 Christoffer Green-Pedersen, The Conflict of Conflicts in Comparative Perspective: Euthanasia as a Political Issue in Denmark, Belgium, and the Netherlands Political science has never paid much comparative attention to what Schattschneider called the ˇ°conflict of conflicts.ˇ± However, this question is becoming increasingly important as the conflict structure in many western countries is breaking up. Is the ability to link an issue to an already existing conflict in the party system crucial for it to become a political issue? This question is addressed through a study of the issue of euthanasia in Denmark, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Euthanasia became a political issue in the Netherlands and Belgium because it was linked to the religious/secular conflict in the party system. As a consequence of the politicization, the Netherlands and Belgium have legalized euthanasia. |