[VeejayRampay]

There is really something special about France (and I would reckon some other former superpowers of the past). Because we used to be great and we're not anymore, slowly drifting into world oblivion, there is a quite toxic tendency to cling to that past in the form of excessive conservatism. In that mindset, any change is perceived as an additional step away from that past greatness which is an integral and important part of the "collective consciousness". As such, anything that changes the status quo frightens that part of us thinking that we're still a dominant world power. That is why we still push the French language hard (dubbing movies, forcing a 50% ratio of French music on the radio, having a national academy to enforce the purity of our language), why we've been beefing with the English and the American on many topics. That issue is systemic and is extremely detrimental in our collective progress to a better future.

This is the precise root of what has been described as the inherent French melancholia. And this is why Uber is a problem here, even though most French people would recognize it's a great service that actually brings something much needed to the table.