Matt is being reductive in his idea of how democracies work. Many don't, after all, possess only two parties. And in those that do, the two parties can contain many different wings. In any case, it's odd to say that "a survey of two-party dynamics would indicate that something roughly resembling the American pattern is the rule rather than the exception." Even in America, that's only occasionally been true. The Dixiecrats and, at times, the Populists, were both strong American political movements that were economically liberal but quite socially conservative. The Populists hated the demon rum (and occasionally the Jews), and the Dixiecrats hated the black people (and occasionally, the Jews). Both, however, were concerned with the wages of of the white working class. And speaking of hating the Jews, the Nazis had a pretty strong redistributionist ethic as well. (And yes, yes, Godwin violation, but sometimes such things are necessary.)
As for the international comparisons, I lack the data, so let's open this up: Are there some strong, socially conservative, economically liberal parties out there?
