Cooperation, Collectivism, and the Enemy

“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, … than on any positive task. The contrast between the “we” and the “they,” the common fight against those outside the group, seems to be an essential ingredient in any creed which will solidly knit together a group for common action.” … “The enemy, whether he be internal, like the “Jew” or the “kulak,” or external, seems to be an indispensable requisite in the armory of a totalitarian leader.”
-F. A. Hayek, The Road To Serfdom

     What is the reason for any grouping of individuals? People group themselves in order to achieve a common goal, no matter what it is. The curious thing about the psychology of the group is that, the larger it becomes, the less its cohesiveness is based upon the common end for which the group was formed, because people cannot agree on anything but the most basic and simple ends, but by the perceived threat to their group of a common enemy.

     The first step on this path is to find a central goal that will unite as many people as possible. Here is where most movements fail, as only the most intelligent of leaders will realize that a goal on which the group can agree will never be broad enough to achieve a unitary purpose. In order to cement the group, something that can be agreed upon must be found (or created). This takes the form of a common enemy. An enemy on which the individuals of the group can heap all of the problems that befall them (including the problems the leader himself creates). So the common purpose is not really what keeps the group together, it is the enemy to that purpose that drives the collectivism.

“Our country and all the other socialist countries want peace; so do the peoples of all the countries of the world. The only ones who crave war and do not want peace are certain monopoly capitalist groups in a handful of imperialist countries which depend on aggression for their profits.”
-Chairman Mao

“Anti-Semitism is the unifying element of the reconstruction of Germany.”
-Alfred Rosenberg

     There are some aberrations in this process. The most common is where the leader creates a common enemy unwittingly. He sees difficulties and failures in achieving his goals and heaps all of these things on another person or group that does not agree with him. Instead of searching for common ground and keeping the actions of the group confined to that area, he pursues his own purposes and inevitably, experiences difficulty. When he attacks the other person(s) he genuinely believes that they are trying to thwart him in every way and draws followers to his battle cry. From this point on the thoughts of the group continue on their downward spiral and any number of evil intentions and misdeeds are attributed to the “invented” enemy. In the end, if the group does not win their struggle against the enemy, which has, most likely, been antagonized into the same behavior pattern, the purpose becomes so distorted that it, in its original form, ceases to exist and the only purpose left is to fight the enemy.

     The leaders of a group can prevent this fate from befalling their cause, but normally do not. Normally the leader will either foster this behavior or allow it to grow unchecked in hopes that it will bolster his position. When a leader takes this road he insures that his original purpose will go un-fullfilled.