I would argue that our ideologies – liberalism, socialism, conservatism and so on – are, in a sense, part of the modernist ‘machine society’. By this I mean a society in which we are increasingly seeking to replace the human factor with systems, methods and predetermined rules. Nothing is to be left to ‘chance’ or to the judgement of an individual. Problems are instead to be solved methodically and scientifically, as if society were a complex machine and we simply needed to find the right instruction manual.
This approach has, of course, been hugely successful in technology and the natural sciences. In these fields, it is often an advantage to be able to minimise human error, standardise processes and identify general patterns. But in the modern era, this same mindset has increasingly spread to areas where it is not quite so self-evident. The social sciences and the humanities, too, have sought models, methods and theories to help us understand and, ultimately, govern society.
In the past, one might have said that the king or the regent was upright, wise, brave or stern. It was his character and judgement that were assessed. Whether he adhered to any coherent political ideology in the modern sense was often of less relevance. A ruler might need to make one decision in a particular situation and a completely different one in another.
This does not mean that society in the past was better, nor is it an argument for reintroducing absolute monarchy. Rather, it is an observation about how our view of political decision-making has changed.
For many people, ideologies fulfil an important function. They help us to distinguish between the major political choices. They indicate the direction politics should take, which values should be prioritised, and what sort of society we wish to create.
That was certainly true in years gone by. Perhaps the political landscape has become increasingly blurred? The overall direction of societal development is now a mystery to the vast majority. There are no real goals or plans for how we should develop our societies; rather, the focus is on phasing things out, saving energy, building fewer roads, and reducing waste. These are certainly sensible ideas, but nothing that concretely moves us forward. Few know where we are heading, regardless of which ideologies we vote for.
Apart from the overarching aim – which ought to be to promote one’s own country – politics is all too often about resolving real-political situations. But it is difficult to advocate free trade in a world where everyone is imposing tariffs on you, for example, or to advocate drug liberalisation when half the population is in an opium haze? I could even defend temporarily high taxes (even though it goes against my convictions) when a poor society needs to build vital and expensive infrastructure. Perhaps that is better than taking out loans from the World Bank or the Chinese and becoming perpetually indebted?
It becomes difficult to solve problems rationally when one is trapped in an ideological straitjacket. Moreover, our elected representatives are woefully poor at introducing positive and far-reaching changes that benefit the vast majority. These days, it’s more a case of tweaking regulations and levies, with a total tax burden that often exceeds 40 per cent in many countries. No wonder the public dislikes those in power and votes for so-called populists and ‘angry’ voices, who advocate different ideologies – but ideologies nonetheless.
Perhaps people should vote for people, rather than convoluted ideological frameworks? These almost sacred lines of thought – buried in thousand-page tomes on the well-being of the Western world – which are nevertheless rarely followed. Ideology then appears not only as a straitjacket but also as a deceiver.
How often have people voted for a party that promised a whole host of things, on ideological grounds, only for them to fail to keep their promises? Whether left or right, ideology is mostly used as a sophisticated marketing ploy to attract the right demographic group, and then to create enmity between these groups, play them off against one another, and laugh all the way to the Government Offices.
Wisdom, integrity and courage eat ideologies for breakfast.
