# la panique est la chose la mieux partagee



## karmalingua

Hello!

Can anyone please enlighten me?
what is the translation of the above phrase?

Many thanks


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## geve

Hello karmalingua, 

Do you have more context? If this is the whole sentence, I would say that "la mieux partagée" means the most widespread (thing in the universe) => panic is a very common thing...


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## Gil

Peut-être:
Mais la panique est la chose la mieux partagée. Après les oiseaux l’affolement va-t-il se propager jusqu’aux chats ?


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## virtdave

_Nothing is as well-shared as panic._


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## karmalingua

bien sur Geve,

le passage entiere est:

_Alors qu'on est entree en pleine periode de careme, l'eveque de Dax a meme lance hier un appel aux catholiques landais pour qu'ils gardent reaison et continuent a "consommer normalement" le volaille, meme pendant cette periode de 40 jours qui nous separe de Paques, en solidarite avec la filiere avicole. *Mais la panique est la chose la mieux partagee*. Apres les oiseaux l'affolement va-t-il se propager jusqu'aux chats? Selon la SPA allemande des centaines de proprietaires de chats les abondonnent *alors qu'il n'y a pas de quoi fouetter un chat, puisqu'on en a seulement decouvert un seul chat contamine dans une ile allemande de la mer du nord ou passent nombre d'oiseaux migrateurs*!_

This has been taken from an article published in the Nouvel Observateur, 4th March. the parts in bold are the ones I have slight difficulty in perfecting. Please excuse the lack of accents.

Je vous remercie pour vos conseilles!!


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## Gil

Trouvé.  L'expression reprend la citation de Descartes dont j'ai trouvé une traduction:


> Common sense is the most fairly distributed thing in the world, for each one thinks he is so well-endowed with it that even those who are hardest to satisfy in all other matters are not in the habit of desiring more of it than they already have.
> Rene Descartes


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## karmalingua

bien fait mon comarade! that's really excellent.


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## geve

Gil said:
			
		

> Peut-être:
> Mais la panique est la chose la mieux partagée. Après les oiseaux l’affolement va-t-il se propager jusqu’aux chats ?


Comment t'as su ??  Gil-le-Devin...


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## karmalingua

how about translating it as: _But panic is a dish best shared,_  in keeping with the idea of eating?


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## DearPrudence

_*



... alors qu'il n'y a pas de quoi fouetter un chat, puisqu'on en a seulement decouvert un seul chat contamine dans une ile allemande de la mer du nord ou passent nombre d'oiseaux migrateurs!

Click to expand...

*_ 
I just wonder how you would translate: 
'il n'y a pas de quoi fouetter un chat': *'it's no big deal/it's not that important'*?

désolée, je m'éloigne un peu du sujet, là.


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## karmalingua

After the birds, will the panic spread to involve cats? According to the German SPA, hundreds of cat owners are abandoning their pets while there are no other fish to fry, since its only one cat that has been discovered contaminated on a German North Sea isle through many migratory birds pass!
 
is the best i can come up with myself without answering my own question!!


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## karmalingua

*'through which many migratory birds pass', sorry


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## karmalingua

ok i'm here now, if anyone would like to offer their opinion!

But panic is a dish best shared. After the birds, will the panic spread to involve cats? According to the German SPA, hundreds of cat owners having no other fish to fry are abandoning their pets, since there is only one cat that has been discovered contaminated on a German North Sea isle through which many migratory birds pass!


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## DearPrudence

Not really satisfied with your *'other fish to fry'* = 'avoir d'autres chats à fouetter'.
But here it's: 'il n'y a pas de quoi fouetter un chat'
So my try was
'il n'y a pas de quoi fouetter un chat': *'it's no big deal/it's not that important'*?


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## karmalingua

thanks prudence, I see my mistake now.
though i'm wondering how i could translate the entire passage?

could it be more like:
According to the German SPA, hundreds of cat owners are abandoning their pets, while it is no big deal since there is only one cat that has been discovered contaminated on a German North Sea isle through which many migratory birds pass!


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## paulvial

karmalingua said:
			
		

> ok i'm here now, if anyone would like to offer their opinion!
> i think it is ok but would amend slightly as follows :
> 
> But panic is a dish best shared. After the birds, *will the panic spread to cats*? According to the German SPA, hundreds of cat owners having no other fish to fry are abandoning their pets, *even though* only one cat that has been discovered contaminated on a German North Sea isle through which many migratory birds pass!


(though i am not sure about "panic is a dish best shared"  and of course i was not sure about the french to start with 
looking at the context , i thought something like "panic is contagious" would suit better , but anyway ....


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## DearPrudence

> According to the German SPA, hundreds of cat owners are abandoning their pets, while it is no big deal since there is only one cat that has been discovered contaminated on a German North Sea isle through which many migratory birds pass!


​ 
Well, it's seems very fine to me. The only problem is that obviouly in the French version you have a play on words with '*chat*' but your translation conveys the meaning.


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## karmalingua

thank you both so much for casting an eye over this... it's a bit tricky as you can see!


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## karmalingua

what is the play on words with _chat_?
is it in the phrase _fouetter un chat_? thanks again


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## DearPrudence

karmalingua said:
			
		

> what is the play on words with _chat_?
> is it in the phrase _fouetter un chat_? thanks again


 
Yes, exactly. They used this expression just to do (?) this play on words (that's what I would say).


