As a country France might not be going in the direction you think it's going: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/28/world/europe/france-albi-french-towns-fading.ht

As a country France might not be going in the direction you think it's going: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/28/world/europe/france-albi-french-towns-fading.html https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/28/world/europe/france-albi-... I see that echoed in your post: "It has the added benefit of pushing right-wing people out of the cities back to the countryside". Perhaps what's happening is that France is seeing a transition to suburban communities. If so, enjoy your walkable town centers now while commerce remains viable. At some point in the future you may find yourself needing to trek to the big box retailer outside town, just as many of us urban Americans unfortunately have to do. :(