Who said it

Which world leader said the following and what was s/he talking about:

"I can think of a recent disaster that shows what happens when a country neglects its duties of state towards its people."

Tony Blair talking about France? Iran's leadership talking about themselves? Nope, Gerhard Schroeder talking about the U.S.

Schroeder made his comments in a speech to a trade union in Hanover on Wednesday in which he warned of the dangers of eroding the welfare functions of the state.

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..."My post as chancellor, which I still hold, does not allow me to name that country but you all know that I am talking about America," Schroeder said to laughter and applause.

Now, I'm wondering, given that France is a welfare state, why are we witnessing the current unrest? Isn't all that government aid supposed to promote solidarity and a content population? Evidently not. In fact, it seems reasonable to think that it has instead produced the opposite -- dissatisfaction and alienation.

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But it isn't just France. Look at the recent societal breakdown in New Orleans. Or the 1992 riots in Los Angeles. What do they all have in common? Government housing projects. Government welfare checks. High crime. Maybe it's all just correlation rather than causation, but I doubt it.

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For those that think the various civil disturbances occurred because of poverty I would look at the Depression. Plenty of people were poor: were riots and crime the order of the day? No. The riots in France and elsewhere occurred because of a lack of values (I saw once French kid quoted as saying he participated in the riots "because they're fun), which also probably goes a way towards explaining why they are poor in the first place.