--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The old battle between Christian…" description: "\"The old battle between Christian Democrats and Social Democrats is now meaningless, not least because the social structures that underlay those parties..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/anne-applebaum-2544_battle_the-old-battle-between-christian-democra_2517411.jpg" --- # The old battle between Christian Democrats and Social… ![“The old battle between Christian Democrats and Social Democrats is now meaningless, not least because the social structures that underlay those parties, the church and the unions, have faded away. Nationalists and populists understood this change earlier; now the rest of the political world needs…” quote by Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/anne-applebaum-2544_battle_the-old-battle-between-christian-democra_2517411.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/anne-applebaum-2544_battle_the-old-battle-between-christian-democra_2517411.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b14/anne-applebaum-2544_battle_the-old-battle-between-christian-democra_2517411.jpg) > “The old battle between Christian Democrats and Social Democrats is now meaningless, not least because the social structures that underlay those parties, the church and the unions, have faded away. Nationalists and populists understood this change earlier; now the rest of the political world needs to understand that the political lines have been redrawn and it's time to change.” [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Traditional party identities have eroded as underlying social institutions like churches and unions decline, making old political divisions obsolete. **In simple terms:** Old party lines no longer matter because social foundations have faded. Key Takeaway Recognize new political realities and adapt strategies. Themes politics party realignment social change Mood analytical concerned Type political commentary When to use this quote - election campaigning - policy development - voter outreach - party strategy - media analysis Key Concepts institutional decay ideological shift populism Questions to Reflect On - How do you see political identities evolving? - What new alliances are emerging? A Different Perspective New alignments may create uncertainty and resistance among established voters. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Battle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/battle/) [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Christian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian/) [Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Democrat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democrat/) [Party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/party/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Populist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/populist/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Social structure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-structure/) [Structure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/structure/) [Time To Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-to-change/) [Unions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unions/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [When the concept of Social Security came before the House, every Republican but one voted against it. Had it not been for the Democrats,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-rayburn/when-the-concept-of-social-security-came-before-the-house-every/) [Sam Rayburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-rayburn/) > [The Christian Democrats always made you feel like the poor relation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helmut-kohl/the-christian-democrats-always-made-you-feel-like-the-poor-relation/) [Helmut Kohl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helmut-kohl/) > [“Whatever their other differences, French Gaullists, Christian Democrats and Socialists shared a common faith in the activist state, economic planning and large-scale public investment.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-judt/whatever-their-other-differences-french-gaullists-christian-democrats/) [Tony Judt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-judt/) > [“Don't get politics mixed up in this. It's all about money and it makes no difference if the Social Democrats or the moderates appoint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stieg-larsson/don-t-get-politics-mixed-up-in-this-it-s-all-about-money-and-it-makes/) [Stieg Larsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stieg-larsson/) > [We Social-Democrats always stand for democracy, not "in the name of capitalism," but in the name of clearing the path for our movement, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/we-social-democrats-always-stand-for-democracy-not-in-the-name-of/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) > [The pacifist streak in German politics is a problem. But Greens and Social Democrats have to ask themselves: In an imperfect world, what do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-glees/the-pacifist-streak-in-german-politics-is-a-problem-but-greens-and/) [Anthony Glees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-glees/) > [We are not jumping on the austerity bandwagon. A healthy economy is by far the most important thing for Social Democrats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helle-thorning-schmidt/we-are-not-jumping-on-the-austerity-bandwagon-a-healthy-economy-is-by/) [Helle Thorning-Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helle-thorning-schmidt/) > [“somewhat different. Many European countries have long practiced something resembling social democracy: but they have forgotten how to preach it. Social democrats today are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-judt/somewhat-different-many-european-countries-have-long-practiced/) [Tony Judt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-judt/) > [Since the crash of 2008 and during the neoliberal retrenchment known as austerity, many commentators have muttered that the left is dead, watching social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-standing/since-the-crash-of-2008-and-during-the-neoliberal-retrenchment-known/) [Guy Standing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-standing/) > [“When, then, the Social Democrat worker found himself in the economic crisis which degraded him to the status of a coolie, the development of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/when-then-the-social-democrat-worker-found-himself-in-the-economic/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [The membership survey was a great moment for inner-party democracy. We can't go back, nor do we want to. Our members are pouring their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/the-membership-survey-was-a-great-moment-for-inner-party-democracy-we/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [We, the