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Originally Posted by Cowperson
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Interesting piece. I particularly liked this quote:
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The Lenins, the Maos, the Pol Pots — even Ahmadinejad, in a low-rent kind of way — they are no different than the types collected in Tehran. It is a mistake not to take such people seriously and not to accept that they believe what they say they believe. The liberal impulse to discount the extremist, to rationalize his views, to refuse to take his threats literally, especially when he is in power, is itself a form of denial.
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I'm not sure it's a "liberal" impulse, but I agree. Too often our reaction is just "that's crazy," rather than trying to understand the core values (however repulsive) that feed such a belief system.
On the other hand the liberal rationalist in me does have one question. Let's say you're David Duke--you've been drummed out of American politics and now you're meeting with anti-semitists in Iran--don't you have to know that you're a crank? Wouldn't it have to cross your mind that YOU might be the crazy one?