The current French President Nicholas Sarkozy has been responsible for a number of uncharacteristic outbursts over the past few weeks that appear to have resulted in some sort of a split between France and Germany - the two biggest economies within the EU.It is one thing to tell David Cameron that he had ‘missed a good opportunity to shut up’ but the reality of the matter is far worse than that.
The meeting that had taken place on Sunday that was supposed to find some sort of a solution to the current Eurozone crisis but apparently, that had finished two hours later than scheduled because of the French President’s protracted performance.
That is one reason why David Cameron should not take Mr Sarkozy’s rudeness unnecessarily personally. The stewards of the Eurozone crisis have proved themselves reflexively hostile to any outside commentary on their dismal efforts for some time.
His outburst is only one in a recent string of frankly bizarre Sarkozy moments
When US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geither travelled to Europe recently for one such meeting he was treated more or less as a dinner party guest who’d been invited by accident and was meant to know it.
More latterly European leaders have begun exploring ways of neutering the financial ratings agencies who have been understandably downgrading sovereign debt around the continent, something Irish-based economist Constantine Gurdgiev aptly described as being akin to dealing with an impending airplane crash by smashing the cockpit warning lights.
Or as the Open Europe think-tank remarked, ‘if Sarkozy snapped at everyone who criticised the handling of the crisis we'd imagine he wouldn't have too many people to talk to’.
What is new is that the critics can no longer be dismissed as traditional European naysayers and Nicholas Sarkozy’s increasingly erratic behaviour is a large cause of deepening doubt within the Euro-federalist citadels.
French journalist Jean Quatremer has likened the spectacle to ‘that cartoon where Wile E. Coyote chases Road Runner: it continues to run above the vacuum and it’s only when it realises it, that it will fall down’.
Most unnervingly for votaries of the single-currency are Mr Sarkozy’s willingness to be downright rude not only to a British Prime Minister but also to the people who are supposed to be at least notionally sympathetic.
Representatives for the French President and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have been furiously feeding biddable journalists with accounts of the close cooperation of the two leaders and their shared resolve in arresting the continent’s decline into fiscal delinquency.
The truth is that relations between the pair are close to an all-time low. That it is saying something given the longstanding friction between their very different personalities, but it is hard to avoid the conclusion that the latest rift is almost entirely Mr Sarkozy’s fault.
Recently a father for the fourth-time, by his third wife, the musician-cum-humanitarian Carla Bruni, Mr Sarkozy was presented by the German Chancellor on Sunday with a gift of a teddy bear as a present for this newborn daughter.
Therefore, it was perhaps understandable that the latter was surprised to hear Sarkozy loudly and uncharitably commenting on the quantity of cheese Chancellor Merkel consumed at one of the conference dinners.
Insiders report that a stand-up row between the two at a retirement party for European Central Bank head Jean-Claude Trichet was so loud that it drowned out the so-called EU national anthem, a spectacle that might serve as a suitably tragi-comic summation of the current state of the European project. (The unfortunate Merkel may be getting used to her counterparts commenting on the progress of her diet – Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi was recorded last year making far worse comments, on a wire-tap, naturally.)
German irritation with the French President has also been fuelled by his lack of interest in the considerable problem that part of his proposed solutions to the crisis are downright illegal on the basis of existing EU treaties.
Then there are those who are running end times sites that have been suggesting that if he is not the Antichrist, then he is certainly preparing the way for the emergence of the Antichrist, as if they would know anyway.
I am not too sure just where they had gotten some of their ideas from, perhaps it may have something to do with Sarkozy being on the rather short side - the little horn of Daniel idea, or the fact of his being Jewish, but who really knows the mindsets of some of these people.
However, with the latest developments relating to Sarkozy these sorts of ideas seem to be just as wild and fanciful as those who are saying them. Nonetheless, these are exactly the same people who are constantly rubbishing and denigrating the Catholic Church because they had suggested a World Government, as if there has been no one else who has suggested this over the past few years or so when the facts of the matter are there are numerous others who fit into this category also.
It seems to be a fair enough sort of a view to mention the Catholic Church on occasions for what it really is, that being the Whore of Babylon mentioned in the book of Revelations. Unfortunately, for the sake of the reputation of the better blog spots there are some who claim to be running end times websites that have nothing better to do with their time other than to rubbish and denigrate the Catholic Church without ceasing.
That seems to be the case, even though it seems those who are doing this are not exactly without a plank in their own eyes to begin with, meaning that the churches they attend themselves are less than perfect. To them I would say it may be better if they were to take the plank out of their own eyes before they begin to attack other groups in the manner that they are.
These are the same ones who have been saying that Sarkozy is the Beast of Revelation but if that were the case would we then expect him to carry on in the manner that he has been over the past few days or so. Instead, we would expect him instead to start that type of behavior after we were sure of just who he was, say for example after the signing of the covenant of Daniel.
