dual personalities

Aside from the extreme cold (-25 last night), the new year has gotten off to a good start. I’ve already seen one good movie and I’m reading Hilary Mantel’s superb French Revolution novel, A place of Greater Safety.

I hesitated to start the book — who wants to read about the unremitting bloodbath called the French Revolution? I should have had more faith in Ms. Mantel, who is a brilliant writer and a better historian than most people trained to the profession. Who but she could humanize villains like Robespierre and Desmoulins? In her hands, we follow the inexorable progress of the Revolution to its hideous apogee. How could such intelligent, talented people start a revolution without having any plans in place for a new government? What made them think they could control the mob?

Desmoulins rallying the mob

Then, as now, the answer is the same: power corrupts and leaders who value their ideas more than people’s lives inevitably cause the deaths of untold numbers of people. Most dangerous are leaders who believe only in themselves, have no moral sense and no belief in a higher power, who see the masses as chattel to be manipulated, and for whom life is at best an intellectual exercise and at worst a game for personal amusement.  These are men, who, as Lafayette described them in the novel, “have never been to war. They’ve never been on the hunting field. They’ve never killed an animal, let alone a man. But they’re such enthusiasts for murder.”

Beware the type of person who apparently believes whatever he says, but who never says the same thing twice:

“Talking to Robespierre, one tried to make the right noises; but what is right, these days? Address yourself to the militant, and you find a pacifist giving you a reproachful look. Address yourself to the idealist, and you’ll find that you’ve fallen into the company of a cheerful, breezy professional politician. Address yourself to means, and you’ll be told to think of ends: to ends, and you’ll be told to think of means. Make an assumption, and you will find it overturned; offer yesterday’s conviction, and today you’ll find it shredded.”

Sadly, all of this cuts a little too close to the bone these days. Be warned.

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In case you need a diversion from the serious side of life, my movie recommendation for this weekend is Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. It’s clever (they handle the premise extremely well), laugh out loud funny, has great performances, and a good message. It’s a very worthy sequel to the original film. Two thumbs up!

Have a great weekend!