The political centre in the western world is confronted by its own trolley problem. It must choose between letting democracy hurtle down the extreme right route, harming most people, or throwing the switch to the left, damaging the interests of the wealthy and privileged. It is refusing to choose - dreaming instead of a third way that cannot, in principle, exist.
'With France seeking profound change, momentum lies only with candidates who promise to upend the status quo' - Lemonde article on French politics, but describing the whole dilemma of western centrists.
It even enumerates, accurately, why voters are seeking profound change -
stagnation or decline in living standards
declining social mobility
declining quality of public services
failure to respond adequately to either the causes or effects of climate-ecological breakdown
- but bizarrely still focuses - as do mainstream political commentators everywhere - on the shortcomings of centrist political parties and personalities, rather than the simple, obvious fact that there are no non-radical solutions to this polycrisis - that no centrist candidate, however charismatic, has anything to offer.
