Tensions between Israel, Iran and Lebanon are heating up.

Many assume that Greece will be forced to leave the EU and that Spain and Italy must follow.  This could leave Germany with a trillion euro liability—something few Germans want their nation to be responsible for.  Experts and the European press are starting to suggest that the only really feasible option for Germany may be for it to leave and let the EU “sink or swim” on its own (Telegraph, August 21, 2012).

Spain and Portugal are experiencing one of the worst forest fire seasons in recent history.  Forest fires have consumed three times as much area in Spain (January 1-August 5) as they did last year.  Fires also rage fiercely in Spain’s Canary Islands.  About 10 percent of the island of La Gomera has burned, including a quarter of a UNESCO World Heritage nature preserve.  Thousands have been evacuated (BBC, August 14, 2012).

If you think the world has gone crazy or off the deep end, you are not alone. In their book, Future Shock, Alvin and Heidi Toffler described the effect of rapid change on the human psyche. Toffler proposed that an accelerated rate of technological and social change leaves people disconnected, stressed, and disoriented. But, is that the whole reason?

To be sure, many of us may not readily embrace new technologies easily, since we prefer the familiar. But, as it is said, “necessity is the mother of invention”—so people do adapt.

In a recent interview, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair told the German Die Zeit newspaper that it is clear that the eurozone crisis will lead to “powerful political change of the EU,” adding, “And on this point, I am deeply worried that Britain could decide by referendum to leave the whole process” (Fox Business News, August 8, 2012).  Are we seeing the first cracks in Britain’s long-standing relationship with the wider EU community?