On Page 63 of his book, The Passionate State of Mind, Eric Hoffer wrote one entry, which I will quote and then comment on.
Hoffer: “ 103
Though the reformer is seen as a champion of change, he actually looks down on anything that can be changed. Only that which is corrupt and inferior must be subjected to the treatment of change. The reformer prides himself on the possession of an eternal unchangeable truth. It is his hostility towards things as they are which goads him to change them; he is as it were inflicting on them an indignity. Hence his passion for change is not infrequently a destructive passion.”
My response: Much change is good but how it is delivered and implemented makes it a positive or destructive force in society. Most reformers hate themselves, others, and the world, but they do not work to maverize, to change themselves—oh no, they are perfect, but the world needs to be beaten with a whip and a club to force conversions to the change they envision.
Reformers claim that they come in the name of justice and compassion, but raw power acquisition is their only aim. If someone is a reformer, but is not starting with himself primarily or solely, slam the door in his face.
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