strange exchange

the english are moving to france to escape the nhs and "chav britain"; the french are moving to england to escape labour laws which are as supple as a sarcophagus.

welcome back

after a shameful period of collaboration under dominic de villepin, it was nice to hear bernard kouchner tell iran it would be bombed if it didn't abandon it's nuclear weapons program. soul-warming stuff. france, it seems, has finally rejoined the west. happy days.

inside the hexagon

although french political culture is unhinged, like something out of "alice in wonderland" (those working in the quai d'orsay and writing for "le monde diplomatique" are, clinically speaking, crazy), watching le tour de france reminds me of a more enduring fact:

france
is
gorgeous.

more of the same, please

you're crazy
if you think sarkozy
will change anything.

although france is famous for elastic morals and easy amours, politcially and economically it is the most inflexible country on earth. the riots and demonstrations are only hours away. france remains an ancien régime.