Professor Brigitte Granville writes on France’s economy for Project Syndicate. She comments on the country’s response to the downgrading of its sovereign-credit rating by Moody’s in November. Professor Granville explains that the government’s “inadequate response” is due to the “lies in the culture and prejudices of France’s governing elite, the so-called grands commis formed by the National Civil Service School of which Hollande – like virtually all of his predecessors, except Nicolas Sarkozy – is an alumnus. In this cloistered world, a prosperous and just society requires a state-directed economy”. Read more at Project Syndicate.