The world may be nearing a financial armageddon meltdown, America may be holding one of the most important elections ever that the whole world is waiting for with bated breath, but the French, in a typical display of nuttiness, forget all that and are going ga-ga over their flashy President’s obsession with a voodoo doll. That’s right.

BBC News report says that a French judge threw out President Nicolas Sarkozy’s lawsuit over a voodoo doll in his image. The doll comes with pins which users can stick into memorable quotes from the president printed on the doll, such as “work more to earn more”.  Mr Sarkozy took the makers of the kit - publishing company K&B - to the courts after it went on sale on 9 October. His lawyer said Mr Sarkozy had “exclusive and absolute rights” over his own image.

Interestingly, the article also says that this is Sarkozy’s sixth lawsuit since he became Prez, and that K&B also released a similar doll of Segolene Royal, Mr Sarkozy’s rival in the presidential elections last year. She has decided not to take action against K&B, saying: “I have a sense of humour.”

You can get your Sarkozy voodoo doll here.

And since we’re talking about humor and politics, here’s a way to get some of that political angst out of your system after teh elections. Lighten up your New York vacations at the Fifth Annual New York Comedy Festival (http://nycomedyfestival.com/), which begins Wednesday Nov 5, the day after the elections, and continues on till Nov 9.

The 2008 lineup includes Frank Caliendo, Louis C.K., Craig Ferguson, Carlos Mencia, Joel McHale, Tracy Morgan, B.J. Novak, Brian Regan, Sarah Silverman, and Katt Williams at venues all over the city including Carnegie Hall, Apollo Theater, Avery Fisher Hall, Town Hall, Hammerstein Ballroom, Carolines on Broadway, Paley Center for Media, The UCB Theatre and The Bleecker Street Theatre.

Posted on October 31st, 2008 by Thomas
Filed under: Festivals, News