Theodore ๐น John ๐ Kaczinsky
INTRODUCTION ๐ฎ
1 โ. โ โ The Industrial ๐ญ Revolution ๐๐ and its consequences ๐ก๐ช๐ค have been a disaster ๐ฑโ for the human ๐ค race ๐โโ๏ธ. They have greatly ๐๐ผ increased ๐ง๐ญ the life-expectancy of those of us ๐จ who live ๐ in โadvancedโ countries ๐บ๐ธ, but ๐ they have destabilized society ๐ผ๐๐ฅ, have made ๐ life ๐ค unfulfilling, have subjected ๐ ๐ฏ human ๐ค beings ๐ฆ to indignities, have led ๐๐๐ฆ to widespread ๐ท psychological ๐ง suffering ๐ฃ๐ซ๐ (in the Third 3๏ธโฃ World ๐ to physical ๐ suffering ๐ญ as well ๐ฆ) and have inflicted severe ๐ damage ๐ป on ๐ the natural ๐ฟ world ๐๐๐. The continued โ development ๐ฉโ๐ป of technology ๐ก will worsen ๐๐ญ the situation ๐ฎ. It will certainly ๐ subject ๐ฅ๐ฅโ human ๐ค being to greater ๐ก indignities and inflict ๐ต greater ๐ฏโ damage ๐ฅ on ๐ the natural ๐ world ๐, it will probably ๐ค lead ๐ to greater ๐
social ๐ฅ disruption ๐ and psychological ๐ง suffering ๐ญ๐ก, and it may ๐โ lead ๐๐๐ฆ to increased ๐ง๐ญ physical ๐ suffering ๐ญ even ๐ in โadvancedโ countries ๐บ๐ธ. 2 ๐. โ โ The industrial-technological system ๐บ may ๐ survive ๐ or it may ๐ break ๐ down ๐ป. If it survives ๐๐ผ๐ฉ๐ญ, it MAY ๐ eventually ๐ช๐ก achieve ๐ฏโ a low ๐ level ๐ of physical ๐๐ฑ๐ค and psychological ๐ง suffering ๐ญ, but ๐ค only after ๐ passing ๐ฏ through a long ๐ and very ๐ painful ๐ช period ๐ฉธ of adjustment ๐ฐ and only at the cost ๐ธ๐ต๐ด of permanently ๐ reducing โฌ๐ human ๐ค beings ๐ฆ and many ๐ฌ other living ๐
organisms โป to engineered โ products ๐ญ๐จ๐ง and mere ๐ซ cogs in the social ๐ machine ๐ค. Furthermore โ, if the system ๐บ survives ๐๐ผ๐ฉ๐ญ, the consequences ๐๐ will be inevitable ๐ณ๐ฑ๐จ: There is no ๐
๐ฟโโ๏ธโ way โ of reforming or modifying the system ๐บ so as to prevent ๐ซ it from depriving people ๐ซ๐ of dignity ๐ and autonomy. 3 โญโน๐. โ โ If the system ๐บ breaks ๐ down โฌ the consequences ๐๐ will still ๐ be very ๐ painful ๐ญ. But ๐ the bigger ๐ณ๐ฒ the system ๐บ grows ๐ the more disastrous ๐ฑ the results ๐๐ฏ of its breakdown ๐จ๐ will be, so if it is to break ๐ down โฌ it had best ๐ break ๐ down โฌ sooner ๐ rather ๐ than later ๐. 4 ๐ฆ. โ โ We therefore ๐ค๐ก advocate ๐ซ a revolution ๐๐ against ๐
โโ๏ธ๐ซ the industrial ๐ญ system ๐บ. This revolution ๐๐ may ๐ or may ๐ not make ๐ use ๐ of violence ๐ฃ; it may ๐ be sudden ๐ฑ or it may ๐ be a relatively ๐จโ๐งโ๐ง gradual ๐ process ๐ญ spanning ๐ a few decades ๐. We canโt predict ๐ค any of that. But ๐ we do outline ๐ in a very ๐๐ general ๐คท way ๐ซ the measures ๐ that those who hate ๐ก๐ the industrial ๐ ๐ญ system โ should take ๐ in order ๐ to prepare ๐๐พ the way ๐ซ for a revolution ๐๐ against ๐ซ that form ๐ of society ๐ฅ. This is not to be a POLITICAL ๐บ๐ธ revolution โโ. Its object ๐๐ค will be to overthrow โ not governments ๐ฉ but ๐ the economic ๐ and technological ๐ก basis ๐
of the present ๐ society ๐คต๐ฅ๐. 5 ๐ณ. โ โ In this article ๐ we give ๐ attention โ to only some of the negative ๐ developments ๐ that have grown ๐ช out of the industrial-technological system ๐บ. Other such developments ๐ฉโ๐ป we mention ๐ฃ only briefly ๐ or ignore ๐ฉ altogether. This does not mean ๐ that we regard ๐คโค these other developments ๐ as unimportant. For practical ๐ reasons ๐ค we have to confine โ our discussion ๐ฃ๐ to areas โ ๐ that have received ๐ insufficient ๐ก๐ฅต๐ public ๐ attention โ or in which we have something ๐
new ๐ to say ๐ฃ. For example ๐ช, since ๐จ there are well-developed environmental ๐ and wilderness ๐ป movements ๐ฆ, we have written โ๐ very ๐ little ๐๐ about ๐ฆ environmental ๐ degradation ๐ญ๐ or the destruction ๐ฅ๐ซ of wild ๐ป nature ๐ฒ, even ๐ though ๐ฅ we consider ๐ค these to be highly โฌ๐๐ important ๐.
