Macron versus Trumpzilla

We are experiencing a real life Bambi Versus Godzilla drama

For a man who wears the panties in his house, Emmanuel Macron sure tries to talk tough.

Reuters reported:

Europe should brace for more moments of U.S. hostility, French President Emmanuel Macron has warned, and should treat what he called the “Greenland moment” as a wake‑up call to push through long‑delayed reforms to strengthen the bloc’s global power.

In an interview with several European newspapers, the French leader said the European Union should not mistake a lull in tensions with Washington for a lasting shift despite a pause in U.S. threats over Greenland, trade and technology.

You may recall that last month our frenemies in NATO assembled a training exercise in Greenland in defiance of the USA. France sent 15 troops and Germany sent 13 to protect an ice cube 3 times the size of Texas.

Trump responded by threatening to slap an additional 25% tariff on participating countries—and their troops oui-oui-d all the way home. Macron—who had to wear sunglasses indoors to hide his eyes at the Davos conference—is upset. But there is nothing he can do about it because you cannot erase 40 years of crippling your economy and starving your military overnight.

The situation reminds me of the legendary short film Bambi Versus Godzilla. Bambi is seen ruminating in the forest. Godzilla steps on him. The end.

Reuters said Macron told newspapers, “When there’s a clear act of aggression, I think what we should do isn’t bow down or try to reach a settlement. We’ve tried that strategy for months. It’s not working.”

He also told them, “The U.S. will, in the coming months—that’s certain—attack us over digital regulation.”

Ah, that is how they will defeat us—just as France stopped Hitler with taxes and regulation.

Oh wait. French taxes and regulations didn’t stop Hitler. France surrendered after 6 weeks of fighting.

The reason France and the rest are trying to tax and regulate American social media is they have no viable economic or military alternatives. They need American trade more than we need them. As for the military, Denmark is beefing up its air force by buying 27 more F-35s to go with the 15 it already has. This will boost our economy. That will show us.

Their only tools left are taxing and regulating American Internet companies because there are no European social media of note. While the French were taking August off to go to the Riviera, Americans developed Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

I am not saying the French shouldn’t go to the beach. I should have taken more time off as well. But vacations and regulations cost money. Economists call the loss an opportunity cost. Now the French must log on to X for news and mean tweets.

Even Red China came up with TikTok.

I asked Grok about Euro-developed social media (Mastodon, BeReal, Pixelfed, PeerTube, XING, Viadeo, and the newer W Social). They generally rank much lower in terms of user base and overall popularity compared to Gab, depending on the metric.

X is roughly 250 times larger than Gab’s.

With a terrible grimace and freedom’s sound, the Orange Man brings the Eurocrats down. Oh no. There goes Brussels-oh. Trumpzilla!

What also attracts European leaders to attack USA social media is the allure of censorship. Britain already jails people for tweeting the truth about Muslim invaders raping their women.

Mediocrity is a choice.

On December 31, 1987, France launched its stock index, CAC 40 with a value of 1,000. Maintenant it tops 8,000.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 1,938.83 that day.

Now it tops 50,000—a growth rate triple the French stock market.

The French unemployment rate is almost double America’s.

Second World economies are a European phenomenon. When this century began, the combined GDP of European countries equaled America’s. Now the USA’s economy is 50% larger.

Bear in mind that much of Europe was rubble when World War II ended. The USA nursed back to life the economies of the countries on our side of the Iron Curtain.

European efforts to fight back are pathetic and amusing. The Guardian reported:

Europeans are booking fewer trips to the US, Europe’s biggest travel operator has said, as appetite for long-haul travel wanes and concerns linger around Donald Trump’s immigration policies.

Tui, which receives most of its bookings from customers in Europe, has seen “significantly lower demand” for travel into the US, according to its chief executive, Sebastian Ebel.

“What we do see is growing business to the Emirates and Asia,” he said. “We also see European demand to the Caribbean, which – due to capacity – had not been the biggest priority in the past, but there we see now potential again to grow.”

It comes amid signs that demand for long-haul travel across the Atlantic is waning.

A report by the European Travel Commission, which surveyed travelers from Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Japan, South Korea and the US, found 42% of long-haul travelers were considering a trip to Europe this year, down from 45% last year. In the U.S., 34% intended to travel to Europe, down from 37%.

European tourists represent less than 0.1% of America’s GDP. That’s a buck for every thousand bucks of GDP.

Everyone knows what Macron is doing—blaming Trump for his failures. Grok pegged Macron’s popularity at 17% approval, 79% disapproval.

Even at his lowest moment, Nixon never was that unpopular.

Brigitte Macron is the 7th most popular French person in France with 42% popularity. Her husband is last out of the 50 names polled.

As Trump told Jeb Bush in a debate, she should run.