It’s the culture, stupid

THE rise of the populist right in the West, demonstrated most recently by the impressive success of the far-right political parties in the election to the European Parliament, has led political scientists and journalists to once again try to explain this phenomenon.

According to conventional wisdom these political developments that have led, among other things, to Brexit and the election of Donald Trump in 2016 reflect the growing disenchantment among members of the middle class in Western Europe and North America with the social-economic effects of globalisation.

In a nutshell, the collapse of the manufacturing sectors in Western economies like the United States, France and Germany, resulting from the growing competition with China and other emerging economies, and leading to rising unemployment and lower standards of living, has produced rising discontent with the reigning political and economic elites. That in turn manifested itself in the electoral success of Trumpism and other populist and nationalist movements.