Social Democrats, are convinced that capitalism needs to be tamed a second time. The first time we achieved that in Germany for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmar-gabriel/we-the-social-democrats-are-convinced-that-capitalism-needs-to-be/) [Sigmar Gabriel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmar-gabriel/) > [“Socialism for social democrats, especially in Scandinavia, was a distributive concept. It was about making sure that wealth and assets were not disproportionately gathered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-judt/socialism-for-social-democrats-especially-in-scandinavia-was-a/) [Tony Judt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-judt/) > [Social democrats are characteristically modest - a political quality whose virtues are overestimated. We need to apologise a little less for our shortcomings and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-judt/social-democrats-are-characteristically-modest-a-political-quality/) [Tony Judt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-judt/) > [We in Germany could, for example, lower taxes. And who is against that? The Social Democrats. We could also mobilize more private investments for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-schauble/we-in-germany-could-for-example-lower-taxes-and-who-is-against-that/) [Wolfgang Schauble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-schauble/) ## More by Anne Applebaum > [Quite a lot has been written, including by me, about the effect of social media on politics, and in particular the way in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/quite-a-lot-has-been-written-including-by-me-about-the-effect-of/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [After Trump became president, it was really too late to investigate his dodgy investments in Azerbaijan or his links to Russian money laundering. Those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/after-trump-became-president-it-was-really-too-late-to-investigate/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [If Reagan and John Paul II were linked by anything, it was a grand, ambitious, and generous idea of Western political civilization, one in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/if-reagan-and-john-paul-ii-were-linked-by-anything-it-was-a-grand/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Until the attack on Pearl Harbor, isolationism was an important, even dominant strand in U.S. politics. After the Second World War, this strand disappeared,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/until-the-attack-on-pearl-harbor-isolationism-was-an-important-even/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [The U.S.S.R. was a totalitarian state in which judges and prosecutors were controlled by the ruling party. 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Amending the constitution is a long and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/unlike-most-european-countries-the-police-in-the-us-are-decentralized/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [The hard truth is that Trump was not exceptional. He was just another amoral Western businessman, one of many whom the ex-KGB elite have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/the-hard-truth-is-that-trump-was-not-exceptional-he-was-just-another/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Politics in Slovakia had long been a battle between egotistical men. Caputova sought to be the anti-ego alternative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/politics-in-slovakia-had-long-been-a-battle-between-egotistical-men/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [European security may now depend on Germany, France, Britain and one or two others, and it's better to start planning now for the possibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/european-security-may-now-depend-on-germany-france-britain-and-one-or/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Americans might not want to intervene in the outside world, but the outside world will still want to intervene in America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/americans-might-not-want-to-intervene-in-the-outside-world-but-the/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) > [Romney was an excellent businessman with a strong record as a public servant - whereas Trump inherited wealth, went bankrupt more than once, created…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-applebaum/romney-was-an-excellent-businessman-with-a-strong-record-as-a-public/) [Anne Applebaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) [Explore all 161 Anne Applebaum quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-applebaum/) ## More Battle quotes > [In the battle for police reform, accountability and justice, Americans don't have to re-invent the wheel. 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But...hear this: I think that maybe in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-fletcher/which-people-take-the-time-to-care-for-their-souls-these-days-i/) [Susan Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-fletcher/) > [Only great and general battles can produce great results](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/only-great-and-general-battles-can-produce-great-results/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [Life is a battle of wits, and many people have to fight it unarmed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-esar/life-is-a-battle-of-wits-and-many-people-have-to-fight-it-unarmed/) [Evan Esar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-esar/) > [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [There's little in taking or giving, There's little in water or wine: This living, this living, this living, Was never a project of mine.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-parker/there-s-little-in-taking-or-giving-there-s-little-in-water-or-wine/) [Dorothy Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-parker/) > [When I step into the batters box. The fans, the noise, the cheers, they all disappear. For that moment, the world is just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft-shelley/when-i-step-into-the-batters-box-the-fans-the-noise-the-cheers-they/) [Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft-shelley/) > [I knew Jimmy Dean. 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But whatever they are,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-walter/for-many-people-it-s-facebook-or-sports-on-tv-whatever-it-is-i-have/) [Jess Walter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-walter/) [Browse all 4,526 Battle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/battle/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The old battle between Christian Democrats and Social Democrats is now meaningless, not least because the social structures that underlay those parties, the church and the unions, have faded away. 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