Globalization

Versus Protectionism

 
 

Vocabulary

fellow	resident	looks set
winery	run (2)	found (2)
crisis	export	certification
soil	absurd	civil war
wage	vintner	head (2)
access	confirm	mass produce
dump	strip (2)	campaign
boost	impose	protectionism
tariff	election	standard
rural	laborer	opinion poll
lead	border	ashamed
hurt	at least	never mind
vote	curl up	unemployment
agree	embody	under the thumb
claim	thumb	take back
hefty	survive	anachronistic
award	subsidy	remaining
reveal	isolate	candidate

 
 
 

 
 
 
 

Transcript

Here in Sauvignons, at least one resident looks set to have a good year.

Paul-Henry Pelle runs a winery about 200 km south of Paris. It was founded by his great-grandfather.

Despite the economic crisis in France, Pelle can still sell his wines at a good price. He exports nearly half of them.

Paul-Henry Pelle, Vintner: “Our wine embodies the character of our village and our soil. That’s also why we were awarded the AOC Certification, which confirms that we offer a regional product.

Our Sauvignons can’t just be copied and produced in another location or in a low-wage country; the soil is completely different there. And trying to mass-produce our wine would strip it of its magic.”

Wine is one of France’s leading exports. And French vintners rely on access to the single European market.

But some see things differently.

Like Jean-Rene Coueille. He’s campaigning for the far-right National Front, headed by Marie Le Pen, who hopes to win the upcoming presidential election.

She’s calling for protectionism, saying it would give France’s economy a boost.

Jean-Rene Coueille, National Front Party: “We have many farmers here. And about 30% will probably be forced to go out of business soon due to unfair competition.

We need intelligent protectionism.

We must finally impose tariffs on products that are imported to France and sold at dumping prices because they are produced elsewhere in Europe, at very low costs, without maintaining social or environmental standards.”

It’s an argument that many rural residents agree with, especially young people, laborers and people who are out of work.

Some opinion polls put the National Front in the lead right now.

Resident One: “Europe means open borders. They need to be closed. It might not be easy to leave the EU, but we need to close the borders.

That’s the only way to protect our country.”

Resident Two: “Leaving the Euro would probably hurt at first and make a lot of people very angry. It could even lead to a civil war.

But something has to be done, and that includes returning to the Franc.”

For Pelle, leaving the Euro — never mind the EU — is unthinkable.

Paul-Henry Pelle, Vintner: “What shocks me the most is so many young people vote for the National Front. I just don’t understand what they see in the party.

I would never cast my vote for it.”

Coueille and his fellow campaigners say the reason is clear: unemployment in France is about ten percent. Only the National Front they say will protect the remaining jobs from immigrants.

But not everyone here agrees.

Man One: “You have no right to be here. Get lost.”
Jean-Rene Coueille, National Front Party: “You know perfectly well that we are allowed to campaign here.”
Man One: “You idiot. Idiot.”

Man Two: “A fascist is and remains a fascist. You’re too young to have seen what happened back then.

Madam Le Pen should be ashamed.”

Jean-Rene Coueille, National Front Party: “We aren’t fascists; we just want to take back control of our country.”

So is there anything to the claim that France is under the EU’s thumb?

Wine grower Pelle says that many French farmers only survive thanks to hefty subsidies from Brussels.

Closing the borders? Anachronistic.

Paul-Henry Pelle, Vintner: “It’s absurd. Today we can’t just curl up into a little ball here and isolate ourselves, like a tiny Gallic village.
The world is what it is, and we have to learn to deal with that.

If France imposes import tariffs, other countries will too. Then our exports would drop, which would hurt everyone here.”

Pelle won’t reveal who will get his vote on April twenty-third. But it will be a candidate who supports free trade.

He says it’s the only way that his Sauvignons can continue to be enjoyed all over the world.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *

Questions

1. Is Paul-Henry Pelle an employee at the Sauvignon winery?

2. During economic downturns, sales of Pelle’s Sauvignon wines suffer. True or false?

3. Can Sauvignons be reproduced in Australia, China, Morocco or the United States?

4. Marie Le Pen favors import tariffs and quotas. Is this right or wrong? Why do her supporters favor protectionism?

5. What are the demographics of the National Front supporters? What issues do they support or oppose?

6. Are the presidential elections very divisive and polarizing?

7. Do Pelle and other vintners favor or oppose free trade? Why do they favor free trade?

 
 

A. Does your country have complete free trade, mostly free trade, partial, restrictive trade or total protectionism?

B. How do people feel about protectionism and free trade? Who supports and who opposes free trade? Is it very polarizing and divisive?

C. What businesses or industry favors free trade? Which opposes it?

D. What would be the best policy for the economy? For jobs?

E. What will happen in the future?