Chirac folds, protests and riot police still meet

How predictable was this? I was nearly run over last night by bus loads of riot police heading to put out an event, one of many around town last night after Chirac signed into law the new employment program that reduces traditional job protections for those under 26 years old. He immediately told the nation that he was toning down a few aspects of the new law but of course, the protests still happened.

So, that's politics in France. An inability to govern with an ounce of creativity coupled with street protests that will continuously dictate policy and the classic government collapse in the face of opposition. It's always the same process over and over and over. Change comes in small pieces at the slowest pace imaginable. Of course, sometimes there are distinct benefits to a government that does nothing...think Iraq.