Wut? The EU in the Merkel years went through some complex growth crisis; she helped resolving them in ways that undeniably benefited Germany and, in some cases, helped the bloc as well. Some of her choices (Schaußle...) weren’t great, but she hardly killed the EU project single-handedly - the project is actually very much alive, with commissioners increasingly flexing their muscles towards the world at large. If anything, she’s managed to keep some contradictory stances together for longer than many expected.

> modern

I don't know: digital rights, digital privacy, climate change? Those all sounds fairly modern to me.

> heavyweight

What other large political institution in the world says "Nope, not with our citizens" to big data, and actually sees it through?

> the demise of Europe

has been greatly exaggerated.