Tea at Trianon: The Two Surest Signs of the Totalitarian Impulse

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Friday, May 24, 2024

The Two Surest Signs of the Totalitarian Impulse

From Chronicles:

The disordered thinking behind leftist ideology is most readily discerned in its aim to spread paranoia and dependence throughout the populace. The left intends for these feelings of uncertainty to render people more malleable and docile. That way, they will more readily accept the fundamental transformation of America from a republic built upon God-given rights and self-evident truths into a virulently secular society that oppresses all dissent.

The left falsely imagines they are in a battle against a conservative “fascist establishment,” despite having captured both the administrative state and the administration ostensibly designed to run it. Meanwhile, they have adopted a tactic from real historical fascism, specifically, the use of fear and greed as political motivators.

Setting aside the abject moral, philosophical, and policy failings of woke ideology, there is a practical problem associated with instilling paranoia and dependence throughout the populace: It requires coercion and a controlled environment.

The diktats of federal, state, and county governments, corporate powerbrokers, and academe’s cosseted satraps are a good example. These entities all mandate that those over whom they have any measure of control must participate in the indoctrination through DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) training. It is not a coincidence that these 21^st-century struggle sessions are held behind closed doors and with captive audiences. The ceremonies of this secular creed require secrecy. (Read more.)