The Infinite Abyss: Anxiety Over the Pace of Modernity
Modernity is grappling with a collapse of meaning, which authors describe as the infinite abyss. This is a state where techno-economic acceleration shatters the foundations of traditional certainties, and efficiency takes precedence over the sphere of discourse. Consequently, individuals are forced to construct meaning in isolation, leading to a sense of existential vertigo. This article analyzes how to restructure institutions so that autonomy does not become synonymous with isolation, and how to reclaim the primacy of politics over technocracy.
The Netherlands, England, and the Lesson of the French Revolution
Historical models of revolution offer vital lessons for the present day. The Netherlands and England established the foundations for stable modernization by decentralizing power and basing legitimacy on formal procedures rather than hereditary hierarchy. In contrast, the French Revolution serves as a warning against abstract social engineering—the attempt to impose moral frameworks on society without building a public sphere capable of reaching consensus.
In the era of globalization, the rules of justification are shifted to a supra-local level, eroding traditional patterns of belonging. The result of this process is the revenge of the tribes—an identity-based rebellion by groups experiencing a degradation of status who seek refuge within sharp, exclusionary boundaries. To prevent this, it is essential to achieve a transposition of identity disputes into procedures of co-management, where conflict is resolved through collective action.
The Principle of Continuity and the Deliberative Compatibility Index
The operational principle of "reform in order to preserve" suggests that changes must be rooted in everyday experience without breaking historical continuity. A tool for measuring the quality of this process is the deliberative compatibility index. It encompasses the clarity of resolutions, the revocability of decisions, and procedural inclusivity. Only a system that allows for public criticism and data verification can maintain the trust of its citizens.
This challenge is intensified by the digital revolution, which disrupts traditional regimes of attention and shortens the cycles of political legitimacy. The solution lies in sectoral deliberation. In the healthcare sector, this means moving from control to a "biosphere of dialogue"; in energy, treating infrastructure as a moral space; and in education, building discursive competencies. The goal is to weave technology into the very fabric of democratic institutions.
Thick Modernization and the New Architecture of Geopolitics
Thick modernization differs from procedural modernity by saturating mechanisms with normative content. The ethics of responsibility plays a key role here—a readiness to accept slow processes that guarantee justice. This system is supported by an aesthetics of the common good, which makes the rationality of structures tangibly understandable to the citizen. Without this foundation, procedures become hollow tools of domination.
On a global scale, the rationality of continuity requires the construction of thematic coalitions (the West Plus model). Geopolitics should be based on layered orders and credible regulatory contracts rather than mere ideological expansion. Predictability and the fair distribution of benefits are the only ways to maintain stability in a world where realpolitik and fierce resource competition have returned.
Summary: Rationality Preserving Continuity
In a world where technology promises instant gratification, the true virtue becomes the capacity for delay—a conscious willingness not to implement everything that is technically possible. Rationality of continuity is a synthesis of change and tradition; it is reason that builds so as not to have to destroy. The future depends on whether we can design institutions where technical efficiency does not deplete the common space, and where every revolution serves to save what is human.
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