Paris, France is about to turn out the lights.
French President Francois Hollande and his energy minister Delphine Batho are considering turning out the lights in and outside public buildings, offices and shops in the early hours of the morning.
If the scheme goes ahead, late-night revellers in the city would be advised to carry torches if they venture out between the hours of 1 and 7am.
The rules will also apply to other French cities, villages, and towns.
Batho said the measure would save energy and money, and show ‘sobriety’, although the plan has proved unpopular with traders.
It follows on from a new rule last July which states businesses must turn off neon lights between 1 and 6am. The measure was introduced as part of the French government’s bid to improve its energy efficiency by 20 percent by 2020.
Not sure what he means by “sobriety.” People visit Paris to enjoy the day and the night. Making people stumble about in the dark just isn’t a nice or sober thing to do.
Cities didn’t light up the night merely because Edison’s invention — legislated to death in the USA in 2013 — allowed them to. Cities put up lamp posts to make it more difficult for the criminal element to prey on everyone else.
What do the wise socialists of France expect to happen to the crime rate when they turn off the lights? What’s likely to happen to some of the 81 million tourists who visit Paris each year?
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