Part of the reason for the rise of extremism is economics; the failure in recent decades to generate real income gains for workers and the financial collapse of 2007-2008. Economists argue about the causes for these developments – skill-biased technological change, globalization or political capture (a wealthy elite funds politicians who then devise policies that help the elite). If the first two factors are to blame, then we really need to worry since there is little we can do about it (read The Rise of the Robots, the book that won the FT Business book prize if you want to get depressed).  On the most pessimistic view, one can see such diverse trends as the rise of Le Pen in France, the debate over free speech in American universities and the challenge of Islamic fundamentalism as signs that liberal democracy is in remorseless decline. But history suggests it is more likely to commit suicide (by electing a party that does not believe in it) than to be murdered by outsiders. In the end, one has to hope that the broad mass of the public will turn away from the extremes when faced with the prospect of them getting into government. But someone, somewhere, may even now be finishing the first draft of “The Strange Death of Liberal Democracy”.