Describing his world view as one of "serene pessimism," he viewed humans as having no privileged status in the universe and said they would become extinct without leaving significant traces of their existence.

A safe prediction.
[Bloomberg. Pic via]

But seriously, is this not one of the best presidential photographs of all-time? Even Sarkozy looks like he's sneaking a peek, though he's French, so we expect him to do it. However, in Obama's defense, that is a great ass!

And naturally, Drudge is having some fun with this.

We can't wait to see Robert Gibbs try to spin this one.

Photo by Jason Reed for Reuters/Landov via TMZ

Maurice Levy is an easily caricatured Frenchman: cosmopolitan, liberal, wealthy, condescending, probably a fan of escargot (I was just in France and man, they really eat that, for real yall, no fooling!). He sent this message to all 15,000 of his employees worldwide after the election:

“Congratulations on such a great choice,” he wrote. “Once again the American people have proved that they are right there when it comes to turning points in history — and they know how to make history.”

Haha, as long as you don't extend that logic back, say, four years! Publicis is going to get slammed like every other ad conglomerate in the coming year because of the shitty economy. Which he blames on the following: "Capitalism cannot only be about profit." How does his multibillion dollar ADVERTISING firm, for fuck's sake, fit into that?

“We don’t lie to them, we don’t cheat them,” he said. “We don’t tell them something is a triple-A product when it is not a triple-A product.”

Aha. [NYT; pic via Adforum]

[via Multicult Classics]

The inside is going for a slightly cheesy Uptown vibe: pink iridescent tiles, pink stools (never a healthy sign, according to our nurse practitioner), and swirly plaster. Down a mosaic'd stairwell, a lower level seats 40 people, half as many as upstairs. FR.OG, which stands for French Origin, concerns itself with the nexus of Mediterranean and French cuisine. Though its menu shares few similarities with McNally's beleaguered-of-late flagship Balthazar, FR.OG aims to share ever fewer customers. Nearly all of the PR shouts "It's right across the street from Balthazar!" Ah, the French, never ones to shy away from a fight. Oh wait, yes they are. —Josh

FR.OG, 71 Spring Street