France is the country that produced the Enlightenment, Descartes\u2019s one-liner, \u201cI think, therefore I am,\u201d\u009d and the solemn pontifications of Jean-Paul Sartre and other celebrity philosophers.<\/p>\n
But in the government of President Nicolas Sarkozy, thinking has lost its cachet.<\/p>\n
In proposing a tax-cut law last week, Finance Minister Christine Lagarde bluntly advised the French people to abandon their \u201cold national habit.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
\u201cFrance is a country that thinks,\u201d\u009d she told the National Assembly. \u201cThere is hardly an ideology that we haven\u2019t turned into a theory. We have in our libraries enough to talk about for centuries to come. This is why I would like to tell you: Enough thinking, already. Roll up your sleeves.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
Citing Alexis de Tocqueville\u2019s \u201cDemocracy in America,\u201d\u009d she said the French should work harder, earn more and be rewarded with lower taxes if they get rich.<\/p>\n