We need both a political and an ethical reaction

From then on, the overall situation has fared badly. We have taken the wrong path. Therefore, now, not only will we have to renegotiate part of the path we have trod, we will also have to muster our strength, make better use of our resources, and boost our morale.

Clearly, the upcoming 9 March general election will shape our future, in that it forms part of the choices and decisions that the country has to make if it is to exit the blind alley in which it finds itself. But today’s editorial will not address this issue. It simply seeks to underscore its importance, not only for what this may represent politically, but above all for what it may mean from the standpoint of our country’s self-esteem and of the respect it should feel capable of demanding.

What this editorial does seek to emphasise is that in order to respond to the difficulties that beset the country we need to strengthen - and at times revive - specific attitudes and values. This Foundation was set up to work in the field of what we term IVA (Ideas, Values and Attitudes). Now it is time to insist upon it. Because even if the political situation improved, our country would not be able to react appropriately to the challenges that face us (which are of great magnitude) without clearer ideas, sounder values and more positive attitudes.

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For instance, we need to drive home yet again the crux of the matter of RESPONSABILITY, which was a major theme of our seminars, conferences and editorials in the early days of our Foundation. We need to stress the fact that a country that is lacking in its sense of responsibility and its sense of the common good can neither advance nor overcome tough challenges. A country in which the ethic of disassociation -namely, that people, or many people, feel concerned only for the interests of their own personal self-achievement- prevails is condemned. And we need not be impressed by the catchy slogan “I want to fulfil myself”.  Obviously people must have the possibility to fulfil themselves, but not in a way that ignores or scorns everyone else’s fulfilment, and this is only possible if the common good, the general interest, attention to people are made the focus of collective action and if people are educated with this in mind. Freedom must form the backbone of our society, as must the rights of each and every one of us. But this needs to be exercised responsibly.

It is worth pointing out that there is one area where over the last 30 years the notion of responsibility has improved: in fiscal terms people are certainly much more positively sensitive. Might that be because the government is more efficient, or more stringent, and induces greater fear? Irrespective of the answer, there is more fiscal responsibility. It is a positive point to highlight. Important. On the other hand, other aspects of responsibility have diminished. This is manifested in many ways.

For example, in the NO CULTURE, which continues to be extremely strong and paralysing. We have always argued that people must have the right to say no, and at times this is the right attitude. But naysaying causes untold damage to the general interest and obstructs Catalonia’s economy, education, and social progress, and has a negative effect on countless other aspects. And even politicians and the media often do not dare challenge this corrupted use of the right to say no. Moreover there does not appear to be any type of education that explains what the general interest is and where the right to opt out begins and ends.

It is also manifested in the diminishing will or capacity of many parents to assume their RESPONSABILITIES to THE FAMILY, ESPECIALLY IN THAT REGARDING THEIR CHILDREN. It is true that modern life weighs down the role of parents, but only in some aspects. Because if we think about what life, and the standard of living, was like 40 years ago, and the possibilities then compared with today’s, we frankly have to admit that in many ways there were far fewer opportunities then. Whatever the case, parents have a responsibility that they should not shun as easily as they do at present.

This is also true of THE ELDERLY, and of many other things. And we must accept that regardless of how much WELFARE STATE we have, certain things will never be provided by the State  (by teachers, by doctors, by social service workers, by the police, etc..,).

The same goes for the ECONOMY. And for businesses. The government should certainly take responsibility for ensuring that companies function properly. And right now it does little of this in Catalonia. But most important is that there are men and women who take decisions to start up companies and move forward. They must assume the responsibility of doing it, maybe with a little network of protection, but not much. In sum, ENTREPRENEURSHIP IS AN ACT OF RESPONSABILITY.

One consequence of irresponsible attitudes – individual or collective – is our CAREFREE ATTITUDE REGARDING THE FUTURE. We are RESPONSABLE FOR THE FUTURE, for ourselves, for our family, for our country. Helmut Schmidt, when he was chancellor of Germany and also after he left office, often wrote critical letters to the Germans in which he claimed that a Entlastung der Zukunft had happened, that is, A DISCHARGING OF THE FUTURE, which manifested itself, he said, as much in the difficulty of moving long-term investments forward, as in the difficulty of carrying out urgent reforms, and even in the low birth-rate. Timely words that we could apply as well to Catalonia.

One last example of shirking responsibilities: THE DEFENCE OF OUR IDENTITY as a country in many ways. That Catalonia is able to put up an effective defence of its identity in many respects certainly depends on the degree of self-government, on the effectiveness of our parties and institutions, and on factors in which we cannot have or have very little influence, but also in large part depends on the Catalans assuming OUR PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY in everything that is within our power. For example, by using Catalan in our daily contacts whenever we can, which is nearly always, if we want to.

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About a year ago Joan Vallvé, a collaborator of this Foundation, and I paid a visit to former chancellor Helmut Schmidt in Hamburg. We discussed how, during his years in office in the late eighties, and after he stood down, he had insisted on a discourse centred on the values of responsibility, the common good, etc. To little success. He replied: “Fifteen years of many aggravating problems had to pass before the German people realised where they were. Now they begin to understand that they needed an ethical reaction”.

IN CATALONIA WE DO NOT HAVE THE SAME TIME MARGIN AS GERMANY DID.