Woke up to new from my brother that Jacques Chirac, the former president of France, has died.
Chirac served as French President from 1995-2007. That is a long time, so clearly, a lot happened during his tenure. However, he was most famous for having stood up against the unjustifiable, American-led invasion of Iraq late in 2002 and into early 2003, which was championed by then American President George W. Bush, and then British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Ultimately, American forces invaded Iraq in March of 2003, and the war predictably turned into a quagmire. Despite assurances by top American officials at the time of a quick, decisive, easy victory . Then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld claimed that the United States would win within "six days or sox weeks" and dismissed any notion that it would take six months or longer. Ultimately, the war in Iraq lasted for well over a decade, was condemned by a vast majority around the world, and even became hugely unpopular within the United States itself.
Thus, Chirac became a very well-known figure, by becoming arguably the most prominent name and face to resist an unjustifiable war that, as many predicted, turned quickly into a quagmire. His popularity shot up in France itself as a result of this resistance to the Iraq war.
Thus, Chirac became a very well-known figure, by becoming arguably the most prominent name and face to resist an unjustifiable war that, as many predicted, turned quickly into a quagmire. His popularity shot up in France itself as a result of this resistance to the Iraq war.
Still, Chirac's defiance was seen as a personal affront by many both in the United States and Great Britain. In fact, so strong were these hard feelings, that many in both countries continue to view Chirac in largely negative terms, and many believed that he was anti-American. This, in spite of the fact that he had attended Harvard University, and had been so impressed with the American economy, that he wanted to make reforms to model France's economy much more closely to the American model.
What Chirac's refusal to go along with the Iraq invasion, as Tony Blair did, was give the world a prominent world leader who stood in opposition to a hugely unpopular and immoral war. Some almost turned him into a hero for it, while he continued to be vilified for it in other circles.
Chirac was 86 years old. He is survived by his wife, Bernadette de Courcel, and his two children, Laurence and Claude. Claude was one of her father's closest advisers for years.
Jacques Chirac, Who Led France Envisioning European Unity, Is Dead at 86 by James F. Clafrity and John Tagliabue, September 26, 2019:
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/26/obituaries/jacques-chirac-dead.html
Yes - the level of arrogance and hopelessly misguided, willful ignorance on the part of those who vilified Chirac for refusing to go along with Bush and Blair is simply staggering. Not surprisingly, it was accompanied by a resurgence in France-bashing, led by a number of talk show hosts, politicians and other prominent public figures for whom I lost whatever respect I may once have had. But that's what happens when people not only fail to ask questions and think critically, but become indignant when other people attempt to do so.
ReplyDeleteIt's ironic that Mitterrand, whose ideology obviously contrasted sharply with that of his three American counterparts (Reagan, Bush Sr. and Clinton) went along with the grotesque farce that was Operation Desert Storm, while Chirac, who as you accurately acknowledge was a big fan of this country, was glibly ostracized and castigated for his refusal to have France be a part of the sequel roughly a dozen years later.
Chirac was certainly no saint, and there were plenty of times when the things he did and said frankly pissed me off. But what infuriated so many people here and in Britain was to me his finest hour. R.I.P. Jacques Chirac.
Yes, I am not saying that I agree with everything that he did, or that I hold him as the ideal leader. However, I agree that his rise to world prominence due to his opposition to the invasion of Iraq was indeed his finest hour.
DeleteI'm not sure if you're familiar with "Les Guignols de l'info", which was a show on Canal Plus that spoofed politicians and other people in the public eye using latex puppets. Anyway, what's funny is that their mockery of Chirac - frequently using the vulgar exclamation "Putain!", and occasionally donning a superhero outfit with the letters "SM" for "Super Menteur" (which as I'm sure you know translates into Super Liar) - probably contributed to making him more popular in France. It somehow made him appear more human and accessible, in contrast with the somewhat stiff and elitist image he had back in the 70s and 80s.
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