France Is Burning Through Its Patience. The Big-Government Promise Is Breaking Down in Real Time.

Nearly two months after students walked out over crumbling classrooms, France has logged more than 1,200 protests and riots — and the wave has spread to 30 more European countries. Americans should study what happens when a big-government state still cannot deliver the basics.

By Clara Hughes

France was supposed to be the model. Generous welfare, cradle-to-grave services, a state that promises to take care of everything. On Saturday, 146,000 people rallied across the country against that state, including 46,000 in Paris, according to France's Interior Ministry, Al Jazeera reported. Unions put the figures at 250,000 and 75,000. Police used tear gas and batons in Paris and fired tear gas at hundreds of people blocking a road in central Lyon. About 70,000 security personnel were deployed. It was the fourth weekend in a row of demonstrations, AFP reported — and the movement began with something simple: high school