If there is something today that unites Europeans, it is not the great 'House of Europe', but rather historic upheavals – the upheaval of the withdrawal of individual entities from conventional political ties. This also results in the crisis of the nation-state and its system of political order – representational democracy. In contrast, Europe could in fact be the opportunity for democracy to re-invent itself. Starting points for this exist both at the very top and the very bottom: at the top, the surrendering of national state power in favour of a functional EU, and at the bottom, optional local autonomy. It is only with such measures that the current rampant populism can be contained.
