The Failure of the French Way of Life

Read this commentary entitled Liberty, Equality, Mediocrity by Charles Krauthammer. Krauthammer perfectly analyzes and explains the current French unrest/riots and the root causes. Here’s a bit of it:

And now, in a new act of revolutionary creativity, the French are at it again. Millions of young people and trade unionists, joined by some underclass opportunists looking for a good night out, have taken to the streets again. To rise up against what? In massive protest against a law that would allow employers to fire an employee less than 26 years old in the first two years of his contract.

That’s a very long way from liberty, equality, fraternity. The spirit of this revolution is embodied most perfectly in the slogan on many placards: CONTRE LA PRÉCARITÉ, or “Against Precariousness.” The precariousness of being subject to being fired. The precariousness of the untenured life, even if the work is boring and the boss no longer wants you. And ultimately, the precariousness of life itself, any weakening of the government guarantee of safety, conformity, regularity.

That is something very new. And it is not just a long way from the ideals of 1789. It is the very antithesis. It represents an escape from freedom, a demand for an arbitrary powerful state in whose bosom you can settle for life.

I wonder what lessons America can learn from the complete failure of the French way of life? Read the whole thing.

Hat tip Instapundit.

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