Essays in Idleness

Suppose, for the sake of having an argument, that the reader wishes to do something that will change the world — for the better. He shouldn’t be too candid about his ambition, as I first realized when a teenager. Most who accomplish things have a secret. They avoid taking credit for it. I appeared quite a fool, when claiming credit for anything. It got me mocked. Fortunately, my mockers were, at the time, also teenagers, so it didn’t matter much. But I would have preferred praise.

Ambition is something to keep to oneself, but concealing it may require more honest pride than disclosing it. Those who become politicians learn the art of deceiving people, by presenting their ambitions as timely and altruistic. A lot of money can be made by progressive politicians in this way, when they discover that, in every democracy, the people are slow-witted and easy to fool. On the other hand, they are often quite innocent, and their various bigotries are actually rather sweet. A pity for sure, but only that they were given the vote.

The better educated among voters may be tainted with real poison, and smaller minority are “communists and perverts” — the old-fashioned description that placed them in their twin classes with impressive economy.

Ambition, however — and especially good ambitions — are needed, the more when the majority of the ambitious are certainly evil. We have whole parties — Canadian Liberals, American Democrats, and British Labour, for instance — that are entirely given over to the service of demons.

But they have unintentionally created a marvellous opportunity. This is because Christians need only tell the truth, modestly, for the contrast with these demoniacs to become apparent. For their violence and corruption is on full public display. And while it has become physically dangerous to be a “conservative,” or to oppose the Left, we may hope for improvements in policing and investigation.

Moreover, we need never become spiritually corrupt ourselves, by opposing fire with fire. Christian martyrs have always outscored the murderers who slaughtered them, not only in the afterlife, but in this one..

Now, boasting that one will be a martyr is arrogant and in bad taste. You should keep your ambitions to yourself. But becoming a martyr in pursuit of the good, the true, and the beautiful Christ, is hardly the worst thing that can happen to you. As Charlie Kirk advised, we should try to make heaven crowded.