The Essence Of Totalitarianism

     From Power Line’s John Hinderaker:

     Currently the Left is “demonstrating” against the Supreme Court justices who concurred in the Dobbs decision. A few nights ago, as Scott has noted, left-wingers harassed Justice Brett Kavanaugh and other diners at the Morton’s steak house in D.C. Liberals viewed this effort as a triumph–Kavanaugh reportedly had to exit out a back door–and a pro-Democratic Party organization is now offering cash bounties to anyone who sees a conservative justice out in public in time for a flash mob to assemble.

     When asked about such tactics, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was nonplussed. These are peaceful demonstrations, she replied, the very essence of democracy!

     Actually, they are manifestations of the totalitarian impulse. One defining feature of a totalitarian regime is that everything is political. There is no such thing as private life. This is what today’s liberals believe. Thus, a conservative politician or, in this case, Supreme Court justice–keep in mind that the same tactics were used against members of the Executive Branch in the Trump administration–is not permitted to go out to dinner, or otherwise appear in public, with his or her family. There is no space for mutual respect, or even tolerance, of citizens with whom the Left disagrees. They must be destroyed, and their lives made miserable. There is nothing “democratic” about this. It is the stuff of Stalinism.

     That is perfect. For what else does totalitarianism mean, except that everything, without exception, is political? That “The personal is political?” That the totality of life is subject to political judgment and, potentially at least, decision by an act of power?

     That is what “democracy” looks like to the Left…at least, when they command sufficient street-level troops to act on it. Note that no one on the Left has mumbled an adverse word about it. “No enemies to the Left!” If it resembles certain untoward events in the not-too-distant past, they’d prefer that you not think about that.

     In respect of only one subject does the Left oppose this totalitarian treatment of all things: abortion. That’s sacred! We can’t have that subject decided through political mechanisms! We must leave it to…to whom? The Supreme Court, which currently possesses a conservative majority? Hmm, let’s think about this a bit longer.

     Could it be any clearer why the Left is so averse to Americans’ right to keep and bear arms?