Just a minor clarification: the face veil is not a muslim thing. It's a cultural custom and is often misconceived as an Islamic traditional garment. There is no mention of "compulsory face covering" anywhere in official religious texts (namely the Holy Qur'an). Has nothing to do with religion. The headscarf on the other hand is a religious garment chosen to be worn by women who are ready to don it, not forced to wear it.
The French gov't is pretty much bonkers at this point. Government and religion should not cross over beyond the basic "don't steal, don't kill, don't rape, etc." set of laws. The way I see it, religion is a deeply personal matter and that's no place for government.
I'm generally against the whole face-covering thing for the simple reason that it's a security issue, even in my own culture I'm a little uncomfortable around face-veiled women (who claim it's for religion) just because I think my presence alone offends somehow them, kinda like the whole Feminazi thing all over again. Plus there's an understandable double-standard: woman covering her face = possibly religious or blindingly gorgeous; man covering face = burglar, terrorist, mischievous ninja. As I explained, covering the face is not a matter of religion (though it is commonly confused to be), I get mildly offended when someone claims to cover their face for "islamic" reasons because it's untrue and misleading.
As a cultural custom though, I take no issue. A particular culture of women cover their faces and recognize that it is a custom, no problem. For example, Gulfian women here in the U.A.E.
