George,

I'm curious to know if the hatred for the French is somethiing that's being drummed up by the neo-conservative thought police or if the average American really does have a strong dislike for France.

I heard one New Yorker comment to a French reporter, rather ignorantly in my opinion, that if something similar to Sept. 11th had happened in France, then France would have supported hte US in their "police action" in Iraq. I'm not sure the average American knows that the French have been dealing with terrorists much longer than we have - the bombing of the Paris Metro in 1995 by radical Muslims is just one example in recent history.

I heard some Dixie chicks playing at a bar the other day here in France. They may have lost some fans in the States but they've found some here.

Joseph Cheek (electronic mail, April 23, 2003)