Those who had fought for what they called the revolution maintained a great pride: the pride of being on the correct side of the front lines. Ten or twelve years later (around the time of our story) the front lines began to melt away, and with them the correct side. No wonder the former supporters of the revolution feel cheated and are quick to seek substitute fronts; thanks to religion they can (in their role as atheists struggling against believers) stand again on the correct side and retain their habitual and precious sense of their own superiority.But to tell the truth, the substitute front was also useful to others, and it will perhaps not be too premature to disclose that Alice was one of them. Just as the directress wanted to be on the correct side, Alice wanted to be on the opposite side. During the revolution they had nationalized her papa's shop, and Alice hated those who had done this to him. But how should she show her hatred? Perhaps by taking a knife and avenging her father? But this sort of thing is not the custom in Bohemia. Alice had a better means for expressing her opposition: she began to believe in God.

~ Milan Kundera

Milan Kundera Atheism Communism Czech Front Lines God Group Behavior Picking Sides Reactionary Revolution

London is one of the world's centres of Arab journalism and political activism. The failure of left and right, the establishment and its opposition, to mount principled arguments against clerical reaction has had global ramifications. Ideas minted in Britain – the notion that it is bigoted to oppose bigotry; 'Islamophobic' to oppose clerics whose first desire is to oppress Muslims – swirl out through the press and the net to lands where they can do real harm.

~ Nick Cohen

Nick Cohen Activism Arabs Bigotry Britain Islam Islamism Islamophobia Journalism Leftism London Oppression Politics Reactionary Religion Religious Fundamentalism Right Wing Politics Theocracy United Kingdom

We are tossed about by external causes in many ways, and like waves driven by contrary winds, we waver and are unconscious of the issue and our fate.' We think we are most ourselves when we are most passionate, whereas it is then we are most passive, caught in some ancestral torrent of impulse or feeling, and swept on to a precipitate reaction which meets only part of the situation because without thought only part of a situation can be perceived.

~ Will Durant

Will Durant Atavism Drive Emotion Feeling Impulse Instinct Passion Philosophy Reactionary Spinoza Urge

Being a reactionary is not about believing in certain solutions, but about having an acute sense of the complexity of the problems.

~ Nicolás Gómez Dávila

Nicolás Gómez Dávila Belief Complexity Politics Problems Reactionary Solutions Thought

Traditional American intellectuals are, in a sense, increasingly reactionary, and quite often proudly (and perversely) ignorant of many of the truly significant intellectual accomplishments of our time.

~ John Brockman

John Brockman Accomplishments American Ignorance Intellectuals Reactionary Significance

Kings may usurp thrones, republics may be established, but the town scarcely stirs. Plassan sleeps while Paris fights.

~ Émile Zola

Émile Zola Reactionary Revolution

My dear countrymen, I hope that you will live to see the day when you learn to believe in other gods than a few movie whores and a couple of prize-fighters.

~ Friedrich Reck-Malleczewen

Friedrich Reck-Malleczewen Humor Reactionary Satire

Oh, the fools, like a lot of good little schoolboys, scared to death of anything they've been taught is wrong!

~ Émile Zola

Émile Zola Hidebound Reactionary Right

All adventure is now reactionary.

~ William F. Buckley

William F. Buckley Adventure Now Reactionary