In a world that is increasingly fascinating and dangerous, whereby the most beautiful promises coexist with the worst threats; during this summer time, while a pause that is infinitely brief settles before the endless streams of fake news, shoddy scandals, neglected great discoveries and discarded acts of bravery resume, there is still time to calmly observe the strange geometry of forces that threaten democracy today.
It is nothing but, a priori, a very normal observation: three forces, which are a priori unrelated to each other, and relatively powerless separately, are in the process of overtaking the powers in place by their alliance, implicit at first, but also explicit when it becomes possible.
The first force brings together all the proponents of the nationalist right-wings, hostile to the ruling class and taxed with frenzied globalism, xenophobic (or, at least, hostile to any non-European presence on their soil), supporters of a strong government, willingly close to the circles that are most threatened by modernity, and reliant on regional movements.
The second force brings together all the most radical leftists, hostile to capitalism and to the financial elites, the technocrats that are supposed to serve them and the frantic globalization of the markets, and reliant on globalist movements such as human rights and environmental movements that are hostile to capitalism.
The third force is of a very different nature, because it brings together, on social networks, those who, frequently protected by anonymity, insult, assault, slander, mock, insult, threaten, all those who whether near or far, have the least ounce of power, celebrity or influence.
These three forces have a priori nothing to do together or with each other. They are, nonetheless, united against essential matters, such as the attitude towards money and democracy, capitalism, migrants, ecology, globalization, xenophobia. However, more and more, these forces are allies and triumphant in various circumstances, thus creating what I call here, “the triangle of extremes.”
In the United States, these forces were discovered at the end of the campaign, in support of Trump, against the establishment that represented Hillary Clinton. In Great Britain, these forces allied to form the coalition that won in the referendum on Brexit. In Italy, their alliance led to the ascendance of an unnatural coalition between the League and Five Star movement. The same path is found in Austria, Hungary and Poland.
In France, these three powers had remained openly opposed, until strangely we’ve recently found them allied during a ridiculous controversy; united in the mad hope of bringing down power, without having the slightest idea of what they would do, together or separately, if they succeeded.
And tomorrow? Will these powers continue to oppose and insult each other? Or will they unite more and more openly? In fact, if they feel that together they can put an end to what each one indistinctly labels “the system,” they will unite, hoping, deep down, that the other two are only “useful idiots” for them.
Experience shows that “useful idiots” are usually on the left wing and true winners usually on the right wing. In reality, in all cases, the true losers are the democratic regimes.
Because, basically, what these three forces really have in common is not only the hatred of the ruling classes, but the hatred of democracy and what it implies: the compromise, the half-measure, nuance, and tolerance vis-à-vis the point of view of others.
If we want to prevent them from triumphing, and prevent the triangle from imposing its laws, there is only one solution: do everything so that the elite remains open, so that everyone can have access to the various forms of power; so that, disappointed cohorts may never have an interest in allying themselves against endogamous leaders, cut off from people, their values and their dreams.
j@attali.com