THE PSYCHOLOGY ๐ง OF MODERN ๐ฅ LEFTISM ๐คฎ
6 ๐ก. Almost ๐ฆ everyone ๐ฅ will agree ๐โ
๐ฏ that we live ๐ in a deeply ๐ฑ troubled ๐ง society ๐ผ๐๐ฅ. One ๐ค๐ผ of the most widespread ๐ท manifestations ๐ of the craziness ๐คช of our world ๐ is leftism ๐คฎ, so a discussion ๐ค of the psychology ๐ง of leftism ๐ can serve ๐ as an introduction ๐ฎ to the discussion ๐ค of the problems ๐ of modern ๐ฅ society ๐ฅ in general ๐. 7 ๐ช๐. But ๐ค what is leftism ๐? During the first ๐ฅ half ๐ of the 20th ๐ฏ๐ century ๐ฏ leftism โฌ
could have been practically โค identified with socialism ๐ซ. Today ๐
the movement ๐ฃ is fragmented and it is not clear ๐๐ who can properly ๐ be called ๐ฒ a leftist ๐ฑ๐
๐. When โฐ we speak ๐ of leftists โฌ
in this article ๐ฐ we have in mind ๐ง mainly ๐ท socialists ๐ซ, collectivists, โpolitically correctโ types ๐ป, feminists โ, gay ๐ณ๏ธโ๐ and disability โฟ๐ activists ๐๐๐ฆ, animal ๐ถ rights โ activists ๐ค and the like ๐. But ๐ not everyone ๐ฅ who is associated โ
โ with one โ of these movements ๐ฃ is a leftist ๐. What we are trying ๐ to get ๐ at in discussing ๐ก๐ leftism โฌ
is not so much ๐ฅ movement ๐ฆ or an ideology ๐ฏ๐ซ as a psychological ๐ค type ๐ป, or rather ๐ฎ๐ญ a collection ๐คค of related ๐ช types โจ๐. Thus ๐๐
, what we mean ๐ by โleftismโ will emerge ๐๐จ more clearly ๐๐ in the course ๐๐ค of our discussion ๐ค of leftist โฌ
psychology ๐ค. (Also ๐จ, see ๐ paragraphs ๐๐ 227-230.) 8 ๐. Even ๐ so, our conception ๐ค of leftism ๐ฑ๐
๐ will remain ๐ฅ a good ๐ deal ๐
less โ clear ๐๐ than we would wish ๐, but ๐ there doesnโt seem ๐ to be any remedy ๐๐๐จ for this. All ๐ฏ we are trying ๐ผ๐๐ฅ to do here is indicate ๐ฃ in a rough ๐ and approximate ๐ค way ๐ซ the two โ psychological ๐ง tendencies ๐ that we believe ๐ are the main ๐
ฑ driving ๐๐ force ๐ of modern ๐ธ leftism ๐คฃ๐คซ๐. We by no ๐
means ๐ claim ๐ to be telling ๐๐ฃ the WHOLE ๐ฆ truth ๐ฏ about ๐ฆ leftist ๐ฑ๐
๐ psychology ๐ค. Also ๐จ, our discussion ๐ฃ๐ is meant ๐ to apply ๐ to modern ๐ฅ leftism โฌ
only. We leave ๐๐ open ๐ the question โ of the extent ๐ to which our discussion ๐ฃ๐ค could be applied ๐ to the leftists ๐ฑ๐
๐ of the 19th ๐ค and early ๐ 20th ๐ฏ๐ centuries ๐ฏโผ๐. 9 ๐ฏ. The two ๐ psychological ๐ง tendencies ๐ that underlie mo ๐
ฑ- dern leftism โฌ
we call ๐ฒ โfeelings of inferiorityโ and โover-socializationโ. Feelings ๐ of inferiority โ are characteristic ๐ฃ of modern ๐ฅ leftism โฌ
as a whole ๐ฆ, while oversocialization is characteristic ๐ฃ only of a certain ๐ segment of modern ๐ธ leftism ๐คฎ as a whole ๐ฆ๐; but ๐ค this segment is highly ๐ influential ๐.