Beyond the pale

Europe says no to Ukraine's greasy clowns

Egalitarian politics is ever a mixture of leveling up and leveling down. Attempts to focus exclusively on one poll will fail, because they’re both important.

Z is solidly in the leveling-down camp. He and his lieutenants have kept Ukraine outside Europe’s pale for more than a year.

Pales for centuries have been enforced in various European countries for political reasons, notably in Ireland (the Pale of Dublin), France (the Pale of Calais) and later Russia (the Pale of Settlement).

The term 'pale' (черта́ осе́длости) means literally the area enclosed by such fence and figuratively 'the area that is enclosed and safe.' To be beyond it means being outside the area accepted as 'home.'