What you End up with when You Believe in Nothing

And here, I thought ”values” were to be officially regarded as a “wedge issue” of those evil conservatives. Otherwise:

The crisis of Europe is a crisis of values. In the last few years there has been no equivalent of the idealism that cemented the European project back in the 1950s. I am on the side of those who believe that ideas do matter and that the EU cannot simply be run by competent technocrats (no matter how efficient they may be). Technocrats may offer a brain to the EU project (although this is debatable!) but they cannot offer a soul. And it is the soul that is currently lacking in the European project.

Actually, you don’t sound like that at all. You sound like someone who is comfortable with the idea of non-management of the mechanism of a state with unchecked powers led by an ideological class that doesn’t share, preferably without a means of succession of power consistent with societies outside of the third world.

Plus, the world knows how Europeans have historically filled power vacuums, even when practicing some form or another of participatory government. Somehow kreeping leftist authoritarianism is what they’re left with – even the feel-good stuff ends up looking like Soylent Green in one way or another.

Too many commentators focus on covering the current European financial problems. Although the deadlocked financial situation of the EU cannot be disregarded one should also pay attention to the political/ideological vacuum of the European Union.

Really? I guess that sort of “soul-searching” isn’t going to stop the commentariat from fantasizing about forcing an ideology on the proletariat:

A crisis of ideology is also evident in the EU. The uncritical acceptance of a deregulated free-market vision within the EU circles has damaged the economy of the Eurozone and is no longer viable. The EU became a political space where a conservative free-market mentality has gradually taken over without any major thinking and debate. This kind of “acquis” has silently been imposed in every EU policy area by the large majorities of the EU establishment.

Funny how some world-views are expected to defend their lives, and take the heat for all of the world’s problems – even those caused by the irrational, never-ending expansion of the welfare state.