Empty Summer

As we get closer to August, which is the annual holiday month, we realise this year everything is different. In our part of Europe, people are not travelling that much. They prefer to stay in the vicinity of their home region. They understand that the health crisis is picking up and they do not want to be caught in a messy situation far away from their residence. I live in an area of my city that attracts a lot of tourists. This time, there are no visitors. I do not have to worry about parking spaces. But I worry a lot when I see the shops, restaurants and so on empty and the hotels closed. That is the reality this summer.  

A busy summer ahead of us

People in Europe are rapidly moving past the pandemic and looking forward to a normal summer. There are still a number of restrictions in place, in most of the countries, but everyone seems convinced that by the end of the month they will be lifted. Optimism is a good thing, particularly after a difficult and long period of deep constraints, not to mention death, sorrow and anxiety. It might be somehow unjustified, but as I think of it, I get convinced we need a good dose of hopefulness. It helps us to move forward.

Beyond the health dimensions, it is true that for a good number of people the prolonged crisis has meant a serious loss of income. For others, it dramatically means either unemployment or job insecurity. It also threatens the survival of many companies, with a serious impact on national wealth and public revenue, well beyond the employment dimensions. We must be aware of all this and promote the right social and economic policies that we believe are most appropriate to respond to the many forthcoming challenges. And as we write or speak about these things, we must find a way of mixing realism with optimism.

The decision the European Central Bank has just announced, adding another 600 billion euros to the pandemic-related bond purchasing mechanism, is at the same time very encouraging and a clear indication of the crisis we are in. Money in substantial amounts is critically important. But we must be very judicious about the priorities and wise, in terms of change. The money must be an instrument of recovery, I agree, but also, a powerful tool to promote change.

One of key priorities must be the reestablishment of the education system. I have seen how the primary and secondary school pupils are being affected by the closure of the schools. Their current virtual studies are little more than a lie or a joke. It is crucial to create all the conditions to re-open the next school year, in September, effectively. Not much is being talked about that, less still is happening in terms of action. Teachers and academic authorities must be assisted from now on to create the conditions for a rentrée that makes sense and brings everybody back to the reorganised classrooms.

In the end, as we approach the summer period, we realise that this should be a very intense period of work. We must recuperate what has been lost and look forward to a better horizon.

President Trump moves to Greenland

Hong Kong on the streets, North Korea firing new missiles, Amazonia being threatened, migrants at sea, Ebola in Congo, and so many other issues. But this is August, it’s summertime in the Northern Hemisphere, and people want something light. President Trump got it. He is indeed a genius. He is fast and very much attuned to the people’s wishes and priorities. Therefore, today he suggested the US could think of purchasing Greenland, a massive piece of land that belongs to a European State, Denmark. That is indeed a fresh idea, cool, very appropriate for a hot mid-August weekend.

End of break

Time to resume the daily routines, after a period of rest in Southern Spain. And the first thing I notice is that the key people in the European institutions are still too much focused on security issues. It´s not a good idea. The security mechanisms are in place and they can do the job at hand. The politicians do not need to meddle too much with the security domain. They just need to provide the necessary legal and financial support. And then concentrate their minds on the economic and social challenges that are at the centre of the citizen´s preoccupations as well as on the relations between Europe and some key outside nations. That should be the agenda for the rentrée.