It often feels like we’re stuck in a perpetual cycle of choosing the lesser of multiple evils during elections. However, once the “lesser evil” takes office, things tend to go awry, leading to the strengthening of the very “greater evil” we initially sought to avoid (even though both are inherently problematic). This vicious cycle is a fundamental contradiction within capitalist liberal democracy.

The reason we continually find ourselves in this predicament is that communities lack direct participation in shaping their destinies. The power structure remains hierarchical, despite claims of representativeness. This notion of representation is a self-stabilizing mechanism employed by capital to create the illusion of agency among the people. We’re made to believe that our individual vote, one among millions, will significantly impact the results. Deep down, we know this isn’t entirely true, but it’s the limited space the system provides for our influence.

There have been moments when the façade of this mirage has crumbled, leading to frustration expressed through civil disobedience, riots, violence, mass protests, and, occasionally, revolutions. However, in these instances, the more organized and radicalized minority forces, often funded by elements of the establishment and amplified by both far-right corporate media and mainstream outlets, seize control. They divert the momentum toward the establishment of a new order, typically consisting of an ostensibly anti-elite, yet authoritarian, elite.

These newly empowered leaders quickly consolidate power, eliminating dissent within their own ranks (as seen in Hitler’s “Night of the Long Knives”) and creating an oppressive environment unparalleled in history. What’s intriguing is that their grassroots supporters, previously concerned about the lack of democracy under centrist governments, often contribute to this situation or are willing to surrender their freedoms. They do so because they’ve found charismatic leaders who promise protection against various perceived threats, from Bill Gates’ Frankenstein vaccine projects to global liberal child abusers to Chinese covid virus-makers, Muslim terrorists, black queens, and the “parasitic” Indigenous people on welfare, rapist immigrants and asylum seekers, anti-Christ groups, and more.

It’s a complex and unsettling dynamic that warrants deep reflection on the nature of power, representation, and the cyclical nature of societal change.