We've heard a lot about extremism recently. A nastier, harsher atmosphere everywhere, more abuse, less friendliness and tolerance and respect for opponents.
All right. But what we never hear about extremism is its advantages.
Well, the biggest advantage of extremism is that it makes you feel good because it provides you with enemies.
Thirty years ago John Cleese discussed the benefits of extremism
Let me explain. The great thing about having enemies is that you can pretend that all the badness in the whole world is in your enemies and all the goodness in the whole world is in you. Attractive, isn't it? So, if you have a lot of anger and resentment in you anyway, and you therefore enjoy abusing people, then you can pretend that you're only doing it because these enemies of yours are such very bad persons and that if it wasn't for them, you'd actually be good-natured and courteous and rational all the time.
So if you want to feel good, become an extremist. Okay?
Now you have a choice.
If you join the hard left, they'll give you their list of authorized enemies. Almost all kinds of authority, especially the police, the city, Americans, judges, multinational corporations, public schools, friars, newspaper owners, fox hunters, generals, class traitors, and of course, moderates.
Or if you'd rather be an extremist on the hard right, no problem. Fine. You still get a lovely list of enemies. Only they're different ones. Noisy minority groups, unions, Russia, weirdos, demonstrators, welfare sponges, meddlesome clergy, peace, the BBC, strikers, social workers, communists, and of course, moderates and upstart actors.
Now, once you're armed with one of these super lists of enemies, you can be as nasty as you like and yet feel your behaviors morally justified.
So, you can strut around abusing people and telling them you could eat them for breakfast and still think of yourself as a champion of the truth, a a fighter for the greater good and not the rather sad, paranoid schizoid that you really are.
It would be a disaster if they ever got into power or held on to power. That's all we must get into power or hold on to power. But that's going to be a tremendous fight, a terrific struggle. And we can't relax and enjoy ourselves. No, we must struggle and fight and fight and struggle and struggle and struggle and fight and fight against these enemies and then struggle a little bit more at the end of that.
Just about the only disadvantage to extremism is that it can never solve problems.
But then solving problems is a real bore compared with hailing victory and swearing to smash capitalism and crush socialism and generally feeling good. I mean solving problems involves frustrating things like listening to people with different views and learning from them which of course breaks the first rule of politics. No other parties ideas are any good. |
