Free Republic

There’s an odd and unsettling strain of fatalism sweeping through the ranks of erstwhile conservative thinkers these days, as though they've been put into a form of collective hypnosis and conditioned into believing that the only way to stave off disaster is for all of us to throw ourselves headlong into another Trump campaign—ironically, more than Trump himself is willing to throw himself into it. It’s the kind of logic that says, “If the Titanic is sinking, you should try to put out the fire in the engine room by drilling more holes in the hull.” We are told in...

In the convoluted dumpster fire of contemporary politics, we find ourselves at a peculiar crossroads. Many self-proclaimed staunch conservatives are returning to vote for Trump, driven by a blend of party loyalty and apprehension about a Biden administration. Yet, some of these individuals are not content with their choice alone—they actively criticize and vilify those within their ranks who choose a different path. To understand this phenomenon, let’s draw upon the insights of Eric Hoffer and Gustave Le Bon, which offer a deeper lens into the dynamics at play.Today, like every other day over the last several weeks, I've awakened...