I spent a year in Western Europe - France - as an exchange student when I was eighteen. I don't pretend to have a huge insight on Europe as a result, but I do have a bit more than most Canadians and Americans. I have a deep respect for the depth of historical connection in Europe - the way a family can live on the same property as a ruined castle and hardly ever go in it because it's just part of the landscape. North Americans don't get that. They don't understand about memories going back centuries and spanning four or five different, completely separate regimes. The idea that Serbians routinely recall to mind a battle that was fought hundreds of years ago against the Turks is totally foreign to us over here - which means the effect of that depth of culture is totally foreign, too.

Meanwhile, I love the optimism of North America. We believe that, if we work at it, we can accomplish anything - because we have. To some extent, we gave that back to Europe after Europe had long since lost it under centuries of, "It's always been this way."

I tend to take the long view, too, and I tend towards optimism in my politics. I think Hungary will come into itself as a modern nation within my lifetime, because it's already most of the way there.