Harlequin wrote:I do wonder why, it seems, harder Left movements demanding collective decisions, responsibility and power so frequently appear to devolve into worshipping single, individual, Infallible Great Leaders.
In fairness, the right have had their own "personality cults" too.
After all, when you give the Nazi salute, it's accompanied by "Heil Hitler", right?
Not "Heil Deutscheland" nor any other "Heil [insert concept here]" but "Heil [insert Great Leader's name here]".
Which is, of course, all a steal from the Romans anyway. The Nazi salute a distortion of the Roman salute, where you put a fist to your heart with your right hand and then straighten that arm. A gesture similar in style to "blowing a kiss", but the semantics are "countrymen, I give you my heart". So you reach for your heart and then throw it to the crowd (which is why it has to be the right arm doing it, as your heart is slightly to the left side of your chest - the left hand would be giving your countrymen one of your lungs or something, which doesn't quite work).
And, yes, the Roman salute was accompanied by "Hail Caesar!". The Nazis were so unoriginal. Total copyright infringement. The Swastika is also, of course, another stolen meme too.
But this gives you another non-left example - as I doubt anyone would contend that the Roman Empire was ever "leftist" by any measure - and yet we still have that Caesar "personality cult" going on there.
Oh, and one can even, by extension, note that German "Kaiser" and Russian "Tzar" are just distortions of "Caesar" - so, really, the whole concept of kings and monarchy is ultimately a "personality cult" export thing too. After all, rationally, why should we give the slightest shit for Liz Two, or any of her lineage, otherwise?
Why, it's because she's a descendant of some ancient "personality cult" tribal leader and so she's inherited their supposed "magical powers".
Nah, none of this is a "left / right" thing. It's just a "dumb humans" thing.
I presume you know of the Stanley Milgram Experiments, yes?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milgram_experiment
Basically, about 67% of humans are unfortunately still saddled with a vestigial "pack instinct" to kow-tow to "the Alpha".
There was a survival advantage to that back in the days of small nomadic human tribes - just as with packs of wolves, or any other hunting pack animal, you defer to the Alpha Male to make the decisions, to ensure the pack is all on the same page. We do what Alpha says. And if we all do what Alpha says, then that ensures we're all following the same plan, and we don't end up with the pack all going off in their own directions and not acting as "a pack" at all.
Such behaviour can get you killed. Which is why the military, of course, have that whole strict "chain of command" thing. In a dangerous situation, if you don't work together then you risk getting everyone killed.
So, maggot, drop to the floor and give me a hundred. Which is, of course, just enforced "training" in the art of kow-towing to the Alpha and it's harsh to beat all that "individualism" you might have in your soul out of you. Special snowflakes get people killed, so we'll be having none of that here, maggot.
"Words ought to be a little wild - for they are assaults of thought on the unthinking."
- John Maynard Keynes
