Oblivious to danger

Unless something pretty spectacular happens, Greece is at risk of going through a major experiment in political anthropology over the next few years, having to learn whether the country can be governed under a system of simple proportional representation. Greece has never managed to function under such a system without ending up in trouble and eventually looking for powerful leaders and other electoral models.

Greece has never had the culture of consensus found in northern Europe and local politics has always been a zero-sum game. The politicians of old were more experienced and knew how far the country could fall, yet they repeatedly made a mess of things because they could not communicate. Today's politicians are unaware of the risks involved and their game is all about crushing the opponent. Institutions, meanwhile, are used as tools in this game of power.

Now we...