The world "according to" superhero Sarkozy

Ah the wonders of the Internet. Sometimes things take a while to get started but once they're up and running there's no stopping them.

What follows is a rather unkind (depending of course on your politics) look at the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, which has been doing the rounds of French blogs for some weeks now, but came to the attention on Wednesday of a certain Laurent Ruquier on his daily programme on national radio, Europe 1.

A word or two on Ruquier. He is in the mould of many a French entertainer - namely multi-talented - although he takes it somewhat to the extreme.

He's a journalist, satirist-comedian, who until recently hosted a daily television programme and a weekly one too, which is still running.

Add to that the fact that he's a lyricist, columnist, author and playwright with several theatre productions under his belt, and it's a wonder he still finds time to host a daily late afternoon show on national radio.

But he does.

It's a somewhat irreverent look at some of the stories making the headlines here in France.

Ruquier has his faithful band of fellow commentators guess "what the story is" by giving just the briefest of clues in the form of a question which doesn't give away too much of the answer.

In the introduction to yesterday's show, Ruquier took a look at a list which "proves" that the French president is indeed a "superhero".

Of course it relies on the fact that Sarkozy has the reputation of having something of an over-inflated ego. His alleged remarks on other world leaders just last week would perhaps be proof of that.

As Ruquier remarked, substitute the name Sarkozy with that of anyone else with a similar character, and it would still work.

Probably. But for the moment it's Sarkozy's name that features, and here are 10 of the best.

For the full list so far, click here (sorry it's in French).

Nicolas Sarkozy can circle his enemies all by himself.
Nicolas Sarkozy is capable of leaving a message before the beep.
Nicolas Sarkozy knows how to slam an already closed door.
When Google can't find something, it asks Nicolas Sarkozy.
The Swiss aren't neutral. They're just waiting to find out what Nicolas Sarkozy's opinion on a subject is.
Nicolas Sarkozy doesn't wear a watch. He decides what time it is.
Nicolas Sarkozy can divide by zero.
God said, "Let there be light!" And Nicolas Sarkozy replied, "We say 'please'."
Jesus Christ was born in 1955 before Nicolas Sarkozy.
Some people wear Superman pyjamas. Superman wears Nicolas Sarkozy pyjamas.

Just for the record in a post which has probably already given far too many name checks than one person rightly deserves, the most recent batch of opinion polls on Sarkozy's popularity ratings throw up some pretty mixed messages.

He's still not doing too well, at around 36 per cent for the month of March according to one carried out by Ifop that appeared in the centre-right national daily Le Figaro recently.

Just last week though, the same paper was quoting a poll that had appeared in another national daily, Le Parisien, and conducted by CSA showing that 42 per cent of the French had "confidence in the way Sarkozy was handling the (economic) crisis."

Then of course there's that other yardstick or "poll of polls" if you will, in the form of Paris Match, a weekly magazine that mixes national and international news with a healthy dollop of celebrity lifestyle features.

Its latest poll (once again carried out by Ifop) has former president Jacques Chirac back at the top of the list of France's most popular political personalities, with the junior minister for human rights, Rama Yade, and her immediate boss the foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, sharing second spot.

Sarkozy is down in 33rd place a few places ahead of Ségolène Royal, who according to (yet) another poll conducted by Opinionway for Le Parisien is the person seen by the French as having the best stab at challenging him for office in 2012.

Confused?

Well there will probably be plenty more polls open to equally muddled interpretation over the coming weeks here in France as the parties jockey for position ahead of the European parliamentary elections in June.

Oh yes one last superhero Sarkozy characteristic, just to round off this post.

Nicolas Sarkozy has already counted to infinity - twice.

Sarkozy superhero