"We've got to have rules and obey them. After all, we're not savages. We're English, and the English are best at everything."

"Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!"

- from "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding

William Golding's first novel describes children descending into savagery on a remote island when left without adult supervision. It is a particularly grim indictment of human nature, describing how easily mob rule can overcome our civilized upbringing. It shows what people can do when fear guides their actions in the absence of reason.

I was reminded of this yesterday when I read the news of a town hall meeting on healthcare reform in Tampa, where emotions came to a boil and violence broke out. It certainly raises questions of "how did we get here?" and "where is this going?". It seems the crazies are coming out of the woodwork and getting louder.... and crazier. Is this some new breed of animal? I don't think so. I think they've been here all along. I think there's another explanation.

I remember very well the organized Republican political machine of the 80s. They worked hand in hand with the Moral Majority and Christian coalitions to reach out and mobilize voters for their regressive agenda. Their leaders gave simple directives and focused on simple issues, and their supporters toed the line.

After losing the presidency to Clinton in '94, they coarsened the debate. With Newt Gingrich at the helm (and later Tom DeLay), they belittled and dehumanized the opposition using carefully chosen words sent down from a very organized leadership.

In the 90s (and especially after 9/11), the leadership drove home the idea that the opposition (Democrats, liberals, and progressives) were not just misguided, but dangerous. We were painted as "terrorist-appeasers" and "the blame America first crowd". The word "liberal" was spit out with disdain, as if giving voice to it instantly created an oily foul residue on the tongue.

And then... the leadership evaporated.

There was very little of it left in the waning days of the Bush presidency, but it was gone after Barack Obama was elected. With no one left taking the helm in DC, the core that was left found themselves in disarray, like children on a deserted island. They initially tried to organize by selecting a leader for the RNC, but that didn't really help. The senior members of the party left in the House have tried to set the debate, but it's too civilized to satisfy the bloodlust that has been stirred up for the past two decades.

No, these people need a monster to fear, and absent one being presented from the leadership in DC, they are taking their cues from the media: Glen Beck, Bill O'Reilly, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity... These are the people that are truly in charge (just ask RNC chief Michael Steele, who was forced to apologize to Limbaugh after making comments about him). These are the "Jack"s that are using fear of some ephemeral beast to manipulate their followers. The recent spate of hysterical protesters at town meetings are symptomatic of that.

Where this will end up remains to be seen, but recent events do not bode well. We've already seen churches shot up for being "liberal", and a physician killed for occasionally performing a controversial legal medical procedure. Yesterday's town hall meeting shows that the fear and loathing capable of roiling into violence is not just the purview of the truly mentally unstable. I fear that it will require the death of a "common citizen" at one of these meetings before they get the wake-up call they need.

There will always be those that are fearful of and angry at the world. They will lash out at those they perceive to be a threat. It does not serve our society well, however, to have ego-driven media celebrities manipulate them to assuage their own lust for power. Once they have put on their war paint and started chanting with the mob, only fear and anger will control their actions.

That descent into savagery has already begun. Will someone in the Republican party reverse the mob's course?... or will they worship at the altar of the Lord of the Flies, and sacrifice the lives of liberals to appease their false god?