It's easy to cherry-pick the top five European countries and compare them to the USA. It's apples and oranges, though; the entities the USA is most comparable to are the European Union, Russian Federation, People's Republic of China, and India. Our population is over 300 million and one of the most diverse in the world. A country like Finland (bascially 5 million white progressives) would more fairly be compared to a state like Vermont, just as Greece would more fairly be compared to a state like Alabama. Getting this country to move in one direction is like herding cats, and just when you think you've got us figured out we'll go the other way (Baby Boomers retiring, Gen X taking over). We have several distinct regions with different needs and different outlooks, and nobody can juggle them so everyone is happy; but we have a strong central government with a winner-take-all election system, so one group can basically control the whole country if they get the presidency and a majority of congress. This seems tailor-made for increasing polarization over time. Under the circumstances, I can't say I'm ashamed of how we manage.
We should have had a parliament.
We should have had a parliament.
