Friendly to the French

In light of my recent negative references to the French- such as linking to Larry's comic evisceration of French military history- I felt a little balancing was in order. If there's anything to which I'm over-partial it's bashing the French; but like any addiction part of the trouble is that there seems to be no alternative: their dreams are idle (EU rivalry to US), their boasts empty (le multi polar world), their actions selfish (Iraq, Rwanda, Mad Cow Disease)- and they always get away still being regarded as sophisticated and charming (see: responses of everyone the world over, as soon as they cool down).

Brett Stephens sets about an apologia for this sorry bunch of... pardon, for the French- and in so doing analyses the overblown rhetoric of the EU.

One point he picks up is a recent hyperbolical publication from the European Council, the big cheese of Euro-affairs. Mark Steyn obviously had discussions with Stephens about this- and I have to say I find his conclusions stronger. Steyn wrote about it ten days ago.

I think Stephens skates over what it means to have a truly selfish foreign policy. In one sense you can envy that; in another I tend to think that what goes around comes around.