A Sad Requiem for France
 

France is slowly fading away.

This dire situation is sad, but clearly predicable. Unless France counters two dangerous trends - low birthrates and meager economic growth - domestic discontent will continue to rise and global power will continue to decline.

France becomes less visible each day; overshadowed by Asia and the United States.

France’s population is not replacing it self and its also becoming more older. How well France fare with so many elderly people, heavily dependent on government benefits?

France’s way of life is threatened. Higher immigration is one possible solution to low birthrates , but many in France don't like the immigrants they have, mostly Muslims from North Africa, and don't want more. You could revive economic growth by reducing social benefits, taxes and regulations, but that is unlikely given the rabid response of the unions and students of late.

Cradle to grave social welfare requires a strong economy, but the high taxes, stiff regulations that provide for this security, weaken the economy. An aging population will only make the situation worse.

France is immobilized by its dire situation. Simply put - too many people benefit from the status quo to change it; but the status quo isn't sustainable. Frenchmen live in a state of delusion and believe change is menacing. The sun is setting slowly on France, and perhaps much of Old Europe. Unwilling to address their due situation, all they can do is be reflexively critical and rant about America.

This might fool some Frenchmen into thinking they are an active player on the world stage, but they are only sadly acquiescing in their own ultimate demise.

Sad for France. Sad for the USA. Sad for the World.

Let us hope Eastern Europe will learn from all this and pick up the mantle of leadership and economic vitality in the future.

Well, France is obviously doomed.
One great advantage they possess is an excellent education system.
This means that even the "more younger" of them are able to write in their own language without making elementary spelling and grammatical errors.
That in "it self" is a great advantage.

France has been slowly fading away since 1815. At least part of their inability to adapt to the modern world is the result of the Napoleonic Code, the Byzantine legacy left by that wretched Italian who ruined the country with his megomaniacal military adventures.

From the excesses of monarchy to the revolution and terror, Napoleon, the Commune - they just don't seem to focus.

oldie, thank you for letting us know that young French people never make common grammatical errors. That comes as a complete surprise to me -- and also to my mature French friends who rant about the lack of basic language skills among their youth even more than their US counterparts.

Surely there is a more appropriate forum for your political views on France than the Fodors > travel < message board. Hmmm......

I thought it was Germany who had these problems....???

Not to mention the inaccurate history:

A year before Napoleon Bonaparte was born at Ajaccio in Corsica, the island had been sold by Genoa to France's Louis XV.

Hey, Cato, if you want to get really maudlin, you could probably expound on “A Sad Requiem for the United States.” Before our present oligarchy, we used to have something at least straining toward a democracy around here.

As for grammatical errors, no one is more deeply committed to them than our clueless “leader” in the White House.

Ok, ok, I guess it simply has to be done. It's a tough job, but somebody's . . .

I volunteer to become French. To, you know, swell the population by one. It's a sacrifice, but I'm prepared to make it.

Can someone point me to my French apartment please?

s

Oh Oh
I think there was a tear in the fabric of the time/space continunim. Either that or theres a full moon :)

ok im confused....when did France acquire the Bahamas?

"Not to mention the inaccurate history:

A year before Napoleon Bonaparte was born at Ajaccio in Corsica, the island had been sold by Genoa to France's Louis XV."

That hardly makes him French in anything but nationality. By birth and upbringing, he was Italian to the core.

I doubt that any Corsican nationalist would consider himself Italian:

"An important figure in Corsican history is Pasquale Paoli (1725-1807), the Corsican general and patriot who struggled for Corsican independence, first against Genoa, then against France."

Well, I've never gotten over the fact that when we viewed the amazing fireworks at Ajaccio on Bastille Day that they were nearly all red, white, and green. That must mean something?

Precisely. Case closed.

>I thought it was Germany
No, we just want to make sure everybody finds us as unattractive as possible. Makes life a lot easier;-) As every good salesperson should know: "If you don't complain about how bad business is going, something's wrong!"

The Dutch would have red, white and blue fireworks, and that would make them neither American nor French.

I do nor rejoice in France’s terrible woes. My heart aches for it’s sad decline.

I call on all Frenchmen to wake up before it’s too late. Be brave and bold as in past years.

Be smart enough to cast aside the crutch of big government and an outdated welfare state that promises the moon and then eventually collapses.

Seize the moment. Enact change before the lights dim further across a great land. Give your disgruntled youth a chance to work and be productive.

Egad, Cato.

What an awful future.

Remember the Danish Empire? British Empire? Dutch Empire? Belgian Empire? Russian Empire? Soviet Union?
German Empire? Austro-Hungarian Empire? Yugoslavia? Czechoslovakia? Spanish Empire? Portugese Empire?

Change doesn't necessarily lead to destruction.

((I))

Cato, I also fear for my beloved France!

A wake call is in order even if it is not popular to point it out. Sometimes it is hard to admit the real truth about people and things you love dearly.

I hope you are not right in your predictions, but I'm not encouraged by the negative trends of the past decade.

Let us pray that things change sooner rather than later.