The Washington Post has a short review of three new books lamenting the possible end of Western democratic capitalism. The rise of China is but one challenge – citizens in West are also becoming more and more disinterested in freedom and more and more interested in holidays and sports cars.

Why this is posed as a battle between Western democracy and authoritarianism is somewhat befuddling. It seems much easier to see it as a defeat of democracy by capitalism. The tension is certainly not new, we’ve just recently forgotten about the tensions.