Europe146;s metrosexual allure

According to Michael Flocker8217;s 2003 bestseller, The Metrosexual Guide to Style: A Handbook for the Modern Man, the trendsetting male ic...

According to Michael Flocker8217;s 2003 bestseller, The Metrosexual Guide to Style: A Handbook for the Modern Man, the trendsetting male icons of the 21st century must combine the coercive strengths of Mars and the seductive wiles of Venus. Put simply, metrosexual men are muscular but suave, confident yet image-conscious, assertive yet clearly in touch with their feminine sides. Just consider British soccer star David Beckham. He is married to former Spice Girl Victoria 8220;Posh8221; Adams, but his combination of athleticism and cross-dressing make him a sex symbol to both women and men worldwide, not to mention the inspiration for the 2002 hit movie Bend It Like Beckham. Substance, Beckham shows, is nothing without style.

Geopolitics is much the same. American neoconservatives such as Robert Kagan look down upon feminine, Venus-like Europeans, gibing their narcissistic obsession with building a postmodern, bureaucratic paradise8230; But by cleverly deploying both its hard power and its sensitive side, the European Union EU has become more effective 8212; and more attractive 8212; than the United States on the catwalk of diplomatic clout. Meet the real New Europe: the world8217;s first metrosexual superpower.

Metrosexuals always know how to dress for the occasion or mission. Spreading peace across Eurasia serves US interests, but it8217;s best done by donning Armani pinstripes rather than US Army fatigues. After the fall of Soviet communism, conservative US thinkers feared a united Germany vying with Russia for hegemony in Central Europe. Yet, by brandishing only a slick portfolio of economic incentives, the EU has incorporated many of the former Soviet republics and satellites in the Baltics and Eastern Europe8230;

Metrosexuals may spend a long time standing in front of the mirror, but they never shop alone. Stripping off stale national sovereignty that8217;s so last century, Europeans now parade their 8220;pooled power8221;, the new look for this geopolitical season8230;

Robert Cooper, one of Britain8217;s former defence gurus now shaping Europe8217;s common foreign policy, argues that Europe8217;s 8220;magnetic allure8221; compels countries to rewrite their laws and constitutions to meet European standards. The United States conceives of power primarily in military terms, thus confusing presence with influence. By contrast, Europeans understand power as overall leverage.

Excerpted from an article by Parag Khanna in the July/August issue of 8216;Foreign Policy8217;