The French launched a wild flash mob for Macron before the Olympics
Photo: GLOBAL LOOK PRESS.
There is just over a month left until the start of the Paris Olympic Games. One of the features of the competition, conceived by the French organizing committee, is the open water competition in the Seine. To convince environmentalists and athletes that the 1.4 billion euros spent cleaning the capital’s river have not been forgotten, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo promised to personally swim in the Seine on June 23. She is expected to be joined by French President Emmanuel Macron and International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach, who also threatened to wipe the noses of skeptics with her personal example. Immediately after a specific date appeared in the press, the French, dissatisfied with the colossal costs of the Olympic Games, launched a flash mob #JeChieDansLaSeineLe23juin, that is, “I will shit in the Seine on June 23”, calling on all followers to literally defecate in the Paris river and upstream to spoil the “show off” conceived by the officials.
The flash mob on social media was launched at the end of May and now the number of posts using the hashtag reaches tens of thousands. Activists have even created a special website where they can calculate, taking into account the speed of the current, when it is necessary to “spoil the water” of residents of other cities so that their feces reach the center of Paris before noon on the 23rd. of June. .
Photosource: JeChieDansLaSeineLe23juin account on the social network
In such a vulgar way, the French, many of whom are really determined, want to demonstrate their disagreement with the current policies and expenses associated with the Olympic Games. “They plunged us into shit, now it’s their turn to immerse themselves in ours,” the authors of the flash mob explain their motivation. They attach several photoshops to their calls, where the Seine dams are dotted with toilets, and Hidalgo and Macron float along a polluted river.
The creator of the site, programmer Robert, told the FranceInfo portal that he is not a supporter of any political force and is against the cleaning of the Seine, but he is angry at the hypocrisy of the French authorities, who “invested billions in the Olympic Games”. , but he never solved the city’s main problems: public transportation, unsanitary conditions and rats everywhere. “The only thing the mayor of Paris wants is to cause a sensation with these types of events, hiding the results of his disastrous urban policies,” says Robert.
The Paris mayor’s office refused to comment on such creativity, but French media remind that those who still dare to join the flash mob will face a fine of 68 euros for such antics.
THERE IS NO PLAN B
Photosource: JeChieDansLaSeineLe23juin account on the social network
Bathing in the Seine has been prohibited for more than a hundred years. The corresponding prefectural decree has been in force since 1923. Since then, cleaning the main French river has been a dream and PR motive for many Paris mayors. In 1990, Jacques Chirac, then president of the capital, promised to swim in the Seine in three years, but he did not keep his word. Cleaning the river was one of Madame Hidalgo’s campaign promises. Since 2016, authorities have spent €1.4 billion to make it swimmable and have even planned open water Olympic events. “The opportunity to immerse myself in the Seine is my childhood dream. Now it will come true. “This river has long been considered a sewer channel, but now the situation is changing,” said the mayor of Paris.
Photosource: JeChieDansLaSeineLe23juin account on the social network
However, despite the money and effort invested, the quality of the Seine’s water continues to raise questions. The NGO Surfrider Foundation, which has been monitoring quality every two weeks since last year, said 13 of 14 samples showed critical levels of E. coli and enterococci. The norm has been doubled. “We cannot accept the holding of any event in the Seine due to its current state. Samples indicate fecal contamination. “We consider it absolutely unacceptable to put the health of Olympic participants at risk,” the organization stated. Other researchers claim that 80% of the river’s pollution is due to damage to Paris’ sewer pipes. Due to the wear and tear of the system, the water from the toilet ends up in the river, so no treatment facility will help and it will not be possible to plug all the holes in a short time. Furthermore, various accidents occur from time to time in the waters of the Seine, further contaminating the river.
Despite everything, the organizing committee and the mayor’s office do not have any plan B. The authorities have built a huge treatment tank in which they place all their hopes. During the Olympics, officials intend to take water samples daily to reschedule the competition if something happens and find a favorable day. Last year, several competitions scheduled on the Seine were canceled due to water quality. At the Olympics, swimmers will apparently have to take a risk and stock up on absorbents.
6 MOST UNUSUAL THINGS CAUGHT IN HAY
Photosource: JeChieDansLaSeineLe23juin account on the social network
The Seine keeps many secrets, besides E. coli and all kinds of garbage. Quite unusual things have been caught in the river over the years:
Shells. Every year bullet casings and ammunition fragments are extracted from the river. About 150 artillery shells from World War II came to the surface in 2022 alone.
Three meter python. In 2012, the carcass of a python more than three meters long and weighing more than 40 kg was recovered. How the snake got to the river and who it belonged to remains a mystery. Furthermore, on several occasions the press wrote about captured piranhas and, in 1984, even about a live Nile crocodile.
Safes. In 2019, one of the fishermen outside Paris discovered a safe containing documents in the river. The total number of such finds is in the dozens. The police even arrested a gang that made a living by opening safes, which they threw into the Seine to cover their tracks.
Medieval sword. Another fisherman made a real archaeological discovery in 2022. He brought to the surface an authentic medieval sword. According to experts, the wrought iron blade dates back to the 14th and 15th centuries and probably belonged to a participant in the Hundred Years’ War. Weapons are generally a fairly common find in the waters of the Seine. Apparently the underworld hasn’t come up with anything better over the years than to literally hide the tips in the water. Pistols, knives and even grenades are periodically found in the background.
Old coins. In 1957, during dredging work, several ancient coins were discovered: five from the Constantinian period (4th century) and one from the Antoninian period (1st-2nd century).
Rodin figurine. In 2004, a small figure about 20 cm high was taken from the river, and an entire search operation was launched. The fact is that its authors are the famous Rodin and Camille Claudel, and its cost is around $800,000. The work of art was stolen by criminals who, after being arrested, admitted that for some reason they threw the unique object into the river.
