
It's time to ban the caravan
The French government has banned smoking at the beach, a performative gesture for a government that's incapable of doing anything about a €3 trillion deficit, uncontrolled borders and lawlessness. As it's in the mood for banning things at the beach, it should listen to me and ban caravans.
Here in the Deep South of France, just by the interchange of the A9 motorway and the departmental route 13, is a sprawling prairie containing thousands of dead, rotting caravans and camping vans.
It's like an abandoned suburb of Dante's inferno. It's the Hotel California for these mobile pollution factories. The damned things check in, and never leave. The graveyard has been there for at least 25 years, steadily expanding, and I cheer every time I see it. The only good caravan is a dead caravan. Unfortunately, as one dies, another is born.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Reuters
9 hours ago
- Reuters
EU could approve Mercosur deal by summer, agriculture chief says
BRUSSELS, June 5 (Reuters) - The European Union could approve its planned trade deal with South American bloc Mercosur before summer, but it has not yet fixed a date to do so, EU agriculture commissioner Christophe Hansen told Reuters on Thursday. "It could be before summer," Hansen said in an interview. EU nations still need to approve the deal, which was finalised in December but has faced opposition from members including France, which argues that the pact would hurt European farmers who face stricter norms and regulations than their South American peers. French President Emmanuel Macron and Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva discussed their differences on the pact at a meeting in Paris on Thursday. Macron said the text could be improved with the insertion of mirror clauses. France has previously argued for the insertion of an emergency break clause to restrict imports if a sudden surge in imports destabilises certain EU markets. "This would indeed require that we go back to the table and reopen. I don't think that this would be helpful in this situation," Hansen said of the idea of resuming negotiations with Mercosur countries to add new safeguards to the deal. "I see from many different parts of the agriculture and food sector, they are really looking for having these new opportunities," he added.


Daily Mail
11 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Richard Simmons' palatial mansion hits the market for eye-watering sum nearly a year after his death at age 76
The palatial Hollywood Hills mansion owned by the late Richard Simmons is now on the market for nearly $7,000,000. The gated, colonial-style home located above the Sunset Strip has been listed for $6,999,999. Simmons died at the home last year, just one day after celebrating his 76th birthday. The reclusive fitness guru resided at the home with his devoted friend and house manager, Teresa Reveles, and abruptly stopped making public appearances in 2014, sparking concern from fans. According to the home's listing, which is being held by John A. Lucy of Keller Williams Hollywood Hills, the property was built in 1937 and boasts an array of amenities, including a maid's suite, pool, pool house, updated kitchen, music room, and terraced side yard. Simmons was found in his home by his longtime housekeeper on July 13, 2024 - just one day after celebrating his 76th birthday. A cause of death was revealed back in August, with the Los Angeles Coroner's office informing Simmons' brother Lenny that the death had been 'accidental due to complications from recent falls and heart disease as a contributing factor.' 'The toxicology report was negative other than medication Richard had been prescribed,' family spokesperson Tom Estey told People. 'The Family wishes to thank everyone for their outpouring of love and support during this time of great loss.' Lenny had previously told People that he didn't want 'people to be sad about my brother,' but rather to 'remember him for the genuine joy and love he brought to people's lives.' 'He truly cared about people. He called, wrote and emailed thousands of people throughout his career to offer help,' Lenny said. Simmons had fallen in the bathroom of his home on Friday, July 12 - which marked his 76th birthday - and Reveles had attempted to persuade him to seek immediate medical help, but he declined because it was his birthday, TMZ previously reported. Simmons said he didn't want to go anywhere, informing her that he might go on July 13. Reveles helped him safely get back to his bedroom, where she found him unresponsive the following morning on the floor at around 10 a.m., according to the outlet. He was later pronounced dead on the scene. 'When I saw him, he looked peaceful,' she told People last July of finding Simmons. She noted his hands were balled into fists, prompting her to believe he died of a heart attack. 'That's why I know it was a heart attack. I had a heart attack a few years ago, and my hands did the same.' Simmons was a legendary fitness guru who grew up in the French quarter of New Orleans before settling in California. He weighed 268 pounds when he graduated from high school, his website said. His own story of struggling with weight loss, where he tried everything from fad diets to laxatives before settling on exercise and better lifestyle choices, inspired millions to do the same. Simmons became a master of many media forms, sharing his hard-won weight-loss tips as host of the Emmy-winning daytime 'Richard Simmons Show' and author of best-selling books and the diet plan Deal-A-Meal. He also opened exercise studios and starred in exercise videos, including the wildly successful 'Sweatin' to the Oldies' line, which became a cultural phenomenon. Simmons' daytime show was seen on 200 stations in America, as well as in Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Japan and South America. His first book, 'Never Say Diet', was a smash best-seller. He was known to counsel the severely obese, including Rosalie Bradford, who held records for being the world's heaviest woman, and Michael Hebranko, who credited Simmons for helping him lose 700 pounds. After winning a legion of fans with his infectious enthusiasm and positivity, Simmons stepped away from the limelight in 2014. TMZ founder Harvey Levin later said the fitness icon doesn't spend all his time at his home. 'We found out he likes going to the beach, he'll go shopping, he'll just go out and get air,' he told Good Day in 2022. In 2022, Simmons' spokesperson Tom Estey provided a statement to the New York Post saying that he was 'happy, healthy and living the life he has chosen to live.'


