By: Dr Andrej Umek
Early in my not-so-short life, during my high school years, I became interested in the question of what the fundamental difference is between extremism and centre in politics and why extreme political factions, both left and right, tend to establish a totalitarian system when in power.
It became clear to me that extreme political factions blindly follow their false prophets. Classical extreme leftists, the communists, blindly followed their false prophets Marx and his interpreters such as Lenin, Stalin, Trotsky, and Kardelj. Modern extreme left also has its interpreters. Roger Scruton[i] wrote about them. Among his chosen ones, I would mention Slavoj Žižek. If we look at the extreme right, we observe an identical situation. Fascists and Nazis, too, blindly follow false prophets. The difference between left and right extremists lies only in the fact that they each have their own false prophets.
Considering the characteristics of extreme politics described above, where they blindly follow their false prophets, it is evident that both left and right extremists believe they know everything. Therefore, any discussion on open questions or seeking optimal solutions hinders the realisation of their fundamental truths. Hence, they reject democracy and aim to establish a totalitarian system to fulfil their prophecies. They are not bothered even though history clearly shows that such an approach leads to downfall[ii].
In contrast to extremists, centrist politics is acutely aware that it is not omniscient. Therefore, based on expert analyses, opinions, statistical data, and historical experiences, it strives to formulate the best solutions for the population. Centrists acknowledge that these best solutions are at best a relative optimum and are largely dependent on the expectations of the population. As the expectations of all citizens are not equal, divergent, and sometimes even contradictory, public debate on all open questions and solutions is necessary. Only through such discourse and the harmonisation of opinions can a solution acceptable to the majority be achieved. This kind of debate and consensus-building is made possible only in a democratic society. Therefore, it is clear that centrist political parties, both left and right, unequivocally advocate for a democratic social order.
The above-described difference between extremism and centrism was brought to my attention once again by recent events in Slovenia. “Mainstream” media here, such as RTV SLO Igor E. Bergant, describe Robert Golob’s government as centre-left and SDS (Slovenian Democratic Party) as right-wing extremist. Considering the criteria mentioned above, it is clear that SDS does not meet any of the criteria for extremism, while Golob’s government, at least in some aspects, fulfills the criteria of left-wing extremism. Due to limited space for this column, I will focus on just one issue here. This concerns the response of Golob’s government to a significant, the highest among all EU countries, drop in GDP growth. In 2022, when the current coalition took over the leadership of Slovenia and the measures of the previous government still prevailed, GDP grew by 8.2 percent. However, last year, this growth was only 1.6 percent. Any democratically oriented government would question the reasons behind such a catastrophic decline in economic activity and would seek the causes through expert analysis. I will rely on a well-known publication, the Index of Economic Freedom[iii], which interested readers can find online. This analysis clearly shows a close correlation between the Index of Economic Freedom and GDP. The higher the Index of Economic Freedom, the higher the GDP. Looking at the Index of Economic Freedom for Slovenia in 2022, when the measures of the previous government led by Janez Janša were still dominant, it reached its maximum of 70.5/100. With this index, Slovenia was classified among free economies. Due to the measures of Golob’s government, this index catastrophically dropped to 68.5/100 for the year 2023, causing a significant reduction in GDP growth.
Every democratically oriented government would analyse these data. If the government of Robert Golob had acted in the same way, it would have found that the decline in the index of economic freedom and the associated GDP growth were primarily a consequence of the decline in indicators in the government group. These indicators include the tax burden, government spending, and fiscal health. Based on such expert analysis, any democratically oriented government would strive to improve these key indicators and thus boost GDP growth and the standard of living. Unfortunately, the Golob government reacted exactly the opposite. Apparently, like all extremist-oriented governments, it followed its false prophets and announced new taxes for 2024, worsening the key indicators of economic performance for Slovenia. With such measures, our future does not look promising.
Let me conclude this column with the hope that you, dear readers, will make decisions in future elections in accordance with your priorities, but based on objective expert analyses. Do not follow false prophets on the left or right, or Slovenian “mainstream” media. Do not be misled and think for yourselves. Prevent the downfall of this country that Slovenians have awaited for centuries.
[i] Scruton, Roger, Zablode, Prevare, Hujskaštva, Misleci nove levice, Družina, Ljubljana 2019.
[ii] Acemoglu, Daron & Robinson, James A., Why Nations Fail, Profile Books LTD, London,Velika Britanija, 2012.
[iii] Heritage Foundation, 2023 Index of Economic Freedom.
Highlighted Sentence:
Do not let yourself be misled and think with your own head.