Whether or not we like the cosmopolitan lifestyle of the transnational elite, the fact remains that it is not accessible to members of the lower social classes. A few years ago, one might have hoped that even these classes would move away from the occasional Erasmus and foreign holidays to an international lifestyle. But that hope ended with the Green New Deal. The Czech redneck can only watch American rappers on YouTube or go to a Dutch supermarket and buy Egyptian potatoes. That’s if the German power company doesn’t make electricity so expensive that there won’t even be enough left for the potatoes. None of this makes him a member of the cosmopolitan world. He still speaks his national language, follows many national customs, has Czech friends and is a member of a local (i.e. Czech) association. Even his work – albeit in an international company – is local.
A few years ago, one might have hoped that even these lower classes would move away to an international lifestyle. But that hope ended with the Green New Deal.
We can notice a fundamental difference when we imagine that life has returned to a national setting. A member of the cosmopolitan elite would be left with the national theatre in his country instead of the Paris Opera House, he would go a few kilometres to the countryside instead of the golf club in Miami, he would travel to a neighbouring city for work (instead of Tokyo and London) and his favourite restaurant would be on the periphery of the city where he lives (instead of Los Angeles). Each of those changes would bring some downgrading, and not just because it would make it harder to distinguish oneself from the lower classes. Confinement to the borders of the nation-state would mean a significant loss. Over time, our manager would probably find that he felt happier than before, but that would only happen after a period of time.
The lower classes have it differently.If they shopped at the local store instead of Kaufland, ate potatoes from their own country, and listened mostly to their own singers, they would not suffer. Rather, they could expect some improvement in their quality of life – except for a limited number of very specific things like holidays by the sea.
Disputes arise where the young still hope to one day become members of the transnational upper class, while their parents have already resigned themselves to such aspirations…
The dispute over the restoration of the nation-state, or the liquidation of its remnants and its replacement by a pan-European empire, thus necessarily takes on a class dimension. This is common in Czech history. The plebeian nation defines itself against foreign domination or foreign capital.
Superficial observers may regard this as primarily a generational problem, but it is worth remembering that the current political dispute between generations does not take place where young and old are equally situated in terms of class. There are no serious political disputes between Czech artisans and their artisan sons. Nor is there any between the managers of multinational companies and their daughters studying economics. Disputes arise where the young still hope to one day become members of the transnational upper class, while their parents have already resigned themselves to such aspirations (or have not even begun to try).
