Villepin Nothing like Waterloo

Dominique de Villepin’s 100 days are up. The French prime minister gave himself this deadline to «restore the French people’s confidence». It was a grandiose and vague ambition. But then de Villepin has always admired the grand spirit of Napoleon’s last stand, despite its end in defeat at Waterloo. The de Villepin record has nothing grand about it. Even by the modest standards of contemporary politics, it is at best acceptable. The crucial «battle for employment» could not be won or lost in a m...