"All governments face insoluble problems — that is what governments are for. It is in the nature of political problems that they cannot be 'solved'."
This quote could refer to climate change, the war in Ukraine or any other of the major crises local, national and European authorities grapple with today. But it does not.
No, these intriguing lines come from a book that, instead of dealing with the present, describes events that happened almost two centuries ago: Back our independent journalism by becoming a supporting memberGet EU news that matters
Caroline de Gruyter is a Europe correspondent and columnist for the Dutch newspaper NRC. She is also a columnist for Foreign Policy and De Standaard. This piece is adapted from a column for NRC.
Caroline de Gruyter is a Europe correspondent and columnist for the Dutch newspaper NRC. She is also a columnist for Foreign Policy and De Standaard. This piece is adapted from a column for NRC.