José Luís Carneiro is a thoughtful and prepared politician. He was a good Minister of Internal Administration in a Costa government that was falling apart. He is cultured, a good person, and likeable, but as Secretary-General, he has lacked the courage needed to assume true leadership. He kept people exhausted by power or compulsive readers of Machiavelli close to his circle—choosing Santos Silva as strategic coordinator or giving a platform to Carlos César is a sign of a fragility that will condemn him in the long run. This weekend, in Viseu, he will announce the names of independents at the Congress to help him draft the programme. The names already released are a disappointment. Several figures with unassailable backgrounds, but most of them are worn out or dependent on positions, honours, and sycophancy. 'Dear José António, there are so many people whispering in your corridors, making calculations about the right moment, talking about your fragility... I assume you know.' There is no turmoil, fresh blood, people with imagination, or those capable of making the country believe in a vision for the future. Betting on rectors, professors, former public company administrators, or retired politicians is not enough. Do not worry about the Constitutional Court appointments; worry instead about thinking of a new project. Differentiated. With ideas that have not been imagined before. Call on other people: scientists, innovators, people who communicate well, young people under 40 who have their lives to conquer. With grit and freedom. Without that, the desert will be painful for you.