My response to Sam Roggeveen yesterday was a bit tongue-in-cheek. So to clear up any misunderstanding, Roggeveen is suggesting that France is an exception to the “Roggeveen Rule,” in that it is a civilian democracy that also exhibits a passion for “Red Square-style” military parades. And I was suggesting that the civilian leadership is indeed firmly in control here, as far as I can tell, but that French political culture has been deeply marked by at least two generals: The modern French state is essentially the product of Napolean Bonaparte, and the Fifth Republic the product of Charles de Gaulle. […]
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