Arnon Grunberg

Future

Past

The future without a present - Wolfgang Streeck in American Affairs:

'This essay undertakes to sort out some of the complexities that underlie the European stalemate. It argues that the politics of Europe are suspended between national realities and a postnational ideology. Europe suffers from a collective denial of the gap between the two, in the name of a “European idea.” And, as it forces ever more “integration” onto diverse national societies, the gap between ideology and reality widens still further. The Europe of the European idea is a future without a past, attractively innocent to a continent heavy with memories of war and genocide. It is, however, also a future without a present: in order to be acceptable to its diverse constituents, it can only be vaguely defined so that everyone can read into it what they please. Tensions between national diversity and supranational unity thus cannot be effectively addressed, since this would reveal both the emptiness of the ideology and the conflicts hidden underneath it. Emerging crises must be dealt with through day-to-day improvisation, leaving behind an opaque and confusing assortment of poorly articulated institutions.'

Read it here.

Although this was written in 2018 it's still accurate.

I'm a staunch defender of the European project, but Streeck's criticism is accurate. The question should be asked if on a political level there's really more to do than day-to-day improvisations and crisis management? History has not ended, but the visions won't make a comeback anytime soon. And if the vision comes back we should brace ourselves for the worst.
The flip side of that coin is emptiness, already in The Book of Ecclesiastes it was written that the future is nothing but emptiness.

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