frogsmoke.com

Links for Friday 25 July 2008:
Undesirables blacklisted: Nudist resort told to bare all
Toddler tragedies: Two French children die in hot cars
Massive interest: France’s first lady also first in record sales
The French Führer: Genocidal Napoleon was as barbaric as Hitler, historian claims
Les Jardins Singuliers: Hidden gardens of southern France
France Magazine editor Carolyn Boyd: Why I adore […]

Links for Sunday 20 July 2008:
French clan-clan: Satire and anti-Semitism: Like Sarko, like son
They’re a riot: Who Says the French Aren’t Funny?
Balancing act: France to face internal, external pressure at key WTO talks
Mounting public concern: France orders probe at all nuclear sites
Chairman Shoemaker: French town touts link to Chinese revolution
Absinthe en vogue: French drinkers welcome […]

Links for Saturday 19 July 2008:
Chart hitter: Carla Bruni’s new album ranks third
To be dumped next year? Sarkozy’s PM suffers from more than back pain
Girl power: News French videogame maker targets female gamers
Gallic supremacy: France continues to set the standard for global fine wine production
“They’re mine” Vasarely’s daughter-in-law charged with art theft
Not racism but nervousness: […]

Links for Friday 18 July 2008:
Nuke fears: France orders tests on all nuclear power stations after leak
Too little too late? Compensation for French women who worked for Nazis
Anybody surprised? Tour de France Shaken Again By Doping Bust
Frosty welcome: Sarkozy faces cool reception in Ireland
Fractional ownership: Americans live out dreams with piece of French property
High-tech streetcars: […]

Links for Thursday 17 July 2008:
No-go Sarko: Sarkozy call for second EU vote provokes storm in Ireland
Another Napoleon? President Nicolas Sarkozy turning France into monocracy, say critics
La vie est belle: Spain and France experience highest quality of life
Sad story: Two-year-old dies after father forgets him in car
Lauding Islam: First stone laid for Louvre’s Islamic art […]

It’s been called an army of thieves and cut throats. A band of hired killers. But from the burning sands of Northern Africa to the jungles of South America, whenever the odds are long, and the battles fierce, the French Foreign Legion has been called into action. This 50-minute documentary attempts to reveal some secrets […]

Links for Wednesday 16 July 2008:
Summer reading: France studies philosophy and sex on the beach
Junk de luxe: In Paris, Burgers Turn Chic
Seeking closure: 64 years later, France and Germany delve into shrouded WW 2 massacre
Bull fight: 12-year ban lifted on Original Red Bull
Expats in French healthcare system: Happy event - but mum is still stuck […]

Links for Tuesday 15 July 2008:
350,000 Britfrogs: Les Français sont arrivés
Insider info: Charles Bremner at Sarkozy’s garden party
Olivier Besancenot: French lessons for the North American Left?
View from Lebanon: Nicolas Sarkozy’s foreign policy: old wine in new bottles
Pre-op nerves: Jolie twins doctor admits to pre-birth pressure
Political gamble: Syria’s Assad stirs controversy at France’s Bastille Day
No turning […]

Click for bigger
I found this wonderfully self-deprecating map on Strange Maps. The map dates from 1989, and was apparently produced by a French magazine called Actuel. Some characteristics of le monde, vu de Paris:

Centre of the world, obviously, is Paris (which once had its own meridian, eventually losing out to the one in Greenwich).
New Caledonia, […]

Links for Sunday 13 July 2008:
Frankest interview yet: Carla Bruni on music, love and Sarkozy
More Bruni: Carla Bruni-Sarkozy loves ‘feminine’ Englishmen
And more: Wife of French President Nicholas Sarkozy lays claim to ‘ordinary’ life
Betancourt: Caught in the snake pit of drugs and crime
Vive le franc: Defiant village snubs the Euro
Double whammy in Nice: Angelina Jolie gives […]

Yeah, I think so…
Original caption: Un journaliste tient une maquette de l’A380 sur le site de construction du futur aéroport allemand de Brandenbourg près de Berlin, le 11 juillet 2008
Source | Photo: REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke

Links for Saturday 12 July 2008:
Treat under threat: Young French oysters hit by abnormal mortality
Shut up, Chinese! EU says Sarkozy should meet with Dalai Lama
Human Rights: France rapped for detaining ship’s crew in drugs probe
230M Euros: Former Adidas owner Tapie wins cash back
Glitter & Bling: Sarkozy launches his new Club Med
Amnesty International: French Club Med […]

Links for Friday 11 July 2008:
Run over by a Ferrari: Star news anchor bows out in French TV shake-up
Blame it on the Boss: Shadow of Sarkozy seen in French anchor’s downfall
French Berlusconi? Sarkozy Moves to Control French Media
“Quality of services insufficient” Long queues, bad service at Paris airports
Are we safe now? French uranium leak was […]

Links for Thursday 10 July 2008:
Ms Paranoia: Ségolène Royal: President Sarkozy arranged burglary at my home
Undue worry: News French first lady will ‘understand’ if public scorns new album
Supermodel-turned-chanteuse: Review: Carla Bruni’s new album
Crown prince? Carla Bruni: I would like a baby with Nicolas Sarkozy
Blair witchcraft: ‘Cherie Blair inspired me to keep singing,’ says Carla Bruni
National […]

And she kept her word.
Source: AFP