Read Michel de Montaigne, for our balance 

In his column, former Federal Councillor Pascal Couchepin shares a book that has left a lasting impression on him. This month, he discusses Montaigne's Essais, still invaluable today.

What to read in this politically twilight period, when certainties are crumbling in the whirlwind of events? Our democratic societies liked to refer to several sources of inspiration, including the Enlightenment of the 18th century. In this tradition, reason was the key to perpetual peace. Hence the creation of new, universal institutions such as the League of Nations and the United Nations Organization, which were to be the guardians of international law. At the time, there was a great deal of optimism that reason would inspire sustainable solutions, albeit with the occasional coordinated and measured use of force.