Steven Den Beste discusses the recent emissions from Euroland:
The rhetoric just keeps getting stranger and stranger. I think there really must be something wrong with the water in Europe; have they all gone collectively insane over there?And:
Of course, that was like a red flag in front of a bull; to actually suggest that France and Germany are decadent, self-absorbed, decrepit, pretentious has-beens is simply intolerable.Even though it's true.
And:
France is on its, what, fifth republic since then? Something like that? (And we're still working on our first. I guess we're falling behind.)
Meanwhile, Andrew Stuttaford pens (well, keys) these great lines:
That's just another reminder that, when it comes to really trying to secure the peace, most of today’s European leaders manage to blend the humility of Marie Antoinette with the statecraft of Neville Chamberlain. They are all about words, nothing about deeds.
On Winds of Change, Trent Telenko reports that France is dead.
Vodkaman Stephen Green also discusses the decline of France, and assigns partial blame:
What the hell went wrong? Frankly, I think it’s partly our fault.If you’re going to learn from your mistakes, they really ought to hurt. Drink too much, and you’ll spend the wee hours discovering what bathroom tile feels like on your knees, and become entirely too familiar with the inside of your buddy Brien Ferguson’s toilet bowl. Come morning, you’re stuck between the competing desires to chew aspirin or take a Brill-O pad to your tongue. Lesson learned – don’t mix six White Russians with a cocktail tray full of Zombies.
France has been overindulging for over half a century now, and we’ve been the overly-helpful friends, holding their hair while they puke and making them Bloody Marys the next morning.
You’re broke after losing to the Germans? Buddy, we can spare a few billion dimes. Can’t get a handle on those Viet Cong, old friend? Let us step in for you. Nasty Soviets? We’ll man the Fulda Gap. You don’t want NATO headquartered in Paris anymore? No biggie, there’s always Brussels. Islamofascists are threatening all of Western Civilization? You can try paying them off, but we’re happy to do the dirty work when that fails.
Finally, the CounterRevolutionary and Jessica's Well have created topical graphics.
Update: I forgot to include this hilarious post by Bigwig, "Hoist by Their Own Petain."
The modern Vichian motto might as well be ignorez, retarde, apaisez. Ignore, delay and appease describe the French character as well as anything else, excepts perhaps "Unions, Vacations and Occasional Showers!".
Update the update: ScrappleFace archnemesis Frank J. of IMAO prefers the Axis of Assclowns to the "Axis of Weasels":
I don't see why France and Germany can't be just like one of those African nations I’ve never heard of either.Posted by oscarjr at January 25, 2003 02:46 PM | TrackBackAnd, maybe we can forget about Canada while we're at it, though we'll probably need a moat first or something.
