Here’s another perspective on things: Curtis Yarvin, AKA “Mencius Moldbug”, has published an essay today about the 2020 election. In it he describes himself as being “so pro-Trump, I wrap all the way around to pro-Biden.”
Yarvin makes an important point about the difference between traditional American conservatism and all forms of Leftism: subsidiarian, small-government conservatism is all about checking and distributing power – which gives it an intrinsic, permanent, and colossal disadvantage. This is inherent in the system devised by the Founders, which sought in all its forms to prevent the consolidation of power in any political official or faction, and to reserve it to state and local government. The ultimate aim — the “final cause” — of the system they devised was to maximize individual liberty, which is of course the exact opposite of imperium. But the American system has an exploitable vulnerability, which was recognized at the time of the Founding by everyone involved: without unanimity, among a virtuous civil society, as to the appropriate final cause, a faction that knew what to do and how to do it could gradually infiltrate and corrupt everything. “The price of liberty is eternal vigilance”, goes the old saying. John Adams put it this way:
Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.
No Constitution, real or imagined, can provide a suitable form for unsuitable people. The Constitution is, after all, only a piece of paper, and has no more power than any other piece of paper, save by the will and fealty of the people it purportedly governs.
Here’s Yarvin:
Progressives see power as an end; conservatives see power as a means to an end. As soon as conservatives get even a sliver of power, they start trying to use this power to create good outcomes. This is irrational.
The rational way to use power is the progressive way: to make more power. Your power grows exponentially. Eventually you have all the power, and can get all the outcomes you want.
There is not one progressive idea which does not yield a power dividend. I cannot think of a conservative idea that does. If one did, the progressives would steal it. Then the conservatives would persuade themselves to oppose it, and all would be well.
This is not a coincidence. The great flaw of the American right is that, besides not being able to get any real power, they do not want any real power, and have no idea what they would do with any real power.
From later in the essay, here are a few words about the result (if result it should turn out to be, once the appeals are over):
Accelerationists who voted for China Joe will be disappointed. Nothing will speed up. All the gas in the regime’s tank is coming from Trump. As soon as Trump is out, the panzer death sportscar custom-built to guzzle his pure octane will sputter to a crawl.
Once as the Trump administration is over, no one has anything to fear or hate. No threat could ever be as exciting as the racist rapist in the White House. No Malibu hausfrau will ever again feel like she is in the French Resistance. After Prohibition, breweries could still sell nonalcoholic beer. This is journalism after Trump.
Why was I pro-Biden? Because I longed to see my enemies cast out into the cold, uncaring wind of poverty and despair. Why were you pro-Trump? Because you loved seeing your enemies grow huge and fat and hard? I like to win. I hate to get owned. How about you, my based friend?
By March or April, America’s ruling class will feel like Hunter Biden on a Tuesday morning. Hunter reflects. He knows he left his pipe somewhere. He’s not sure where. What he knows is that this world, which as recently as mimosa brunch on Sunday was still burning with the rainbow fire of a hundred suns exploding in H-bomb supernova pornstar orgasms while galaxies collide, is an ugly, boring place. A sterile promontory. A foul and pestilent congregation of vapors… also, something sticky is stuck to his ass. He’ll get to it in a minute… oh, man…
For four years, the regime is stuck with a spokesmodel who combines the charisma of Leonid Brezhnev with the probity of Willie Brown. China Joe is getting no younger. His circuits already wrestle visibly with every solar flare. He did bring a backup unit, who has the charisma of Linda Blair and was once the protegée of Willie Brown. Is God supposed to hand us something better?
Take the time to read the whole thing, here.
20 Comments
I generally agree with Yarvin in this case.
If Trump concedes, or loses in court, the wind behind the sails of the establishment left will have utterly disappeared.
CNN/MSNBC/NYT/NPR have structured their entire programming model around hating and defeating Drumpf.
Once he’s gone, they will have nowhere to turn except on themselves, which they have already assuredly done.
I’m suddenly reminded of something I’m pretty sure was first brought to my attention ’round these parts’ a relative “long time ago.”
https://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/we-blew-it
And that didn’t even address what had taken place when, with fawning bi-partisan support, GW & Co LLC nullified the Fourth Amendment (and what else!) with its ironically titled “Patriot” Act.
All our “hope” (if hope it can be) lies with the good citizens of Georgia (like I just said ‘if “hope” it can be’) to prevent the whole house of cards to be taken by the Left.
I won’t be holding my breath.
Here in Central Europe communism fell after 40 years. Let’s hope Yarvin will enjoy the victory sooner.
Where in Central Europe are you, rpt? (I have an especial fondness for Austria.)
What Malcolm asked as well…I too have a fondness for the region—college in Austria and “other matters” in Hungary and Czech-o-Slovakia.
Total 180 from his WuFlu take, which I thought was awful. Thanks for sharing it.
On another happy note, AOC is talking about leaving politics completely because there aren’t enough extremists among the Dems.
I too enjoy Austria and Hungary.
Czechia, former Czechoslovakia. I know a few people around here who are not excited about the current development in the U.S. Godspeed to your true president.
And there’s also; this is a color revolution, and yes we are quite following the script –
Minus interestingly the street protests. Perhaps the Left has lost its nerve at taking the final plunge. Or is waiting.
Or its too cold now lol.
