Abstract

Article

There is a considerable danger of harm to society and the body politic by the ascendency of extreme views,either through holding the office of power or by influence on those who do through holding the balance of power.

It is of course fully justifiable for persons to promote their own interests, but it is not so when those interests are extreme and are promoted without reasonable consideration of the wellbeing of those with conflicting interests. The latter is manifest in but not confined to the unfortunate influence of extreme fundamentalist religious forces who manage to inflict their narrow religious views on the rest of society irrespective of whether it has any real moral justification.

The same applies to the very rich and powerful who use their advantages, such as ownership of media, to cntrol politicians who would perhaps prefer a balanced use of govenmental powers.

The danger with this is that it is exacerbated by the tendency of such forces to lack any tendency to compromise and balance, and a marked pragmatic attitude that the ends justify the means - any means.