I think this comment about sums up why Europe/France is no longer a force in the emerging powers of the world and has mostly been stagnant in recent memory.
People have become content in their ways and are no longer hungry for improvement/change.
People have become content in their ways and are no longer hungry for improvement/change.
It is valuable to have a culture which makes these fundamental requirements accessible and normal. There is no point in squeezing out every short term marginal improvement in economic efficiency regardless of the health of the people who are supposed to be reaping the economic rewards.
(potatos are heavy, and potato chips/crisps are bulky, so you'll have to settle for instant mashed potato powder)
There is no "time to spend with friends and family" if you have to make numerous trips to get your food.
Economic growth is not the be all end all of human existence.
Just because they don't agree with English-speaking media and their vision of the world, it does not mean they are not hungry for change. They are so hungry for change, in fact, that they've been rioting for weeks. What they are not hungry for, probably, is the obsession for worldly riches and conservative consumption-driven lifestyle that Asian and American interests keep pushing. That might not be a bad thing.