Europe is reeling in the aftermath of the parliamentary elections. The results are ricocheting around the world. “Stark warning from Europe’s voters,” announces the Financial Times together with a picture of Marine Le Pen laughing. “Growing nationalism could prove disruptive,” warns The Wall Street Journal. “Populists’ rise in European vote shakes leaders,” joins them The New York Times. “A very European country,” jokes The Economist about Britain, where eurosceptics rule the roost. “What next for the battered losers?” asks The Guardian together with a picture of François Hollande frowning. Among the online newspaper I regularly read, only Der Spiegel is kind of upbeat about the results. “A victory for European democracy,” the newspaper blares. Surprise? Not exactly. For Germany is Europe already. So, why bother with the European Union? At best, it is a backdrop for German power. And this is what the voters across the subcontinent seem to understand much better than their leaders. Hooray!