A Slap in the Face to Sarkozy- French Municipal Elections

About a week ago the French went to the polls once again to elect mayors and local officials. A message of discontent was sent to President Nicolas Sarkozy and his UMP party, and the principle winner was the Socialist Party which had lost the Presidential election to Sarkozy 10 months earlier.

The major issue was diminishing purchasing power (pouvoir d’achat). With rising commodity prices around the world (oil, grains, metals, etc.) the cost of living in most countries is rising. Sarkozy’s strategy is to allow people to work longer hours and earn more money if they wish to. The 35 hour work week introduced by the Socialist Party some years ago limited the amount of time people can work.

Let me emphasize that point for people in countries where one is free to work as long as he/she wishes. It has been illegal to work more than 35 hours in France for a number of years and illegal for employers to pay people for more than that amount of work (there are a few exceptions)- this in a supposedly free country. The law was put in place by the Socialists in order to make more jobs available, that is, where 10 jobs existed before at 40 hours per week, about 11 jobs at 35 hours per week would now take over. Of course this ridiculous effort by the left to simplistically manipulate human activity didn’t work, and the French continued to have about double the unemployment rate of most industrialized countries. Undeterred, the French left continues to claim the 35 hour experiment as a success, claiming they have made “social progress”.

Other issues in the municipal elections defeats no doubt included Sarkozy’s personal style which was typified by an incident at a large agricultural show in Paris recently. A farmer, who was near Sarkozy and whose hand Sarkozy attempted to shake, insulted the President by saying something like “Don’t touch me- you’re dirty”. This provoked Sarkozy’s anger, and in his combative style he returned an insult to the farmer, who no doubt deserved it since he showed no respect for the position of President of his country, even if he doesn’t care for the man. The incident is curious because Sarkozy draws a crowd, and for this person to get so close to him makes one wonder if the incident wasn’t staged. The bait was taken, however, and the incident was caught on video with Sarkozy looking less than “presidential”. Additionally, after being elected Sarkozy seemed to be everywhere, trying to personally resolve almost every issue himself. He was dubbed the “Hyper-President”.

Sarkozy’s personal life may have also been a factor, but the French normally don’t make an issue of such things regarding their elected officials. Sarkozy has been divorced and remarried in the 10 months since he was elected.

After this municipal election setback, Sarkozy has changed some personnel in his cabinet and promised to back off a bit with respect to his personal style. He still intends to move forward with the reforms he promised in his election campaign. It is still early days, as the British say, and Sarkozy has more than 4 years left in his 5 year mandate.

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2008 Michelin Red Guide Released- Only 26 3-Star Restaurants in France

The 2008 Michelin Red Guide was released a couple of days ago. The first restaurant in Marseille to ever be awarded the coveted 3 star award, Le Petit Nice of chef Gérald Passédat was one of only 26 restaurants in France rated at the 3 star level (must be expensive bouilliabaisse). A famous restaurant in Paris, the Grand Véfour, lost one of the three stars it has held for the past eight years. The Grand Véfour has had many famous clients dine there since it was established in 1784.

Rating restaurants is serious business in France. A famous chef appeared to have committed suicide in 2003 after his restaurant was downgraded (not by the Michelin Red Guide but by another well known restaurant guide).

Only 68 other restaurants in France were awarded 2 stars, and 435 rated 1 star this year. If you have ever dined in a restaurant in France rated even 1 star, you know that is a treat. We are looking forward to dining in a 2 star restaurant for two nights later this summer with one of our groups.

The 2008 Michelin Red Guide rated 3,569 restaurants in total. Even those not awarded stars will still be quite good. You can purchase a copy on Amazon, or if you are in France you can pick up one of the guides almost anywhere. Your hotel will probably have a copy as well, so ask if you can have a look. The guide also rates hotels.

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