^ Well, I don't think the matter of identity is anything really persuasive when it comes to the French. It's just a consequence of an economic stagnation. Growth has been too slow for decades over here, and now people fear for their standards of living. That's the main, if not the only issue boosting the far right. The French society can't bear any feeling of impoverishment and may be violent when upset or hurt.
However, and this was linked to so called identity in the public debate, perhaps we should at least make sure immigrants can speak the local language and find themselves familiar enough with local customs, like the Germans are said to do, so they all can get an occupation more easily instead of being stuck in welfare, which hardly allows them to survive, especially in Paris where the cost of living is kinda crushing. That's been discussed and there again, Germany tends to be regarded as a role model.
Besides, you guys are more familiar than we are with Eastern Euro countries where most the continental virtual growth definitely is, and your country implements a flexible federal system already. No wonder you're the most convinced and most ambitious possible Europeans today. To you, Eastern Europe is a major opportunity. Whereas to too many French, it feels like a threat of relocations and lost jobs...
The local economy's just been too slow, I'm telling you, cause France as Italy and Spain has been mismanaged for too long. Like we've been too static in the moving world and must now catch up on Germany to face intensive globalization more comfortably, or the EU project may end up endangered. And then indeed, we'll have completely messed up the main thing to keep us all at peace.