Thursday, February 06, 2003

[Colin Glassey] The Rational Self-Interested French Government Here is a good essay by Mark Steyn of the National Post in which he argues that French foreign policy is quite rational. Here are the closing paragraphs: Meanwhile, the peacenik predisposition of the other Continentals is a useful cover for French ambition. Last year Paavo Lipponen, the Finnish Prime Minister, declared that "the EU must not develop into a military superpower but must become a great power that will not take up arms at any occasion in order to defend its own interests." This sounds insane. But, to France, it has a compelling logic. You can't beat the Americans on the battlefield, but you can tie them down limb by limb in the UN and other supranational bodies. In other words, this is the war, this is the real battlefield, not the sands of Mesopotamia. And, on this terrain, Americans always lose. Either they win but get no credit, as in Afghanistan. Or they win a temporary constrained victory to be subverted by subsequent French machinations, as in the last Gulf War. This time round, who knows? But through it all France is admirably upfront in its unilateralism: It reserves the right to treat French Africa as its colonies, Middle Eastern dictators as its clients, the European Union as a Greater France and the UN as a kind of global condom to prevent the spread of Americanization. All this it does shamelessly and relatively effectively. It's time the rest of the West was so clear-sighted. I'm a bit pleased by this analysis. At least it suggests the French aren't mere cowards. Their government is (under this analyis) amoral and self-rightous but at least there is some reason behind their behavior. However, it is quite clear they are NOT our ally. Such is life. 1:01:17 PM     [Colin Glassey] Greg Benford on the Future of NASA Benford is a member in the group of "Science Fiction writer shuttle opponents". Here is his latest comment on called Beyond the Shuttle. I agree with him in every respect. BTW: Greg has been writing some nice SF over the last decade. I enjoyed Eater and Cosm a great deal. 12:52:30 PM

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