Timely wisdom from Hayek

From page 134 of volume two of his masterful, and tragically under-read, trilogy, Law, Legislation, and Liberty:

Most people are still unwilling to face the most alarming lesson of modern history: that the greatest crimes of our time have committed by governments that had the enthusiastic support of millions of people who were guided by moral impulses. It is simply not true that Hitler or Mussolini, Lenin or Stalin, appealed only to the worst instincts of their people: they also appealed to some of the feelings which also dominate contemporary democracies. Whatever disillusionment the more mature supporters of these movements may have experienced as they came to see the effects of the policies they had supported, there can be no doubt that the rank and file of the communist, national-socialist or fascist movements contained many men and women inspired by ideals not very different from those of some of the most influential social philosophers in the Western countries. Some of them certainly believed that they were engaged in the creation of a just society in which the needs of the most deserving or “socially most valuable” would be better cared for. They were led by a desire for a visible common purpose which is our inheritance from the tribal society and which we still find breaking through everywhere.”

By prematurely calling the election, did the media blackmail us into accepting Biden regardless of recount results?

The election is far too close for a call to have been made when tens of thousands of ballots are still waiting to be counted in many key states, not to mention the inevitable recounts in Georgia, Wisconsin, and possibly Michigan and Pennsylvania. But the corporate media did call the election, and the celebrity/media/corporate/regulatory class is collectively cheering, as are the riotous mobs who pledged to commit their usual atrocities if their chosen candidate hadn’t won.

But what would happen if Trump managed to eke out a victory after recounts? Everyone currently wildly cheering a Biden win would suddenly scream for mass violence, and that’s what we would get. Thousands more would join in on the melee, rioting, burning, and assaulting. American cities torched, and violence bordering on civil war.

The Left would never accept a last-minute Trump win peacefully. Which is why the election might have been called so soon, because few would risk the level of threatened violence. The cost may appear to high. Nevertheless, we need honest elections, and we need a class of news reporting that isn’t ruling class propaganda. The media holds far too much power over the public mind, effectively creating reality for tens of millions of people.