Chris Hitchens: Conservatism is Stalinism.

Sure, I'm twisting the spirit of Hitchens' comment, but not the essence. I've long held the view that many who undergo a political "transformation" from one ideology to another wind up on the diametrically opposite point of the same political spectrum. Basically, that a radical will most often become a reactionary, and zealotry trumps knowledge.

This post from Light of Reason (a site I've linked to before) lends some support to my supposition. And lives up to the name.

Chris Hitchens: "The only people who come out of this whole affair well are an odd fusion of the old left – the small pro regime change left – and some of the people known as neoconservatives who have a commitment to liberal democracy. Many of the neocons have Marxist backgrounds and believe in ideas and principles and have worked with both parties in power."

The author of the post: "What Hitchens admits here is partly accurate, but his characterization is most decidedly not. It is undeniably true that many of today’s neoconservatives are former liberals and leftists, and some of them are Trotskyites like Hitchens himself. I have analyzed the neofascist program set forth by Irving Kristol in some detail, and Kristol’s intellectual journey is typical of this group."

The hyperlink there is the author's, and is to another excellent post of his. Consider both links in this post highly recommended reading. I guess I should note that the author is not a liberal. But in his committment to individual rights and privacy finds himself more aligned with today's American left than today's American right. That would be because of W-ism's frequent brushes with fascism-- a word the author doesn't hesitate to use when appropriate.