The thing about Australia is that voting is mandatory. By definition this makes it difficult for politicians radicalising the edges to pull the mass of the normal curve away from the centre. In the US the opposite is true. The radicalised are more incentivised to turn up and vote than the centrist mass. So much so that the last 40 years has seen the hollowing out of the centre and this ridiculous (to my eyes) seesawing of extremes.
What I’m trying to explain is that (successful) politics in Australia doesn’t stray too far from the centre of the body politic. As a result there’s greater faith in institutions here than in the US. It’s far less alarming to us (conceptually) than it is to Americans.
What I’m trying to explain is that (successful) politics in Australia doesn’t stray too far from the centre of the body politic. As a result there’s greater faith in institutions here than in the US. It’s far less alarming to us (conceptually) than it is to Americans.