After 9/11 a line was drawn in the sand. President Bush made a bold declaration: If you are not with us you are against us. Shortly thereafter, France made a firm stand, with one foot on each side of the line. It is no wonder that John Kerry took such a liking to the French...

In a world where the most powerful man of the most powerful nation decreed that you are either our friend or our enemy, France has decided not to be America's friend. The Center for Security Policy in Washington DC, in a piece entitled False friends, writes:

the government of France under Jacques Chirac is bent on policies that are antithetical to U.S. interests. They are not simply anti-Bush, they are anti-American and anti-Atlanticist. The latest example is Chirac's determination to have French and other European weapons manufacturers arm Communist China as part of what he has called "a necessary rebalancing of the 'grand triangle' formed by America, Europe and Asia."

I cannot help but ponder whether France was as concerned about keeping a balance of power between the major forces in the world during WWII after Paris fell to Hitler. America has been the greatest friend to the world since the end of WWII, acting more benevolently than any nation in the history of mankind, but France, in all their wisdom, has decided it is best to tip the balance of power away from the United States. Amazing!

The article continues:

Seen against this backdrop, Chirac's calculation that Europe must strengthen China militarily at America's expense is not just a one-off betrayal of an ally. It is part of a geostrategic tradition that renders France, at best, an unreliable partner in international affairs and, at worst, what the French call a "faux ami," or false friend.

I think it may be a bit presumptuous - perhaps naive - to call the French America's friend... The article concludes:

Jacques Chirac's determination to provide weapons that may be used to kill Americans in the event China decides to attack Taiwan should be a wake-up call. False friends are not allies. They should not be entitled to the preferential treatment accorded the latter. Mr. Bush is right that democracies traditionally don't fight democracies. But when they equip authoritarian regimes to do so, they must expect to pay a real cost.

If you are either with us or against us AND France is not with us then ...