police, resguardado) boots, ennobled kosmonavtiki helmet and a rubber stick instead of a whip. Political life came to a standstill, so much so that the first two decades of the XXI century are held in Russia without change. Favorite secret formula “to Lie on the bottom, like a submarine, and Callsign not pass!”
It’s interesting to see what happens in Paris. Wake up Anatole France today, he would know, of course, with amendments, the same alignment of forces, in 1902. In place of clerics, the faithful Catholics, he would have found today the left and the leftist ideology of communism. After the collapse of Soviet socialism continue to insist can only deeply religious politician. Anatole France easily saw would such as Jean-Luc the Jean-Luc Mélenchon. Or in one of Malanshof: policies marked the first in the political history of France’s emergence as a hologram simultaneously in several cities of the country. Other enemies, ready to destroy the already constructed “a United States of Europe” — the European Union — he would recognize the “National Front”.
Would be surprised Anatole France our, Russian conditions? Somehow I think not.
In April 1906, speaking on the evening of Vera Figner in support of Russian emigrants after the defeat of the first Russian revolution, Anatole France said (this speech was published in translation M. V. Waterboy in 1960 in Moscow): “I have to say, to the shame of Republican France and liberal Europe that the struggle would not be so unequal and, perhaps, the defeat of tsarism would be closer and more inevitable, if the capital accumulated in the West of the international financial oligarchy, did not serve the support of the stupid and cruel government, contributing to the oppression of 140 million people. But, in the end, the Imperial government will collapse under the growing weight of their countless debts.”
— Ah, Monsieur Anatole Francois Thibault, do not forget, please, this is not 1908, and we are interested in what the outcome of at least the first round of presidential elections in France in 2017.
— Lord, fear God! I’m not an Oracle, and not even Nostradamus. Everything will be as it should be. Socialism, ladies and gentlemen, have not lost to nationalism.
