“The center, the most formless of monsters, consistently understood the law of the hour. It made itself into the protagonist, even solo entertainer on the posthistorical stage. Whatever it touches becomes, just like itself, docile, characterless, and despotic. Yesterday’s agents of extremist impatience have become unemployed and are no longer offered any parts to play in the zeitgeist. What is called for now are resilient bores. What is expected of them is to sit around big tables to corne up with the world formula of compromise. The relentlessly soft center creates hybrids out of everything.” —P. Sloterdijk