Two steps forward and one step back

https://jacobin.com/2024/11/australia-queensland-election-greens-left

Social change just can’t happen fast. Visionaries push for rapid change but the majority of people are used to certain ways and not comfortable with too much change in too short a time. After every revolution there is a reaction that partially sets thing back at least a couple of steps.

Socialists (unsagaciously) talked about revolution, but Greens generally don’t talk about revolution. The “greening of society” is a long-range movement having many facets. To the extent is involves governmental policy re-directions and/or lifeways changes it is sure to be a case of two steps forward and one step back. There was something of a variegated surge (different paces in different places) during the period 1980 to 2020. Naturally there was a degree of disappointment relative to the highest expectations of the most partisan. Some degrowth measures were experienced as pain or aggravation by the unpartisan. And now we’re in a period of reaction.

The German Greens got about 7% of the vote during the 1980s, 9% during the 1990s, 11% during the 2000s, 13% during the 2010s. They peaked at 15% in 2021. With important national elections slated for February their polling numbers now are down to 10–12%.