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## karmalingua

you're fantastic, thank you for all your help!

(they used this expression  purely to produce a 'pun')


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## paulvial

IL N'Y  A PAS DE QUOI FOUETTER UN CHAT  = ITS NO BIG DEAL  
its a play on word in this sentence, because the SPA reported that hundred of people abandonned their cats even though only one cat was actually affected in spite of a vast number of migrating birds passing over ..
there are many other expressions using cats with different meanings such as "avoir d'autres chats à fouetter = to have other things to do   or appeler un chat un chat = to call a spade a spade   to just name a few


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## geve

You'll find a lot more expressions with cats in the Themed list on Animals


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## danielle_davout

Et bien moi, j'appelle un chat un chat 
 ce texte est très mal écrit !
et c'est ce qui le rend  difficile à traduire

_*Mais la panique est la chose la mieux partagée*.
_la panique ne se partage pas, elle se propage, elle est contagieuse, ...
_
Apres les oiseaux l'affolement va-t-il se propager jusqu'aux chats? 
_est-ce de l'humour ?  ce n'est bien entendu pas les oiseaux qui s'affolent ..._

Selon la SPA allemande des centaines de proprietaires de chats les abondonnent *alors qu'il n'y a pas de quoi fouetter un chat, puisqu'on en *____*a seulement *____* decouvert un seul chat contamine dans une ile allemande de la mer du nord ou passent nombre d'oiseaux migrateurs*! :
puisqu'on a en a trouvé un
puisqu'on a trouvé un chat
mais pas puisqu'on en a trouvé un chat __
répétition de seul -seulement 
__*passent nombre d'oiseaux migrateurs*! : différence de style avec __*il n'y a pas de quoi fouetter un chat (*_humour potache ...)

on a eu droit à 
_*il n'y a pas de quoi fouetter un chat (*_It's nothing to make a fuss about ?)
il nous a fait grâce de 
"appeler un chat un chat" (to call a spade a spade ?)
il n'y avait pas _un chat (_There wasn't a soul!)
_...
(voir _*French       terms and expressions containing the word "chat"*_)
_


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## danielle_davout

karmalingua said:
			
		

> they used this expression  purely to produce a 'pun')


exactement !


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## karmalingua

ok mes anges this is where I am at now in my understanding!

But panic is the most contagious disease of the moment. After the birds, will the panic spread to cats? According to the German SPA, hundreds of cat owners are abandoning their pets despite there being nothing to make a fuss about since only one cat has been discovered contaminated on a German North Sea isle even though a vast number of migratory birds pass over!


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## DearPrudence

It seems fine to me except for the last sentence:
*dans une ile allemande de la mer du nord où passent nombre d'oiseaux migrateurs*! is different from:
on a German North Sea isle even though a vast number of migratory birds pass over!


Your other translation was right I think:




> on a German North Sea isle through which many migratory birds pass!


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## karmalingua

th\ank you once more


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## danielle_davout

Plus dans le style ?

Will the contagion put the cat among pigeons? 
 According to the German SPA, hundreds of cat owners are abandoning their pets without waiting the cat to jump after all only one cat has been discovered contaminated on a German North Sea isle even though a vast number of migratory birds pass over!


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## geve

Shouldn't we also translate "SPA"? Since obviously the journalist translated the name of the German organization into the name of the French one... What's the name of the British association?


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## danielle_davout

danielle_davout said:
			
		

> Plus dans le style ?
> 
> Will the contagion put the cat among pigeons?
> According to the German SPA, hundreds of cat owners are abandoning their pets* without waiting the cat to jump *after all only one cat has been discovered contaminated on a German North Sea isle even though a vast number of migratory birds pass over!


 personne n'a trouvé ça drôle !


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## danielle_davout

geve said:
			
		

> Shouldn't we also translate "SPA"? Since obviously the journalist translated the name of the German organization into the name of the French one... What's the name of the British association?


 
										 									RSPCA 									*Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals*


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## geve

So we'd have to say "the German RSPCA" then?

Danielle, je ne connaissais pas l'expression "waiting the cat to jump", je devine que ça veut dire quelque chose comme "sans attendre que l'affaire éclate" ?
En tout cas, en effet, c'est beaucoup plus dans le style !  
Ne faudrait-il pas dire "waiting for the cat to jump" ?


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## danielle_davout

enfin un connaisseur !
ma source:
*see which way the cat jumps*, also *wait for the cat to jump*, also *find out which way the cat has jumped*(v) :to see/find out what or how the other people are doing or thinking esp. before making a decision or a plan.


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## danielle_davout

geve said:
			
		

> So we'd have to say "the German RSPCA" then?


 il y a le mot Royal, c'est gênant !
I would say
the German Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Tierschutzverein)
or the German SPCA ( if it is still remembered 
that the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was founded  as the SPCA )


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## geve

Je n'avais même pas vu "put the cat among pigeons" !!   
Je crois qu'il faut que je change de lunettes...  

Le mot "royal" ne me gêne pas, il me semble que ce qui est important est que le lecteur comprenne immédiatement de quel type d'organisation on parle. Si le sigle RSPCA est aussi connu en anglais que la SPA en français, ça me paraît donc faire l'affaire...


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## karmalingua

thanks so much for the 'to put the cat among the pigeons', I think that works perfectly in terms of bith sense and the imagery of the pun!


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