The Guardian:
France is historically seen as standard bearer of western secular liberalism and has been singled out by Isis as a key target…
Islamic extremists may see the US as a source of moral decadence and economic exploitation, but France is seen as an atheist power which is both defending western ideals such as human rights, free speech and democracy and, in the eyes of jihadis, trying to impose them on the Islamic world.
I grew up among Americans who saw the US as a standard bearer for western secular liberalism, human rights, free speech and democracy. After the 1980s and 90s rise of the radical right, George W. Bush, Abu Ghraib, Obama’s drone war, and now Donald Trump, it seems the colors have been passed to France.
