For the European Union and its people the month of August has been gloomy, overcast with melancholy even in those places where the sun has refused to give in to calls for austerity, where cicadas – by nature “Mediterranean”– have continued steadfastly to make themselves heard. On the Greek islands, VAT rose from 16% to 24% even though transport makes goods more expensive there; even though, too, the state is failing there more than elsewhere, many islands not having a hospital worthy...