P. U. to the E. U. France has rejected the constitution of the European Union. Despite the fact that the French government has continually pushed the EU as the organization that rivals the United States, French voters soundly defeated the constitution. President Jacques Chirac immediately began firing his subordinates in a Nixonian shakeup designed to save face with the French people. In other words, he is saying maybe if I fire enough people the voters will think it was their fault not mine, even though I supported it.

The defeat in France is a major blow to the E.U., since France is a big player, at least politically. The value of the Euro began to sink after the vote.

More bad news will follow, as the Netherlands will vote Wednesday. Opposition is even stronger there than in France. Nearly 70 percent of voters turned out to vote, and about 55 percent of French voters opposed the constitution. The French government has long been out of step with its people, as parliament favored the constitution along with the executive branc. Polls showed a fear for jobs and generally being “fed up” with the status quo fueled the "no" vote.

By the way, just in case you want to compare the liberal model with the conservative model, France has a 10 percent unemployment rate.