Daily Mail
11 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Sex assault horror across Paris after PSG Champions League win: Shocking footage shows huge mob surround terrified women's car and smash window as other victims describe sexual violence
Violent riots gripped the French capital on Saturday night after Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League win - with horrifying videos and testimony revealing how women were targeted by thuggish football fans. Shocking video has shown how a huge mob attacked a pair of young women, screaming at them, climbing on their car and smashing its windows in as they tried to drive through the city. The terrified women are seen cowering as the hordes of men intimidated them. Video of the onslaught cuts out shortly after a window is smashed in, making it unclear what happened next. Some 500 people were arrested, two people died and almost 200 were injured during the riots, according to France's interior ministry. Shops were vandalised and looted, cars and motorbikes set on fire and people were stabbed during the Paris riots, with violence also seen elsewhere in France. Predominantly male crowds, large parts of which were buzzing off a mixture of alcohol and PSG's win, took over the streets, with women reporting a hostile atmosphere across the city. A Parisian student called Dounia, who went out with friends to celebrate the victory on the banks of the Seine, described how she was sexually and verbally assaulted by visibly drunk PSG supporters. 'A man in his forties approached me, holding a flask of alcohol. I saw him approaching and suddenly I felt his hand grab my buttocks,' the 18-year-old told Le Parisien. She told the outlet that she is still in shock days later. 'It was his reaction when I turned around that was the most telling,' the young woman said. 'He insulted me and pushed me violently, before walking away with his friend.' TikTok creator Lily-Rose described feeling 'scared for my life' as she cycled through the city shortly after the game finished. She described having shards of glass bottles thrown at her and feeling as though she would be knocked off her bike at any moment. 'Luckily, they landed on the bike frame and I wasn't hit,' she sighs in a TikTok video. 'My evening was ruined. It was supposed to be a moment of euphoria and joy, but that didn't take into account this problematic and misogynistic behavior,' she added. 'When you see the way you behave, it's scary, it's terrifying. I'm shaking, I'm traumatized, I thought I was going to die several times.' Other female PSG fans hoping to celebrate their team's success said they were unable to spend any more than fifteen minutes in the crowd before being assaulted. 'We had two hands on our asses and one on our breasts,' one of the friends reportedly said. 'We want to party but we can't.' Footage of the horrific attacks was widely condemned online, but also met with more misogynistic comments. 'Why were you out?' men on Instagram, X and TikTok responded to women's complaints. While many shops on the Champs-Elysees were protected ahead of the Champions League final, some did not escape damage Other vile comments read: 'You're a girl and you're going to celebrate PSG on the Champs-Elysées, that counts in the bodycount ' and 'The girls who are going to be on the Champs-Elysées on the 31st, we already know why you're there'. 'You're a woman and you're going to Paris when you know it's going to be chaos whether we win or lose. Are you stupid?' another person said. Dounia said the responses angered her even more, and that women should be 'able to go out into the street freely, whether there's a sporting event or not.' Statistics show that there are 114,000 sexual assaults are recorded in France every year - equivalent to one every four minutes. Of the victims, 85 per cent are women, and nearly 50 per cent of French women say they feel unsafe in public spaces. Speaking to PSG players at the Élysée Palace on Sunday, French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the 'unacceptable' violence seen on the streets the night before. 'Nothing can justify what has happened in recent hours, the violent clashes are unacceptable. We will pursue, we will punish, we will be relentless.'