FLASH from the International Herald Tribune reports on the theme of French declinism on current French bestseller lists. "The books, with titles that translate to phrases like 'France in Free Fall' or 'French Arrogance,' are merciless in their accusations of the fantasy-driven ineffectualness of French foreign policy and the extent of the country's economic breakdown." One is "essentially a short essay, called 'Au Nom de l'Autre' by Alain Finkielkraut, contends is the rise in France of a new kind of anti-Semitism in proportions greater than anywhere else in Europe." It seems even the French are now more aware of the latter than a certain segment here. "Together, they project the image of a decadent France, adrift from its brilliant past, incapable of inspiring allegiance or emulation and without a constructive, humanist plan for the future." Nuff said. --Orson http://www.iht.com/cgi-bin/generic.cgi?template=articleprint.tmplh&ArticleId=112118
Orson, this highlights my major problem with your rhetoric; by the standards of your old posts, this could be headlined with "The French Criticize the French on Charge of Antisemitism." I never said that none of the French people are antisemitic, or even that antisemitism is not more of a problem in France than it is here (I argued that it was in another thread even before you brought up the subject); my argument was with your blanket claim that "the French" and/or "the French Left" are antisemitic. Cheers,
