Tag: Official Secrets Act

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Paris Therapy Pets

Just when you think you’ve seen protests for (or against) about every political, humanitarian, or social issue one can imagine, you run into one which makes you scratch your head and say, “What are those people thinking?” For me this time, it’s about the protests in France supporting the Paris sewer rats. Yep, you heard it here and as I’m fond of saying, “I don’t make up this stuff.” In fact, I read about this topic in a recent article entitled, French Freedom Fighters Press for the Rights of Parisian Rats. I can never resist a good article on French Freedom Fighters.

Seriously, Sandy and I visited Paris last September and we were standing in the small park memorializing the Grand Rafle (click here to read The Roundup and Cycling Arena) and the victims who were detained at the Velodrome before being transported to Drancy and ultimately, Auschwitz. As we were walking through the park, good sized rats scurried about around our feet. It turns out that rats have invaded Paris supermarkets, parks, and nurseries (and I suspect many other venues that no one wants to admit). So, the French politicians held a convention to determine a solution.

The Boatwright brothers holding their catch of rats. Photo by anonymous (January 1940). PD-Expired Copyright. Wikimedia Commons.
The Boatwright brothers holding their catch of rats. Photo by anonymous (January 1940). PD-Expired Copyright. Wikimedia Commons.

The solution was one that likely you and I could easily have figured out sans a convention: poison the rats. That’s when the trouble began. Protestors are against this “inhumane” method of execution (I guess they should not have gotten rid of the guillotine albeit perhaps on a smaller scale to accommodate the rodents’ necks). Instead, they presented their solution to the mayor of the 17th arrondissement (district): rodent birth-control. Once again, I don’t make this stuff up.

Dead rats hanging in the window of Auroze, a specialist in dératisation (rat removal). Photo by Ineke Huizing (2013). PD-CCA 2.0 Generic. Wikimedia Commons.
Dead rats hanging in the window of Auroze, a specialist in dératisation (rat removal). Photo by Ineke Huizing (2013). PD-CCA 2.0 Generic. Wikimedia Commons.

And if reading about the rat infestation isn’t enough, you can watch it here. Read More Paris Therapy Pets

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Church Sanctuary

The old priest at Saint-Quentin was not an important man in the reckoning of the world. His church was small and unimpressive; only a fairly detailed map showed the village of Saint-Quentin, which was south of Tours, in the Indre-et-Loire. His cassock had seen much better days; he had been a fat man, but now the skin hung loosely under his chin. He was a parish priest of no renown, caring quietly and compassionately for his people. His curing of souls was a leisurely affair; he did not display particular zeal. He lived in a wine district and enjoyed a good bottle over which he would ruminate, without anguish, upon the sins and follies of humanity.

Map of the French department known as Indre-et-Loire. Note the dot indicating the location of the village, Saint-Quentin-sur-Indrois. Map illustration by anonymous (date unknown).
Map of the French department known as Indre-et-Loire. Note the dot indicating the location of the village, Saint-Quentin-sur-Indrois. Map illustration by anonymous (date unknown).

Did You Know?

This is a story told by Philippe de Vomécourt (1902−1964) in his book, An Army of Amateurs. It is just one of thousands of stories about nameless men, women, and children who risked their lives to save downed Allied airmen, Jews, and others from the grasp of the Nazis. Although this story took place in France, stories like it were repeated in all of the occupied countries and even those that were considered “neutral.” These brave people knew the ultimate penalty if they were caught but went ahead because it was the right thing to do. Monsieur de Vomécourt was one of the first leaders of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) F Section. He along with his two brothers, Pierre and Jean, established a réseau (network) in three separate territories of France, including Paris. We first met the Vomécourt brothers in our blog about La Chatte (click here to read the blog).

Pierre de Vomécourt. Photo by anonymous (date unknown).
Pierre de Vomécourt. Photo by anonymous (date unknown).
Philippe de Vomécourt. Photo by anonymous (date unknown).
Philippe de Vomécourt. Photo by anonymous (date unknown).

But the accident of war placed the village of Saint-Quentin just on the northern side of the demarcation line (later, the line was to be redrawn, placing Saint-Quentin in the free zone). The German patrols crunched through the streets. And the old cure, who could have lived out his days pottering about his parish, innocent of involvement in the war, saw a duty that he must perform. He must help people to cross the demarcation line, especially those whose lives were in peril. He must help the Jews; he must help escaping prisoners-of-war and airmen who had been shot down, all who were seeking to evade the Germans. Read More Church Sanctuary