Polarisation rises alongside expanding government

Politicians and policy experts like to talk about the "root causes" of crime, homelessness, poverty, rising prices and other problems.

- Pierre Lemieux, The Independent

If they want to understand the root cause of political polarisation, they might want to consider the whole picture and look in the mirror.

In a book published 40 years ago, economist and political philosopher Anthony de Jasay (1925-2019) proposed an explanation that did not receive the attention it deserved. Born in Hungary and trained as an economist at Oxford University, de Jasay spent most of his professional life as a banker and financier in France. He published his first book, "The State," in 1985; it was republished in America in 1998.

In de Jasay's view, politics is necessarily polarizing. It is just a matter of degree. The larger the scope of the state (the entire apparatus of government), the more politics you have. And more politics leads to more polarisation.

With the state extending its reach nearly continuously since what de Jasay called "the brilliant 19th century," you may even be surprised that polarisation has not yet reached the breaking point (though some may argue it came close with the advance of communist parties in Western European countries after World War II).