The Enemies of Institutionalism Will Come Bearing Conspiracy Theories
Caveat emptor!
"QAnon at Virginia 2nd Amendment Rally (2020 Jan)" by Anthony Crider is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Institutionalism - the defence of a system that evolved to keep us safe against narcissistic and populist political leaders - has many enemies. Unfortunately, none of them will ever come out and say they want to destroy liberal democracy or an economic system based on value creation and the welfare state.
No. Instead, expect conspiracy theories that go straight for your emotions. Many of these theories will suggest that the people who have done well out of the status quo have somehow cheated. Watch out for antisemitic undertones if any of the people mentioned are of Jewish heritage, like George Soros. Also, watch out for conspiracy speculation from people who misunderstand those who have a sophisticated understanding of exponential growth, like Bill Gates.
If you want to impose a dictatorship, the first step should be question the legitimacy of elections or a democratic constitution. Say that you are the true representative of the people and imply that any opposition to you is disloyal, illegitimate and unpatriotic. Once in power, the best way to prepare for a coup d’etat is with a little democratic backsliding to weaken the institutions that hold you back first. It is no coincidence that Catalan separatists prepared for their coup by trying to sell the idea that Spanish democracy was in some innate and mysterious way fascistic.
If you want to destroy the permissionless innovation that underlies capitalism, you can be more honest if you come from the anti-capitalist left. Don’t expect many votes, though. It is a little harder if you want to impose gangster capitalism on society from the right. Why not try to normalize a system where the executive branch can reward winners and punish losers instead of letting winners and losers emerge through bareknuckle competition?
Destroying the welfare state is an even harder sell. People who want to dismantle government-backed welfare will normally go very hard on the dangers of “wokeness.” The central idea will be to defend the idea that society is made up of atomized individuals - a position that will appeal to right-wing billionaires who hate paying taxes. Any mention of solidarity needs to be smeared and smeared hard.
Strangely enough, attacks on liberal democracy, permissionless innovation and the welfare state will often appeal to people who see themselves as rebels. Being against the status quo is easy. Realizing that the rebels who shout the loudest actually want to make society worse is much, much harder.
If you find anti-globalist narratives emotionally appealing, one big clue that you are being taken for a ride is whether the theories you enjoy get picked up and amplified by Russian propaganda channels like RT. If they do, please ask yourself why Vladimir Putin wants to put these ideas in your brain. You might think you are being clever by consuming his propaganda, but are you really?
It is important to stress that institutionalism can encompass rebellion. You can oppose the government of the day without wanting to let the leader of the other side become a dictator. You can argue vigorously against Elon Musk’s many mistakes at Twitter while defending his right to buy the platform and run it as he sees fit. You can also complain about dysfunctionality within the welfare state without arguing for the whole system to be dismantled.
Most importantly, though, institutionalism involves defending pluralism and diversity. That might make it harder to impose your ideas on the whole of society, but it also means that you have to recognize that other people have the right to be wrong. You might even be wrong yourself!
By arguing against the validity of coup d’etats, this column is likely to irritate Catalan separatists, many of whom are very annoying on the internet. The comments are closed for the week. See you next Saturday!
Further Reading
How Democracy Ends by David Runciman
Liberalism and Its Discontents by Francis Fukuyama
The Open Society and Its Enemies by Karl Popper
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