It’s important to realize that “left” and “right,” whatever those labels are worth to begin with, are relative in different countries. I laughed when I read a Wall Street Journal report on Europe’s move to the “right”; leaders like Sarkozy have their problems, but he, like every leader in every western European nation, is never going to dismantle the middle class’ support system. It’s far to popular with, well, the middle class. And its benefits for the region as a whole (low poverty levels, low incarceration levels, good, affordable health care) are obvious to politicians of all major parties. That’s a gigantic difference between the US and most other industrialized countries. Yet it’s so simple, I have to assume that many American pundits intentionally disregard it in order to misrepresent politics in the rest of the world. In your case, however, I presume you just don’t know how European politics work. It’s worth a little bit of study, especially if you’re planning on sharing your thoughts with the world.

Yes, you read that right: Angela Merkel is, by the warped standards of American “conservatives,” something close to a Green. Sorry to burst your bubble.

As Germany goes so goes the world? You’re funny dude.

The Christian Democrats, who can hardly be called conservative by American standards, lost ground since the 2005 election. Based on preliminary results, they dropped from 35.2 percent of the vote in 2005 to 33.8 percent in 2009.

The Social Democrats did indeed lose 11 percent, but those votes went left, not right.

The Free Democratic Party, a liberal party, gained about 5 percent.

Die Linke, The Left Party, gained about 3 percent.

The Greens gained about 3 percent.

(Minor parties gained about 2 percent).