Dealing with Decline

I’ve tried to get worked up about Germany’s recent electoral confusion, but nothing came of it. Couldn’t even muster any good ol’ Teutonic schadenfreude over our old friends’ troubles. My one brief thought on the issue wasn’t even worth blogging by lonesome: “Certainly a Germany with no leader is preferable to a Germany with a strong one.” Pretty lame stuff.

Before Germany’s weekend election, of course, French President Jacque Chirac checked into the hospital, instigating a mad scramble for power. Imagine 50 Frenchmen of a certain age in really nice suits, all shouting and waving like Arnold Horshack trying to get a little attention from Mr. Kotter. Or in this case, from that tiny fraction of the French electorate that really decides things.

What was shocking though was what I read on the blogs about France and Germany: Damn near nothing.

Chirac, America’s best back-stabbing friend, is having health problems, and the blogosphere practically ignores him? Germany rejects much-needed economic reforms, and warbloggers aren’t giddy with I-told-you-so-itis? What’s going on here?

I think I might know.

Individually, any blogger is just as prone to error and bias as anyone else. Collectively, the blogosphere has wisdom and tenacity enough to bring down Dan Rather, Howell Raines, and Trent Lott