Win Some, Lose Some

NRO’s Corner reports that Chirac’s victory
still doesn’t mean that the French Left are out of the woods yet. With the confidence
in the Left declining, the Le Pen fiasco is just one symptom of a larger problem
for the European Left. Their attempts at social engineering, their inability to deal
with the problems of their respective countries, and their elitism has led to a major
crisis of confidence in many European governments. Unfortunately the far right
has taken the vacuum rather than more center-right parties. (With the notable
exception of Silvio Burlesconi’s Forza Italia.) Perhaps the loss of Le Pen
will bring about a renewal of center-right parties who can deliver the needed
Thatcheresque reforms before Europe collapses under the weight of the
welfare state.