Europe VS Silicon Valley @ Le Web 2008

The final panel discussion at Le Web 2008 conference was filled with fireworks. Nothing like saving the best for last!

Le Web is a yearly conference which invites bloggers, internet tech gurus and web entrepreneurs to spend three glorious days in Paris. It is a tremendous networking opportunity for European bloggers, techies and anyone interested in becoming the next Euro Bill Gates. What I gleaned from this charged discussion was the European technorati would settle for a little something, instead of working for the whole enchilada. I’m certain that was NOT the philosophy of Bill Gates when he was building his empire.

This panel discussion is a marvel at the difference between the work ethics of a capitalist society and one with a more socialist bent.

In fairness, I recognized only one person on this panel, Loic Le Meur, the tireless founder of Le Web. He is now based in San Francisco working to bring Seesmic to life. Another panelist, whose name I don’t recall, could be Michael Moore’s long lost brother. Listen to his comments carefully, they clearly illustrate the difference in our two cultures.

The discussion caused quite a stir with the organizers and fans of Le Web. The commentary of one of the panelists, Michael Arrington of Tech Crunch, prompted Loic to question if Michael should be invited back to Le Web 2009 . Michael response can be found Here and Here.

Enjoy the fireworks!