Another free-writing exercise, written in December 2012.
The Circle
“What are you talking about?”
“The circle.”
“The circle?” she asked. “What circle?”
“The political circle,” the man said. “Most people only talk about left and right, when really, there is an entire spectrum of political thought that makes a circle, with anarchy and totalitarianism on the far side.”
“So nobody’s on the left or the right, we’re all just riding somewhere on a circle here?”
“Of course not. Everyone is left or right, but the reason we need to look at it like a circle is to see that the further you go to one extreme or the other, the more likely you are to fall over the cliff of political insanity.”
“That’s a nice little diatribe you have going there, but I still don’t see how totalitarianism and anarchy go hand in hand.”
“You see, the further off the deep end you go, the more you want the government to help you, and the more power you give it. Any government with too much power becomes totalitarian. Then, the people rebel, and you end up with anarchy.”
“I don’t know,” she finally responded. “You’re either a genius, or some kind of raving political lunatic.”
“Well,” he said. “It’s possible I may be both.”