Apparently Someone Noticed I Exist...

It was bound to happen sometime, I guess.

Anyway, Torie Bosch included my March 19th entry on France and the ongoing CPE crisis in a roundup of blog stories. While it's nice to be noticed, it's a bit less nice to be misconstrued.

Here's the relevant excerpt from her post:

Conservative bloggers are mocking the students for what they see as another case of French laziness. At the opposite-of-Francophile Libertyblog, the editor scoffs that the students are "defend[ing] their right to be half-assed workers." On The Inebriated Arsonist, the blogger, a "semi-employed Pennsylvanian Libertarian Republican" is confused about the fuss. He believes that the new laws are necessary. "I don't understand how the CPE could be a barrier to employment. If anything, the CPE will reduce potential liability costs for buying unnecessary labor and encourage employers to risk hiring new workers," he conjectures.

I didn't remember actually mocking the students for laziness, so I read over my entry a few times. At no point did I even use the word "lazy," much less state that the students were a slothful bunch who wouldn't get out of bed if the sheets were on fire. In fact, I even stated outright that the majority of students were peaceful, and that a small minority of idiots were responsible for the mayhem. Not the most mocking of sentiments, I think.

Secondly, I wasn't confused with the French protester's grasp of social policy (I know damn well that the French have quite the cultural attachment to vast protections against unemployment, come hell or high water) so much as I questioned the apparent ignorance of simple economic principles. One of the protesters quoted in the BBC article believed that the CPE would act as a barrier to employment, an assertion that I and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development cannot agree with.

Feel free to quote me all you wish, Ms. Bosch, just strive a little harder for accuracy, please.