Er – ah – The Deep state is good at destabilizing, not good at aftermath, ahem. See Iraq, Libya, Ukraine, Syria. I can go on, see also Ferguson, Baltimore, Manhattan, Rochester.
But that’s not the worst part.
The worst part is when the rest of you find out how shallow these people are, some of us already know. The worst part is they may even now not quite realize what we do ~ they live here too.
BTW Malcolm I notice you left out Moldbug’s prescriptions for crossing the Rubicon. 5 Rubicons actually. That may be an error. In all humility, and its your blog. Why? Because these steps are logical, obvious and indeed may well be taken anyway – against us.
Moldbug may be warning us.
He is a defector you know.
Also – this is easily the soundest advice he’s ever given, UR was always very obscurantist – by design.
“The worst part is when the rest of you find out how shallow these people are”… well, its hard for them to have any depth when all they are is an insatiable appetite.
BTW, “the rest of you”? Asking for an e-pal.
vxxc,
I only offered a couple of brief excerpts; I don’t like quoting too much from links that I want people to make the effort to go and read.
As for the Left crossing the 5 Rubicons – why would they bother? They already rule pretty much everything. Why provoke the frogs? It’s much simpler (and safer) just to keep on slowly boiling them.
If Yarvin suggests that the Left would be at a loss for boogeymen, for new “gas in the regime’s tank,” I’m surprised at him. There are many long campaigns they would need to wage domestically against dissenters, Trumpist holdouts, obnoxious institutions etc–Leftist consolidation is a messy, perpetual process, that continues right up to Collapse. And then there are foreign boogeymen they’ll need to sort out.
“Once as the Trump administration is over, no one has anything to fear or hate.” I can’t take Yarvin seriously when he says things like this.
Malcolm,
I agree that it would be much safer way for the Left if they can succeed in getting the frog all the way back into the pot.
Can they?
The Frog is halfway out, and Biden ‘being President of all Americans’ and Drudge’s call for unity ;) may not be sufficiently reassuring.
[Drudge calling for Unity is too much].
I think the Left and the Elites are executing a color revolution quite absent it seems feedback on the last few, in fact all of them save Lebanon’s Cedar Revolution.
The rest of the Color Revolutions did not work out, and they’ve delegitimized the state no matter who rules.
vxxc,
Quite so. The American state of 2020, from the perspective of the Founding, would be almost completely unrecognizable. It would be seen, rightly, as a bloated, monstrous perversion of the nation they thought they had created.
I would only add I consider Yarvin’s take A possibility, not THE possibility for the direction of a Biden administration.
In other news, the NY State Bar is calling for mandatory vax if, ‘voluntary measures fail.’
That sounds like Pol Pot and the Mark of the Beast rolled into one.
no moldbug, so no cathedral?
so the bureaucrat he questioned did not want to elimnate (or greatly reduce) DOE, CIA, HHS, DOA, NIH, EPA and all the other worthless agencies. guess that is just my dream.
got the ‘I’m ruled by the ruling class’ blues
@whitewall,
The rest of you being the Commons.
Or people who haven’t seen these humps inaction.
Which usually follows the “regime change” action, aka “democracy”.
Now if your war is getting fat on contracts from afar, contracts that prolong conflict this is sociopathic but understandable.
If you live in the country its not understandable, its the madness of shallow criminals with degrees that don’t understand what they just did.
Short version WW; most Americans haven’t seen these creatures and don’t realize how utterly inadequate they are to finish even what they have now set in motion.
Just like Iraq, Afghani democracy ???? and Libya.
Right now Victoria Nuland is on the phone saying “ F—k “ someone or something ~ not realizing she and the rest have gone and F—d themselves and everyone else in Color Revolution America.
I wouldn’t take something like “the rest of you” personally WW – unless that’s your morning thing.
Cheers
Here’s a good example of the DS;
GWB aka Bushie stuck in Iraq after the Intel on WMD turned out to be a bit dated, and elections didn’t magically restore security. GWB is stumped.
The best one is Tales from The Emerald City, Life inside the Green Zone.
Generals were being outranked by college kids who went from Spring Break to GWB campaign to CPA.
CPA being Coalition Provisional Authority.
DC is like that, that’s why the CPA was like that.
DC is a college town.
You go from college to DC, and leave decades later richer and fatter.
Does anyone think going to college to Empire is a good idea? Esp when you essentially stay on Campus but with Trillions in beer and weed money your whole life?
Well that’s our ruling class, playing RISK.
Everyone wants North America cuz its easiest to defend.
They never considered what happens in RISK if you have Civil War within, the game that has prepared generations of American Statecraft doesn’t have Civil instability in the rules.
Is this shallow enough?
Or shall we plumb the depths of the “deep state” further.
For what it’s worth …
http://ninetymilesfromtyranny.blogspot.com/2020/11/proof-of-voter-fraud-in-nevada.html
vxxc- “I wouldn’t take something like “the rest of you” personally WW…” No problem, not taken.
“Day by day and almost minute by minute the past was brought up to date. In this way every prediction made by the Party could be shown by documentary evidence to have been correct; nor was any item of news, or any expression of opinion, which conflicted with the needs of the moment, ever allowed to remain on record. All history was a palimpsest, scraped clean and reinscribed exactly as often as was necessary.” Orwell