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10/4/09

Newsweek: How Europe's Right Stole the Left - by Stefan Theil

For the complete report from Newsweek.com click on this link

How Europe's Right Stole the Left - by Stefan Theil

With Angela Merkel's reelection in Germany on Sept. 27, and her subsequent ejection of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) from the ruling coalition, conservatives have come close to sweeping Europe. Center-right parties now govern Germany, France, Italy, and many historically progressive states like the Netherlands, Denmark, and Sweden. Of continental Europe's major countries, only Spain is now led by a socialist. While the hemorrhaging Labour Party holds on in Britain, it will need a miracle to survive next year's election.

The current crisis, capitalism's worst since the 1930s, should be a triumphant moment for Europe's left-wing parties, which have long warned of the dangers of unchecked markets. Yet instead of celebrating, they are now unraveling through schisms and infighting. In the recent elections, for example, Germany's Social Democrats scored their lowest tally by far since World War II, and have now lost 50 percent of their electoral support since 1998. As Europe's left self-destructs, many of its policies are proving more popular than ever—albeit in unexpected packaging. Conservative leaders are not just stealing votes from the left, they're also stealing ideas. They're cherry-picking what works or is popular with an astonishing ideological flexibility that often escapes the left, which seems to alienate its followers whenever it strays toward the political center.

Comment EU-Digest: The European Left has become an intellectual elitist group which has completely lost contact with its base.

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