The undemocratic nature of French society.

Let's just think for a minute about how France could be transformed into a dynamic, modern, democratic nation, open to the world. The key lies in the third term: democracy. As an American living in France for over three decades I have slowly become aware of the undemocratic nature of French society . . . and I think this is true of Europe as a whole, in differing degrees. We are ruled by a pitiful élite, mediocre men and women sitting in palatial offices, shuffling papers, prancing and prattling. They don't take care of business. But they do accumulate and abuse power.

Nidra Poller quoted in "Symposium: The Death of France ." By Jamie Glazov, Front Page Magazine, 12/9/05 (ellipsis in original).