It seems that the Ateneu 'beats'

The candidacy L'Ateneu batega, headed by filmmaker Isona Passola, has managed to retain the Ateneu's executive chair, thus prevailing over the return of the entity's former president, Jordi Casassas. Each associate wears a particular hat to analyze the world and will discuss the causes of this result. But the Ateneu does not live isolated from the dynamics of the planet in general (on the contrary, it usually anticipates them, and therein lies its charm!) and I would say that my dear Ateneu members have especially valued the household economy ---with a notoriously reduced historical deficit--- and the magnificent renovation works of the building in a moderniqui style. Likewise, if I get a little Freudian, I would also dare to affirm that most of the more veteran members of La Docta liked that Passola favors a certain generational change, with a greater presence of young people in the little garden, but well tutored by the presence of their parents.

In any case, I celebrate that the pandemic anomaly of Passola's first term, which could not be submitted to the members' vote due to the inclemency of the pesky Wuhan bug, has finally ended. In this sense, it should be noted that the participation in these elections ---30.8% of the members--- has notoriously decreased compared to the 2017 elections, where Moors, Christians, and adherents who happened to be passing by managed the monstrosity of reaching 40.2%; I hope that the data is not a product of a more indolent social mass and that, as the winners' motto says, the organism still beats with good health, perhaps even with a certain tachycardia. Despite my vote, consciously blank, I am glad that Passola has revalidated the position; I do not entirely share her project, but I have seen her work very hard, unafraid to promote changes and risk the momentary wear and tear they entailed. That takes balls.

That said, and as became clear in the presidential debate on March 18, the partners of the house have experienced a certainly bland electoral campaign, much more focused on reproaches than on proposals. I deeply respect former president Jordi Casassas, but I would dare to say that going against the grain without proposing many alternatives, combined with a certain nostalgia for an Ateneu of other times through a rather Trumpian slogan (ironies of life), has penalized the hypothetical enthusiasm of his base; on the other hand, the undeniable fact that he himself went to look for Passola to encourage her to preside over the Ateneu took away much of the reason for his curious idea of returning to the command zone. Be that as it may, it has saddened me to see two candidates immersed in a campaign that was too domestic (in the most literal sense of the term), obsessed with how the pantry is managed, whether there is a table to eat at, and so on.

The Ateneu always marks the temperature of the health of our time and, I insist to all those we refer to with the wonderful concept of no socis, it usually anticipates the country's palpitations. In this sense, I dare to say that we live in a present where management (however good it may be) has replaced ideas and where cultural risk lives under veiled control. In this sense, it is surprising that neither of the two candidates has been able to explain to us ---even with a very simple phrase--- what an entity like the Ateneu should be in 2025. By this I do not mean that overused and cheesy thing about those who say that everything must now be rethought in light of artificial intelligence, the war in Ukraine, Trump's fake news and his aunt on a scooter. It's not that; the basic issue would rather be to ask how the Ateneu can once again become a referential, learned, and groundbreaking entity at a time when the nation suffers an eternal siesta.

I don't accuse anyone of lack of ambition in their answers; often, when I waste time and health smoking in the Jardí Romàntic of the house, I ask myself this very question and can't quite reach any conclusion. But, at least, I like to confront the issue. In any case, there are questions that are answered with time, and it will be interesting to see how this Ateneu evolves, which, indeed, seems to batega. I will end, however, by giving a very paternalistic piece of advice to the young people of the house; don't let yourselves be bought for too low a price. Try, at least, to raise the stakes.