The World Cup & La Crise Économique

I just have to blog this rant. No pictures, just words.

We just got back from native Parisian Olivier Giraud’s one-man comedy show “How to Become a Parisian in One Hour.” The show is mostly in English, peppered with Olivier’s favorite French expressions (no, I cannot repeat them here!). There were more Parisians in the audience than English-speaking folks. That’s ironic. Parisians going to an English-speaking show to learn how to become Parisian (ou peut-être plus parisien?).  Olivier’s first lesson on how to become a Parisian is to be arrogant because “we are!” And as I’ve blogged before, the French are arrogant. Not “in-your face” arrogant. Sophisticated arrogance. So sophisticated, in fact, that they aren’t even aware of it. It’s a national characteristic. Pas de problème. And so is their irony.

As you know, the French are a world power in football [soccer to us Yanks]. They were actually 8-1 odds on to win the World Cup. Well, they drew with Uruguay [0-0]; lost to Mexico [0-2]; and then went on strike! En grève! Yup, these super-rich, spoiled, superstar elite athletes went en grève. They refused to train, to practice, or to listen to their coach. They even foul-mouthed their coach in the press and the media.

Of course, the French were livid. How could their national team disgrace themselves and the nation by going on strike? The final straw was losing to South Africa [1-2]. South Africa, a team whose only qualification for getting into the final 32 teams of the World Cup was that they were the host nation. In response, the team was sent back to France in steerage. Even Sarkozy demanded that he personally debrief Thierry Henry. The “en grève” French team had to explain itself to the President of France. I would like to have been a fly on the wall of the Palais de l'Elysée that day!

Now, for those of us not living in Europe, the Eurozone is in the crapper. Two year ago, when the US starting bailing out companies and loaning out money via TARP, Europeans were dismissive; we were overreacting. Today, the bankers and financiers are looking longingly across the pond and kicking themselves for not following the US lead.

Sure, we have an $8 trillion national debt but France, Germany, and the UK each have $1+ trillion debt. So now they are tightening their belts, making important budget cuts, and trying to reign in their social security systems. Just like Greece had to raise the retirement age from 55 to 60, the UK is raising the age to 67, Germany to 65, and the French, to the whopping old age of 62.

Needless to say, the French are going ballistic or at least 50 percent of them are. Last Thursday, nearly 50 percent of the country was en grève. Fifty percent! Subways, buses, regional trains, TGV, car factories, manufacturers, airports, pilots, farmers, students, teachers, everyone is on strike. The next morning on the news, François Fillon (France’s Prime Minister), repeated one more time that malheuresement, France can no longer continue to subsidize retirement ages of 60 years with full benefits and pay…

Ok, so here’s the irony. The Eurozone governments are all making the tough decisions to balance their budgets. And their people, for the most part, understand and are going along with the necessary cuts. So while the French national football team has disgraced the nation by going on strike, the French people find no problem in taking it to the streets. Power to the people. We deserve our full retirement at 60 with full benefits. Forget the fact that we only work 35 hours a week. Or that our schooling and medical care is provided for. Or that we get 6 weeks vacation a year plus holidays. And all civil service employees get paid 13 months salary for what I recall, even in France, is still a 12-month year. Spoiled? Pampered? Nope, en grève. Ironic, n’est-ce pas?