The current health care debate in America, which in many town halls has led to disturbances and police intervention, reminds me of the paradox of ideological radicalism. Most political analysts right now claim the liberal Left and Conservative Right in America are firmly marking ideological differences, but at the same time both groups act in very similar ways, such as accusing one another of "staging" town hall protests. Why is this?

Unsurprisingly, the far left and far right have vastly different opinions about sexual freedom, racial equality, women’s rights, and other topics. But they are much more similar to each other, and different from moderates, on other dimensions.

Both groups of radicals have less trust in the system.

They are also similar in what McClosky and Chong call “paranoid tendencies.” Large majorities of both left and right wing radicals, but few moderates, agree that “We’d be much better off now if our foreign affairs were conducted out in the open, for all to see, rather than secretly” and that “I often feel that the really important matters are decided behind the scenes by people we never even hear about” and that “Most people don’t realize how much our lives are controlled by plots hatched in secret places.”

Both groups can be equally intolerant of free speech. Only about 40% of both left and right wing radicals, but 71% of moderates, agree that “Free speech should be granted to everyone regardless of how intolerant they are of other people’s opinions.”

Regardless of ideological convictions, the far most important factor deciding how far you'll go within politics is your psychological motivation. If you look at the Far Right and Left, the reason to why they fail as movements is essentially their group psychology. They're more focused on being oppositional and ideologically "pure" than on working with real issues in a serious and socially acceptable fashion to actually get something done. Ever wondered why Marxists and neo-Nazis always show up at each other's rallies to destroy? Their goal is to be a cult waging war against other cults.

I dropped out of party politics when I realized that fringe activists are nothing but losers putting up a show. Positive-thinking people can be radical and yet achieve a lot of change, but most radical groups follow the same neurotic pattern, suffering from paranoia, anti-social behavior and lack of leadership. So while we naturally differentiate between Communists and Nazis, the actual situation is that these groups are closer to one another than what everyone seems to think. After all, what difference does it make to call yourself X or Y, when all you'll ever do is living like a reclusive loser without any effect on the great establishment you hoped to destroy?