European politics has gone from complicated to impenetrable

The idea EUEUof a political “left” and “right” originated in revolutionary France: members of the freshly minted National Assembly picked their seats according to their fealty to either the king (they sat on the right) or the people (on the left). For as long as the idea of a political spectrum has existed, there have been complaints that a single axis is inadequate to reflect the complexity of multifaceted civic matters. Still, the idea has proved enduring, even as the meaning of being left- or right-wing has evolved. For people not obsessed with politics, the shorthand provides an adequate framework for understanding the values of those running the country. Care about locking up criminals, rewarding work, defence spending and family values? Tick this box. You favour better public services, giving people second chances, foreign aid and social justice? Tick that one. Other options available on request.From America to India and Japan, voters in democracies the world over will recognise such polarising partisanship. Often there is too much of it. Europe now has too little. Its political waters are muddied as never before. Power in many of the ’s 27 member states has become increasingly fragmented. Beyond left and right, centrist liberals now vie for office, as do greens, on top of populists on either fringe of the spectrum. Bring this electoral jumble up to the quasi-federal European level, where most big decisions are made nowadays, and it becomes impossible to work out what ideas those running the show have in common (not to mention that it can be hard to figure out is running the show). Across Europe, coalitions have long been a cumbersome necessity to form national governments. At the level, you now have coalitions built atop coalitions.