Those riots in Paris

Intelligent Rule No.1 -- If you have done nothing wrong, do not run from the police.

Intelligent Rule No.2 -- Never try to hide in the middle of high voltage electrical circuits.

There have been four nights of rioting in a Paris suburb, largely because a couple of teens did not follow rules 1 and 2.

It started after a couple of immigrant teens, running from police, climbed the fence and leaped into an electrical substation. Unwisely, it seems, as they were both electrocuted.

Now the entire immigrant section of the city is up in arms, or rocks. Many of these immigrants are followers of that peaceful religion that international reporters dare not print. It did not help that someone, perhaps a police officer, reportedly tossed a tear gas grenade into one of their houses of worship, which we will call the M-word so as not to offend the international journalists' code.

We've been scanning the news stories, dozens of them, to try to get a handle on how bad this thing is. It's like hearing the news as delivered by the cast of Sesame Street.

No. That's unfair to Sesame Street.

As is typical for the French, the leading Socialist, Laurent Fabius, is using the riots as a great opportunity for claiming that he can do the job better by working on "prevention, repression, education, housing, jobs ... and not play(ing) the cowboy."

What is it about cowboys that absolutely sets off socialists?

As for repression, socialists are best at repressing an individual's right to make a profit. That may not sit all that well even with the followers of that religion of peace that dares not be named.

There is an old prophecy that at some point in time Paris will be lie in ruins. It didn't happen in World War II. We pray that this is not the start of its fulfillment.