Political philosophers gather in their studies and debate all night long. They weave together sophisticated sentences about whether freedom or equality comes first, and which values make humanity more noble. Then they fall into an illusion: they believe that the masses gathered in the square will also unite and fight according to the grammar of those lofty "values" they have established.
Yet, at every critical juncture of history, the actions of the masses mocked the predictions of intellectuals, flowing in an entirely different direction. At the end of that bitter lesson, we must face an honest truth: the masses do not unite based on ideology. The most primitive and powerful engine that moves mass solidarity is "practical self-interest and a sense of security," which is directly tied to immediate survival.
To a Starving Man, Ideology is a Luxury
The German playwright Bertolt Brecht left a famous line in his play that pierces straight through the psychology of the masses:
"Food comes first, then morality (ideology)."
To a public shivering with anxiety—over overdue rent due next month, a lack of baby formula to feed their children right now, or the threat of being fired tomorrow—phrases like "the greatness of a free-market economy" or "the value of equality through dismantling classes" are nothing but empty, floating clouds.
Even when the masses seemingly fight holding up the banners of ideologies like freedom or equality, their inner selves are actually responding to "my self-interest and survival welfare" wearing the mask of that ideology. The reason fascism could seize control of the masses so easily was that it precisely stabbed the core that is self-interest.
The Magic of Disguising Private Interest as Public Value
Here lies a fatal technique used by fascist or populist regimes. They do not merely hand over simple, personal interest (money) to the masses. They go one step further and whisper: "Do you want your self-interest met? If so, align yourself with the interests of the nation and the state."
The demand of the masses is simple: "Give me jobs and bread."
To this, fascism presents an extraordinary solution: "The state will build massive war weapon factories, so work there. And if we invade other countries with these weapons to steal their land and resources, the fruits will entirely become your (the dominant race’s workers) profit."
At this point, a tragedy occurs. The masses united merely to secure their own private livelihoods, but when they snap out of it, they find themselves participating in a massive atrocity of plundering and massacring others in the name of the state and the nation. It is the magic where one’s own bowl of rice becomes perfectly synchronized with the runaway train of the state.
Humans Need a "Moral Excuse"
If so, are humans merely greedy animals driven solely by their rice bowls? Not quite. Humans possess a powerful psychological defense mechanism that wants to believe, “Even though I act out of self-interest, I am doing something incredibly just and valuable.” We need a cause to nobly wrap our sinister or selfish desires.
Fascism understood this psychological vulnerability of the masses flawlessly.
Their hideous essence was the thorough pursuit of self-interest: "Let us protect the wealth of the right-wing establishment, plunder other nations, and line our own pockets." However, the wrapping paper they presented to the masses was different: "We are carrying out a historical task to recreate the glory of the great Roman Empire and preserve the purity of the Aryan race."
The masses dedicate their souls and unite when they encounter a value that perfectly satisfies their practical self-interest while simultaneously packaging them as historical heroes. When the spark of value catches the fuel of self-interest, solidarity transforms into madness.
Staring at the Monster Hidden Behind the Rice Bowl
The masses are never moved by ideology alone, yet they unite most explosively when they meet a force that packages their self-interest as the most moral value. This cruel yet honest functional relationship is precisely what created the tragedy of fascism 100 years ago, and it remains a fatal weapon that populist politicians today still use to manipulate the masses.
When looking at modern politics, we must constantly question: what kind of ugly exclusivity and dictatorship is that force—which promises to give us immediate benefits—hiding behind the holy cause it champions?
The moment we are blinded by the instinct of self-interest and eagerly accept the mask of ideology they put on us, we may inadvertently become the henchmen of another monster. This is why we need an eye that coldly stares at the raw face of politics hidden behind the rice bowl, just as much as we need to protect the rice bowl itself.
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