See You In Paris For NYE 2008!

Ever felt that New Years Eve is slightly (or indeed extremely) overrated? Sure there's the drinking and the fireworks, but I could get that at the football. Well at least I used to. Now they banned the flares and the only beer is Carlton Draught. GRRR!! And as for the slightly liberating ability to walk all over Flinders St, we did that when Australia qualified for the 2006 World Cup. However while there might be endless bullshit news articles featuring Z list celebs crap on about what they wish for in the New Year, the French, as they often do, show us the light. In what this blogger sees as much the same spirit as Festivus in combination with the French national sport of protest marching, people in Nantes have held a protest against the year 2007.

From the BBC:

French marchers say 'non' to 2007

Hundreds of protesters in France have rung in the New Year by holding a light-hearted march against it.

Parodying the French readiness to say "non", the demonstrators in the western city of Nantes waved banners reading: "No to 2007" and "Now is better!"

The marchers called on governments and the UN to stop time's "mad race" and declare a moratorium on the future.

The protest was held in the rain and organisers joked that even the weather was against the New Year.

The tension mounted as the minutes ticked away towards midnight - but the arrival of 2007 did nothing to dampen their enthusiasm.

The protesters began to chant: "No to 2008!"

They vowed to stage a similar protest on 31 December 2007 on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris.

How can you not love the French? (unless of course you were colonised by them) Protests, food and the Tour de France. Plus they didn't invade Iraq.