On Tuesday night, a usually popular Paris cafe of deep pedigree in St. Germain des Pres was nearly empty, with only a few American rich kids and imperious Japanese beauties drinking Champagne. Where was everyone?
The answer: it was Epiphany. What? The French–that is, the ones of Catholic lineage, who still comprise an overwhelming majority–were at home. No matter the century, it seems, they stick to old customs here, which all in all might be a good thing, because Paris hasn’t been ground into real estate shite like New York. Google Epiphany, if you have to, and jot it down in your moleskine. Don’t bother looking for fun in the 6th arrondisement on Epiphany next year.
On Wednesday morning, two very angry young men drove a cheap black compact, of which there are countless thousands here, into the center of the French capital and slaughtered the staff of a magazine that few people would drop a euro on. Charlie Hebdo found a market niche by being extremely obnoxious in a way that probably appeals to highly alienated teenagers. The old Mad Magazine of the 1950’s is the closest American analogy, but there is really no American equivalent, because Charlie Hebdo’s sense of humor would not be widely embraced in America. Mercedes-Benz would not buy ads. In France, it fits into a heritage of over-the-top sociopolitical satire that somehow serves to balance out the weight of Epiphany. They had a far better revolution in 1792 than we did in 1776, and they’re smart not to take it for granted. Charlie Hebdo exists as a reminder that the right to say anything you please is hard won and exceedingly rare in civil history.
On Wednesday evening, President Hollande, a dignified and astonishingly milquetoast presence, ended his address to the nation with “vive la Republique et vive la France!” He was not mouthing clichés. There are, on Thursday, some 88,000 police searching for those pathologically offended men who murdered the staff of a very offensive magazine.
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No one had to convince the French–of diverse lineages–to support Charlie Hebdo as though it were Le Monde. That is a fine reason to admire la belle France tonight.
