A good way to analyze a political system or idea is to take them to their logical conclusions. Granted, every system will eventually run into problems given the flawed nature of man, yet some do so quicker than others.
This level of analysis can certainly be applied to macro systems such as capitalism and communism. Yet, within the spectrum of democratic governments today, there are a number of differing approaches to parliamentary composition which are often treated as equivalent when in fact their end results are widely divergent.
A great example of the proportional system of parliamentary composition taken to its logical conclusion is Israel. Israel has a meager 3% margin to clear to enter the Knesset during elections, and as a result the Knesset is home to around 13 parties, parties which can be further divided into sub-factions and blocs of their own. This incredibly splintered legislature has led to a great amount of balkanization in Israeli politics, as voters are able to break down into more and more niche groupings. While at face value this seems like a good way to ensure the people are heard, governing coalitions in proportional systems are forced to appease right or left wing parties which are outside of the political mainstream.
These problems facing Israel are being felt in nations using proportional representation worldwide. In Sweden, it took months for a government to form in the due to neither the right or left bloc being able to govern without working together or including the populist right Sweden Democrats. In Austria the government of Sebastian Kurz has been drawn rightwards by their coalition partner the FPO, another right-populist party which has come to power via proportional representation.
Israel, given its incredibly precarious position in the Middle East and the scores of groups seeking to do them harm, might consider reforming their electoral system to help avoid future political instability akin to that of recent months. First past the post or a hybrid system like Italy’s could help undo the fracturing of Israel’s political scene and ensure continued moderation in political discourse by discouraging demagoguery of all sorts.