Читать книгу The Great Hollenberg Saga - Heinz Niederste-Hollenberg - Страница 15

Another note-worthy remark: All of the following is not only meant to be a summary of family affairs, it is also, in part, a way of taking position on historical and present day political matters.

As such, I am particularly concerned about “Our Situation” in general, i.e. our relation across the Atlantic:

The European-American Relations.

“The Western World” (the old classical Occident), and that is Europe and America, is being challenged politically, strategically, economically, and even in the long run, militarily.

These challenges come, for different reasons, from different directions and different power centers, and they are aiming at the very basic foundation of our society:

• Our culture

• Our understanding of liberty and freedom

• Our religion

• Our democracy and free-market economy

• The common basis of our “Mediterranean Logic”

All our commonalities on both sides of the Atlantic (85%) make present day differences (15%) look minor, if we realize that our platform is not shared by anyone else in other parts of the world. We are one part of the same.

Europe is still busy with its own fate and needs time to find its own identity.

Americas’ power, on the other hand, is not without limitations.

Both need each other, and less resentment on one side and less political arrogance on the other is needed.

Our commonalities go way beyond the elements of consanguinity and culture. In particular included is the “Medi-terranean Logic”, which originated in the Jewish-Christian source of our religion in the Middle-East, then moved via Greece and Rome to the Renaissance and Enlightenment in Europe, all the way into the 20th century with the tremendous sacrifice America made to help form a unified, peace-loving, democratic Europe.

Although, it all started out as a family story, and the history of an old farm in Germany, it now turned out to be much more than that: It is a reflection on a life between Europe and America, and a review of events in politics and society across the Atlantic over a span of a life time.

I am convinced: Both, Europe and America, need each other in view of the challenges ahead. Let us put together our assets and our strengths!

Together, we can face all challenges.