Time for this frog to croak
This week's Observer served up a familiar doom and gloom analysis about the state of France. This is no longer news - what interests me is who can say when exactly this country is going to breathe its last, and when can we expect the horsemen of the Apocalypse to thunder up the Champs Elysées. I love a good show, and I got bored of the tanks on July 14th years ago.
The demise of France has been predicted for so long that it beats me what we're all still doing here, waking up in the morning and boldly going about our business. I'm surprised that the horsemen are not already among us and cantering aimlessly around the streets. Maybe if they were offered half-price refrigerators they might be tempted to settle here.
Indeed, I have come to the conclusion that the reason why France has not yet gone down the pan is because the system favours just enough people to keep it afloat. Why else do the French put up with their politicians? The government repays the people by abandoning reforms again and again. They have no choice. Take away the trough and you have anarchy.
Chirac understands this. But it still amazes me how he has managed to build a 40-year career on what seems to be little more than insincere charm. To me he is the epitome of the slippery Frenchman who you can't trust as far as you can throw, and he is a terrible ambassador for his country for that reason. Take the shameless way that he created a diversion about Britain's EU rebate to distract from the French voting 'no' to the EU constitution, almost bringing down the whole house of cards to save his own skin. Blair shouldn't have been surprised. I shouted that at the telly, but poor Tony couldn't hear me, blinking back tears at his press conference.
Chirac is an old man with no vision whatever. If he had, he would have done something after the 2002 election which he was forced to run against the extreme-right Le Pen. I saw the horror and sense of humiliation that the French felt then, and I honestly thought that was a turning point - now things will start to change. But a few months after the old weasel was reelected it was as if nothing had happened. As far as I'm concerned the French have had enough wake-up calls - if they still don't want to change, tackle the suburbs, reform the job market, then they deserve a bumpy landing. By then I'll be safely back on the other side of the Channel.
Mr Chirac - it's time to croak - in the political sense at least. After, le deluge, as they say.
The demise of France has been predicted for so long that it beats me what we're all still doing here, waking up in the morning and boldly going about our business. I'm surprised that the horsemen are not already among us and cantering aimlessly around the streets. Maybe if they were offered half-price refrigerators they might be tempted to settle here.
Indeed, I have come to the conclusion that the reason why France has not yet gone down the pan is because the system favours just enough people to keep it afloat. Why else do the French put up with their politicians? The government repays the people by abandoning reforms again and again. They have no choice. Take away the trough and you have anarchy.
Chirac understands this. But it still amazes me how he has managed to build a 40-year career on what seems to be little more than insincere charm. To me he is the epitome of the slippery Frenchman who you can't trust as far as you can throw, and he is a terrible ambassador for his country for that reason. Take the shameless way that he created a diversion about Britain's EU rebate to distract from the French voting 'no' to the EU constitution, almost bringing down the whole house of cards to save his own skin. Blair shouldn't have been surprised. I shouted that at the telly, but poor Tony couldn't hear me, blinking back tears at his press conference.
Chirac is an old man with no vision whatever. If he had, he would have done something after the 2002 election which he was forced to run against the extreme-right Le Pen. I saw the horror and sense of humiliation that the French felt then, and I honestly thought that was a turning point - now things will start to change. But a few months after the old weasel was reelected it was as if nothing had happened. As far as I'm concerned the French have had enough wake-up calls - if they still don't want to change, tackle the suburbs, reform the job market, then they deserve a bumpy landing. By then I'll be safely back on the other side of the Channel.
Mr Chirac - it's time to croak - in the political sense at least. After, le deluge, as they say.
posted by francesca tereshkova | 5:54 AM
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