Il y a longtemps que notre pays est beau mais rude.
--Newspaper editor Olivier Séguret, 25 January 2012
The USA are entirely the creation of the accursed race, the French.
--Evelyn Waugh (1903-1966), writing to Nancy Mitford, 22 May 1957
(filthy, sordid, disgusting)
Etymology: unknown.
Supprimons cette loi qui ne sanctionne aucune connaissance réelle sauf celle de l'entregent et du copinage crapoteux.
--A comment on a story about politicians revealing, or not, their personal wealth
Private sector
Fans of one of France's top soccer teams, Saint-Étienne, on strike (won't cheer)
The Front de Gauche (basically the Commies & their political allies; they're much more mainstream in France) marches on Paris the 5th of May "against finance [sic!] and austerity"
Employees of PSA Peugeot Citroën at Aulnay, just north of Paris, have been on strike on and off for most of this year to protest the closure of the factory in 2014. Now management announces it may close the factory this year, not next year, because it is so unprofitable. Employees want the government to buy it or for all laid-off employees to be guaranteed full-time permanent jobs elsewhere.
Longshoremen in Marseilles
Public sector
Garbage workers in Pau, in the southwest of France, and in Alsace
Firemen in the Loire valley
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A tourist can be recognized at first glance. It's someone dressed so that, if he were in his own country, he would turn around in the street to stare if he saw himself walk by.
--Philippe Meyer in Portraits acides et autres pensées édifiantes, quoted in Le Bouquin des citations, ed. Claude Gagnière
Un touriste se reconnaît au premier coup d'œil. C'est un individu habillé d'une manière telle que, s'il se trouvait dans son propre pays, il se retournerait dans la rue en se voyant passer.
Keith Eckstein also has a new book review site, Books About France
Where's the misspelling? If you are referring to "Austerity that's enough" none of those words are misspelled.
What is your native language?
Posted by: Mike Drips | 30 January 2013 at 20:53
I was just going to say the same thing... but I am French so I was waiting for someone else to comment :-)
Posted by: French Girl in Seattle | 30 January 2013 at 22:48
It's a direct translation of "Ça suffit," which, while sometimes meaning "That's enough," can also mean "Stop it" or "Cut it out."
A native speaker would probably make a protest sign that read "No to austerity" or "Down with austerity." Saying "Austerity, that's enough" implies that austerity is sufficient. Autrement dit, c'est suffisant. Ce qui n'est pas le cas, si je comprends bien le manifestant.
Posted by: Alison | 31 January 2013 at 00:01
Misspellings and even grammar are not the only places to make a mistake in using a language. No native English speaker, especially one unacquainted with French, would ever say "Austerity, it's enough!" (= that's all we need = c'est tout ce qu'il nous faut) to mean "No more austerity." The spelling is fine, of course!
Posted by: Sedulia | 31 January 2013 at 05:38
But then when the McDonald's franchise ask if you would like to 'give yourself a pleasure' with a coffee, as they do in France, it's hardly surprising. I would have hoped that this huge franchise could have at least checked with head office!
Posted by: Emma | 31 January 2013 at 13:13
At least they didn't say "Pleasure yourself!"
Posted by: Sedulia | 31 January 2013 at 14:29
This is at a protest in London. This guy is probably British.
Posted by: Gigi | 01 February 2013 at 10:01
English speakers from the UK would (and did) say that. It looks like you are not aware of the diversity of the language.
Here's the same sign in an English newspaper:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9622595/Thousands-protest-against-Governments-austerity-policies.html
The sentence is even quoted in the caption.
Posted by: Telmo | 01 February 2013 at 10:28
Yeah this is semantics. Grammatically fine and the meaning is obvious. My teachers said "That's enough!" to me many times. Though I agree with the gist of the post - it's true that non-native English speakers can botch up the language with a sort of blundering overconfidence. I've witnessed it in the work place via email several times, particularly via email, where things are easily misinterpreted.
Posted by: Johnny | 02 February 2013 at 11:39
If it's an British-English sign I have to back down, I guess! It still sounds foreign/French to me. If it said "That's enough austerity" it would be another matter.
Posted by: Sedulia | 02 February 2013 at 18:14