Andrew Lobaczewski - Political Ponerology - A Science on the Nature of Evil Adjusted for Political Purposes

people is that it is superior to the new rulers in intelligence and

practical skills, no matter what geniuses they seek to appear to

be. The knots stultifying reason are gradually loosened, and

fascination with the new rulership’s non-existent secret knowl-

edge and plan of action begins to diminish, followed by famili-

arization with the accurate knowledge about this new deviant

reality.

The world of normal people is always superior to the devi-

ant one whenever constructive activity is needed, whether it be

the reconstruction of a devastated country, the area of technol-

ogy, the organization of economic life, or scientific and medi-

cal work. “They want to build things, but they can’t get much

done without us.” Qualified experts are frequently able to make

certain demands; unfortunately, they are just as often only con-

sidered qualified until the job has been done, at which point

they can be eliminated. Once the factory has started up, the

experts can leave; management will be taken over by someone

else, incapable of further progress, under whose leadership

much of the effort expended will be wasted.

As we have already pointed out, every psychological anom-

aly is in fact a kind of deficiency. Psychopathies are based

primarily upon deficiencies in the instinctive substratum ; how-

ever, their influence exerted upon the mental development of

others also leads to deficiencies in general intelligence, as dis-

POLITICAL PONEROLOGY

241

cussed above. This deficiency of intelligence in a normal per-

son, induced by psychopathy, is not compensated by the special

psychological knowledge we observe among some psycho-

paths. Such knowledge loses its mesmerizing power when

normal people learn to understand these phenomena as well.

The psychopathologist was thus not surprised by the fact that

the world of normal people is dominant regarding skill and

talent. For that society, however, this represented a discovery

which engendered hope and psychological relaxation.

Since our intelligence is superior to theirs, we can recognize

them and understand how they think and act. This is what a

person learns in such a system on his own initiative, forced by

everyday needs. He learns it while working in his office,

school, or factory, when he needs to deal with the authorities,

and when he is arrested, something only a few people manage

to avoid. The author and many others learned a good deal about

the psychology of this macrosocial phenomenon during com-

pulsory indoctrinational schooling. The organizers and lectur-

ers cannot have intended such a result. Practical knowledge of

this new reality thus grows, thanks to which the society gains a

resourcefulness of action which enables it to take ever better

advantage of the weak spots of the rulership system. This per-

mits gradual reorganization of societal links, which bears fruit

with time.

This new science is incalculably rich in casuist108 detail; I

would nevertheless characterize it as overly literary. It contains

knowledge and a description of the phenomenon in the catego-

ries of the natural world view, correspondingly modified in

accordance with the need to understand matters which are in

fact outside the scope of its applicability. This also opens the

door to the creation of certain doctrines which merit separate

study because they contain a partial truth, such as a de-

monologica l interpretation of the phenomenon.

The development of familiarity with the phenomenon is ac-

companied by development of communicative language, by

108 Casuistry (argument by cases) is an attempt to determine the correct re-

sponse to a moral problem, often a moral dilemma, by drawing conclusions

based on parallels with agreed responses to pure cases, also called paradigms.

Casuistry is a method of ethical case analysis. [Editor’s note.]

242

NORMAL PEOPLE UNDER PATHOCRATIC RULE

means of which society can stay informed and issue warnings

of danger. A third language thus appears alongside the ideo-

logical doubletalk described above; in part, it borrows names

used by the official ideology in their transformed modified

meanings. In part, this language operates with words borrowed

from still more lively circulating jokes. In spite of its strange-

ness, this language becomes a useful means of communication

and plays a part in regenerating societal links. Lo and behold,

this language can be translated and communicated in relations

with residents of other countries with analogous governmental

systems, even if the other country’s “official ideology” is dif-

ferent. However, in spite of efforts on the part of literati and

journalists, this language remains only communicative inside;

it becomes hermetic outside the scope of the phenomenon,

uncomprehended by people lacking the appropriate personal

experience.

The specific role of certain individuals during such times is

worth pointing out; they participate in the discovery of the

nature of this new reality and help others find the right path.

They have a normal nature but experienced an unfortunate

childhood, being subjected very early to the domination of

individuals with various psychological deviations, including

pathological egotism and methods of terrorizing others. The

new rulership system strikes such people as a large scale socie-

tal multiplication of what they knew from personal experience.

From the very outset, such individuals saw this reality much

more prosaically, immediately treating the ideology in accor-

dance with the paralogistic stories well known to them, whose

purpose was to cloak the bitter reality of their youthful experi-

ences. They soon reach the truth, since the genesis and nature

of evil are analogous irrespective of the social scale in which it

appears .

Such people are rarely understood in happy societies, but

they were invaluable then; their explanations and advice

proved accurate and were transmitted to others joining the net-

work of this apperceptive heritage. However, their own suffer-

ing was doubled, since this was too much of a similar kind of

abuse for one life to handle. They therefore nursed dreams of

escaping into the freedom still existing in the outside world.

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243

Finally, society sees the appearance of individuals who have

collected exceptional intuitive perception and practical knowl-

edge in the area of how pathocrats think and how such a system

of rule operates. Some of them become so proficient in their

deviant language and its idiomatics that they are able to use it,

much like a foreign language they have learned well. Since

they are able to decipher the rulership’s intentions, such people

then offer advice to people who are having trouble with the

authorities. These advocates of the society of normal people

play a irreplaceable role in the life of society.

The pathocrats, however, can never learn to think in normal

human categories. At the same time, the inability to predict the

reaction of normal people to such an authority also leads to the

conclusion that the system is rigidly causative and lacking in

the natural freedom of choice.

This new science, expressed in language derived from a de-

viant reality, is something foreign to people who wish to under-