A Cosmopolite May Be Ticket For Insular U.S.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(ON THE LEFT)

Byline: DAVID IGNATIUS

This elegant seaside village in Brittany is a place the Kerry campaign would probably rather have forgotten last week.

The Democratic candidate's parents courted here, and the young John Kerry spent holidays along its rocky coast. For a politician who must convince America over the next three months that he really likes hot dogs and stock car races, St. Briac is just too French.

Which is a shame. Because Kerry, the Democrats and America as a whole could learn something from this village and the country whose values it reflects.

I know that's heresy, in the perennial season of French-bashing. But the truth is that Kerry's cosmopolitan background, and his comfort level with other cultures, are among his great strengths. They can help an isolated and unpopular America reconnect with the world.

St. Briac embodies the qualities that people love about France, however much they may dislike French politics or foreign policy. Its streets are tidy and well maintained; its homes are stylish without being showy; it has a dowdy golf club and grand local mayor's office.

Like France as a whole, it conveys a sense of amour-propre, or self-love -- a quality that may sound obnoxious to American ears, but would be less so if it were translated simply as patriotism.