Sorry France, We’re a Little Busy Over Here…..

I know that our government rolled out a stimulus package and that several businesses have taken advantage of it; unfortunately we’re still running a little behind one of our European counterparts, France. We did have a new administration to put into place and Vice-President Biden admitted that they read the economy wrong. So now we have to catch up and turn things around. The New York Time’s cover story regarding France’s stimulus packages showed a picture of a man repairing a column on the Grand Commun near the Palace of Versailles. The article stated that French workers who are accustomed to taking the summer off will be working to keep French chateaus, cathedrals and museums in good repair – we must not disappoint the tourists! Correct me if I’m wrong, but don’t people still flock to the Coliseum in Rome? It’s still a ruin, right? I heard there’s a tower in Pisa that isn’t even standing upright and people visit it year ‘round! Those crazy Italians are just so gimmicky!

One of French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s advisors, a Mr. Devedjian, stated that the US is six-month’s behind in doling out the monies from our stimulus package. Hmm, let me think what we were doing six months ago, oh yes, replacing a President, forming a new administration and still keeping an eye on the rest of the world in case they got into trouble and needed us to DO SOMETHING! Uh huh. Thanks for giving us a minute to catch our breath. We are using our stimulus packages for saving as many of the little guys as possible, the ones that have been in business for years, have paid their taxes religiously; the ones that have served the people in their community. And yes, we’ve been trying to save our automakers too. We have directed money away from those places that are less crucial in today’s world, libraries (unfortunately, but people don’t need them the way they used to), museums and less needed city services (many communities had no fireworks this year) to name a few.

The thing about European countries like France is that there aren’t so many small businesses. There are artisans, to be sure, but by and large Europe counts on tourists. Repairs on their major sightseeing stops is compulsory to keep their nations’ coffers filled. We, on the other hand, have always been the work horse population of the world. No other country’s inhabitants work as hard as Americans work. So forgive us if our priorities are slightly different. You, dear France, must roll your stimulus monies out now to get your country’s attractions in place for the tourists. Excuse us, if we take our time to try to fix some of the underlying problems that caused this mess in the first place and save people’s long-term livelihoods. We don’t need to repair the aesthetics of it. It is what it is.

gloria