Contributed by: filbert Friday, March 05 2010 @ 07:17 AM CST
From The Road To Serfdom, by F. A. Hayek, 1944, Fiftieth Anniversary Edition, 1994, The University of Chicago Press.
It is in connection with the deliberate effort of the skilful demagogue to weld together a closely coherent and homogeneous body of supporters that the third and perhaps most important negative element of (the creation of a popular totalitarian movement) enters. It seems to be almost a law of human nature that it is easier for people to agree on a negative program–on the hatred of an enemy, on the envy of those better off–than on any positive task.
Excerpted under Fair Use for purposes of non-commercial education, discussion and comment. Any transcription or typographical errors are mine.