A major political party in one of the world's largest democracies says it's 'learning about democracy'. Jesus...

Copé with his 'studiously interested' look on

Meeaaanwhile, Jean-François Copé, President of France's main opposition party, the right-of-centre UMP, came out with a stupifying, almost surreal, statement today.

His party introduced a primary system a while back in an effort to modernise and get rid of the dreadful in-fighting which was characterising each internal election (not that the Socialists are any better mind).

The first primary came a few months back when they elected Copé as party president. It led to fierce rows in the UMP and accusations that Copé had cheated, and the atmosphere in the party is still poisoned today by that affair.

This weekend sees the UMP's second primary, in which they are to elect a candidate for the upcoming Paris mayoral election, and, once again, there are accusations of cheating being flung around by the candidates like confetti at a wedding. Awful spectacle.

Anyway, Copé did a TV interview this morning, during which he explained away the squabbles and allegations of cheating in his party by saying that

'We're learning about democracy. It's quite new to us.' 

So. Let me see if I've got this right. Here we have the edifying spectacle of the leader of a political party which hopes to be elected to run one of the worlds largest democratic countries after the next presidential elections blithely informing the French that they are LEARNING ABOUT DEMOCRACY' and that it's a NEW thing to them??!!

Decidedly...

Non mais putain, on est pas sortie de l'auberge c'est sûr....