Le Monde editor Frédéric Lemaître had an online debate about the EADS scandal Tuesday afternoon, in which the entire affair (unlike, say, Enron) was relativized with a smile. Notice the very first comment/question: little to no anger/disappointment/concern about being lied to/deceived by the élites (political, financial, or other), whether specifically about the Airbus scandal or the wider description of the rivalry with America in general. The concern is noted in a (passive tense) statement of worry that the champion's reputation has been (rather unfairly) damaged (in the eyes of outsiders who are not lucid enough to realize that making too a big a scandal of this will help those dastardly Yanks), not that the champion's leaders were (or may have been) crooks and/or liars.
Any (righteous amd understandable) resentment of one's own kind and concern about insider trading are thus immediately (dare I say automatically?) trumped by the appearance of the Yankee bogeyman. In other words, demands for an accounting (or simply healthy interest and curiosity) are swept aside by a rally 'round the flag war cry. Europeans, you have learned your lessons well!
(Note to Grifone: Boeing did not use to have a monopoly, near or otherwise; it had to contend to with the likes of McDonnell-Douglas. MDD is American also, so that doesn't count, you say, ça revient au même? Oh, that's true, you think the business environment, the cynicism, and the two-faced double-dealing of the type prevalent in Europe must invariably be the same in the United States. Never mind.)
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