Dordogne-shire : a Utopia or a dream?

Yes, the French socio-economic model is going through a hard time - France is actually trying to find a balance between quality of life and competitiveness.

While N.Y. Times neo-con editoralist Thomas Friedman plays his favorite sport - French bashing - calling them 'a bunch of antiglobalist Gaullist Luddites' [incidently, he is the one who once said 'France is not just our annoying ally. It is not just our jealous rival. France is becoming our enemy.', a good illustration of his quasi-racist agenda], many Britons continue to move to France by the thousands "in search of the good life a la francaise - sunshine, excellent schools and health care, and a slower, gentler way of living", as The Guardian explains, to the point that the French southern region of vineyards and medieval villages called 'Dordogne' is now nicknamed 'Dordogneshire'.
Now it is true that the British who move to France don't do it to become rich and in fact, a lot of young French people often go to live in Britain to make more money and avoid the problems resulting of a sluggish economy with a 10% unemployment. But while Britain has fewer saftey nets, worse public schools and expensive care, there are fewer people unemployed.
The question is whether France can really have its cake and eat it too. It seems to me that it is a question of prioritizing goals. Maybe the French should accept some privatization, [which a lot of leaders do against popular sentiment] and focus all their effort on a smaller number of priorities - their 'high-quality healthcare to all, including the unemployed and homeless' and their 'rigorous public schools that guarantee the same education for all children, rich and poor'. It seems to me that it would be 'fair deal' that might turn the 'French Utopia' into a 'French Dream'.