As the world community gets smaller, the importance of things happening abroad grow. A very important thing happened this past weekend: an adult was elected to lead France.
Now I enjoy calling the French surrender monkeys as much as the next bloke, but there are two things to keep in mind. The first is the the common Frenchman is no more like the French politician as I am like Harry Reid. So while I agree that Chirac "est un Ver" I don't attribute his failings to the common Frenchman.
Second, we need a strong and vital France as much as we need a strong and vital England, Australia, Germany, Japan, Canada, Mexico...you get my drift. To a certain extent, it is MORE important. The French have had a nasty habit of dealing with unsavory regimes and going around the US and UN sanctions. Why? $$$$ A vibrant economy will take some pressure off of the French multi-nationals to make deal with such regimes simply for the money.
The problems the French face are tough, but not insurmountable. The solutions require the nation to take some risks, but Sarkozy seems to have been very up front about that and still won walking away. But if he can break the unions, revive the economy and give the French a boost of confidence, France can be a formitable player on the international stage. With the Brits flagging, Germany content and Japan tied up with North Korea, the US needs that right now.
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