Protest, riot, sedition, insurrection, coup attempt ... are we heading a bit deeper?
I've been re-reading Dr. Crane Brinton's classic "The Anatomy of Revolution", published in the late 1930s I think.
Is this insurrection, described as ongoing by many, really an attempt at revolution? Because in chapter 4, "Types of Revolutionists" he reveals the illogical, crazed ideas used to arouse crowds. He states "Their fanaticism is nurtured on their sense of personal failure in the creative art they sought to excel in. Now in their revolutionary role they want to destroy a society that does not appreciate them. They are indeed idealists, but embittered, demonic, inhumane idealists, self-centered beyond the decencies of philosophy, alienated intellectuals unhappily placed in positions of power." - p. 118, Vintage Books, 1965.
It's not a perfect fit, but it checks off many of the boxes. The current case study in the US even expands the playing field into psychological pathologies, and the question of how crazy one can be and still be labeled an intellectual.
I heartily recommend the book. It was a standard in college history courses for generations and is no less relevant today.
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