Carolina QuotesIt is an accepted truth that in every age and in every corner of the globe, small groups of people have become unalterably convinced that the processes of history are coming to an end. Although such groups of seekers invariably adopt an oppositional stance to the perceived pattern of changes in their respective societies, seldom are these movements catalyzed from the typical response of selective withdrawal from the dominant culture to a violent determination to act on the belief that the final drama has begun.
Jeffrey Kaplan Connected to the Carolinas
Source
p. 165
- work
- Radical Religion in America (1997)
- year
- 1997
- locator
- p. 165
Cite this record
“It is an accepted truth that in every age and in every corne…” Jeffrey Kaplan. Carolina Quotes, record CQ-0AAF4911C1. https://carolinaquotes.com/quote/0aaf4911c1
More from Jeffrey Kaplan
But I found something else as well, and it took a considerable amount of time before I was able to fully understand it's import. What I found most puzzling was that the monsters of terra incognita, upon closer examination, were not really monsters at all. They held political views which were repugnant, and religious views based on fantastically eccentric interpretations of sacred text. But whatever their belief structure, these were not monsters. They were not the violent and hate filled people I had expected to find. [...] Far from monsters, these strange and isolated people seemed, if anything, to feel too much and understand too little. In their words and deeds they harmed mainly themselves and their families.
Radical right-wing groups — from the survivalists to the neo-Nazis, the Klan — tend to draw people who don't fit well into organizations. They would never make it in the Middle Eastern terrorism game. They are constantly arguing with each other, constantly splitting and forming new groups and changing ideologies.
Before considering these real world consequences however, it is important to note at this point that none of this is said to condone racism as "just another idea" or, more subtlety, to rationalize evil. Rather, this is to suggest that all human beings can be approached on a human level. That contact can be made. This human contact will in turn invariably neutralize the caricatures which skew scholarly analysis and distort the historical record. [...] The demonization of the radical right ill serves us when now, more than ever before, it is vitally important to know all we can about this esoteric milieu's nature and potentialities.