If Nicolas Sarkozy is the hyperactive hare in the Aesop legend, France’s incoming president, François Hollande, is the proverbial tortoise. History has shown that slow and steady wins the race.

Little known outside France, Hollande would also have his diplomatic skills put to the test fast if he wins, with a Chicago NATO summit looming in late May and a Group of 20 summit in Mexico in late June.

… before he was ousted from power, the last president was sending the young soldiers, totally empty handed and with no weapon, to the front, to fight against the secessionist Tuaregs. While the co-opted soldiers, at the top rank in the Malian military force were drinking their teas all day long, many soldiers from poor families with no connection or relation in the administrations were getting killed.

At number 07 rue Mathis (75019 Paris) on Thursday 19th April, at 07 pm, we will be holding an event that could be the last opportunity for some elected politicians of the district to clarify their position … just before the elections.

Mohammed Merah’s trail of death will only serve to make such prejudices more publicly acceptable. Even the liberal left in …