Something is dreadfully wrong with Hungary. Worse, what’s wrong with Hungary is not unique in Europe. What’s eating away at a free society in Hungary has metastasized. This same cancer is present elsewhere on the continent, even if it hasn’t come to the attention of diagnosticians.
Back in 1990, after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the countries of East-Central Europe all had a common vision. After half a century yoked to the Soviet Union, the people of this region saw membership in the common European home as a guarantee of democratic governance, economic prosperity, and social stability. Twenty years later, membership in the European Union comes with no guarantees.
As one travels south into the lands of the former Ottoman Empire, the blues became more and more significant in both architecture and music.