The headline is perplexing, and I don't understand it much better in context: "In many other countries, there are lots of smaller parties at either end of the

The headline is perplexing, and I don't understand it much better in context: "In many other countries, there are lots of smaller parties at either end of the political spectrum. That’s why Switzerland is as heavily polarized as other highly polarized countries like the USA." I think the idea is that Switzerland's multiple parties are drifting further apart -- the right-wing ones are moving further right, and the left-wing ones are moving further left. I gather that's what sociologists mean by "polarized": the opinions are increasingly different. But when I think of polarization in the US, that also includes the intensity of feeling. The US has reached the point where both sides are accusing each other of criminality. One Presidential candidate has been convicted of a crime and is on trial for several more. He claims that this is the result of persecution. Either way, at least one side (possibly both) is committing malfeasance. Both parties accuse the other of manipulating the electoral system, including fraudulent votes. And individuals show a deep level of antipathy for each other, including threats of violence. So I think I perhaps understand the statement as true, viewed the way they view it, but it's not the way I think of that expression.