WITHOUT POPULIST REBELLION

Carlos López Dawson

PREDICTION

Much of what happens in Chilean politics has characteristics typical of populism, a phenomenon that seemed distant. Many authors have predicted future events that have occurred. Others have planned them, as was the case with the coup d’état in Chile, ordered by the United States government, as discussed in official reports from that same country and in many research works on the causes of the military coup in Chile, such as in *The Military Junta, Pinochet, and the Constitution* by Robert Barros, Editorial Sudamericana, Santiago, Chile, 1980; in *The History of the Chilean Twentieth Century* by Sofía Correa et al., Editorial Sudamericana, Santiago, Chile, 2001; in *The Pinochet Regime* by Carlos Huneeus, Editorial Sudamericana, Santiago, Chile, 2000; and in Chile under Pinochet by Claudel Katz, Editorial Anagrama, Barcelona, 2006.

POPULISM.

Ortega y Gasset’s ideas about the «rebellion of the masses» and his critique of mass society remain relevant today because they predict what actually happened in the world after the First World War. Ortega y Gasset warned of the dangers of a society that becomes increasingly homogeneous and loses its individuality. José Ortega y Gasset criticized the way the masses can eliminate individuality and establish «prosthetic» thinking to form «mass men.» This criticism was not a criticism of supposed collectivism but rather a critique of political manipulation. This is reflected today in the way the media, social networks, and mass culture can influence public opinion. Authors like Ortega y Gasset also criticize the way instrumental reason and calculating rationality can subject individuals and society to the dictates of self-interest and profit. Well, today technology and the economy are dominating our lives, creating a mediocre and populist world, which are not mutually exclusive.

NOTHING IS EXCLUSIVE.

Some current authors reflect on populism in current politics in developed countries, such as Ben Rhodes, former advisor to President Barack Obama, known for his book «The World As It Is,» which offers a critical view of American politics, or, from a more philosophical perspective, Noam Chomsky, who has written extensively on political manipulation and war, criticizing the mediocrity of current political systems. From reading these and numerous other authors, one can conclude that Ortega y Gasset’s writings are fully relevant today.

ELECTORAL POPULISM.

It is always necessary to read works such as José Ortega y Gasset’s essay, «The Revolt of the Masses,» which denounces populism insofar as it describes the rise of the «mass man» as a phenomenon that can lead to the imposition of intellectual vulgarity and the annulment of cultural principles. This can be seen as a breeding ground for populist political movements that impose their opinions without giving reasons and without being right. Now, it also seems necessary to read Naomi Klein, as her work focuses more on the critique of neoliberalism and globalization, related to Ortega y Gasset’s idea of the «revolt of the masses,» insofar as both criticize the way power structures, both economic and media, can negatively influence society, because their narrative is based on lies.

CORRUPTION

Populism is closely linked to corruption. Baltasar Garzón denounces in his books that corruption is not a modern evil. He adds that thinkers from bygone eras have written about it, demonstrating great insight. Machiavelli noted «the ease with which men become corrupted and wicked, even if they were originally good and well-educated.» Of course, to become corrupt requires, apart from a weakness of character that paves the way for deviation from honesty, another individual or legal entity capable of discovering this weakness of will, working with it like someone molding clay, and then directing it toward the ends of power or economic interests that interest them. It is not the positions that have corrupted a person, but rather the fact that they already have corruption in their culture.

Corrupt parties and corruptors thus enter into a double marriage of convenience, knowing that a divorce would be extremely painful for some and very risky in terms of facing liability for both parties. Garzón also recounts that he learned about the corruption phenomenon through the so-called Gürtel judicial investigation, which he investigated in its early stages and which cut short his professional career as a magistrate through an arbitrary and biased sentence (according to the words and resolution of the UN Human Rights Committee of July 2021, pending execution by the Spanish State. Once again, the Committee, in a resolution of July 18, 2025, has expressed its concern about the lack of implementation by the Spanish State). Paradoxically, the investigation continued and many politicians were convicted, but Judge Garzón’s rights have yet to be restored. This case bears many similarities to what happened in our country, best exemplified by the Hermosilla case (https://interferencia.cl/casos/caso-hermosilla).

PYRAMIDAL CORRUPTION.

The important thing about Judge Garzón’s accusation is that it has universal overtones, because it heralds a criminal phenomenon typical of these times (see Baltasar Garzón Real, 2022. «The Disguises of Fascism.» Madrid. Planeta.), which we also find in Chile: pyramidal corruption, developed from the top down, which involved the temporary appropriation of the State to serve private interests in the very economic nerve center of the State (the Ministry of Finance in this case), to the detriment of taxpayers. It was preceded, a few years earlier, by the other model of corruption generated from the bottom up with the «Gürtel» case. In the case of Chile it was much more serious since corruption was the rule of the country (there is abundant literature and trials: see, for example, “Pinochet and his family’s history of corruption and crime: Arms trafficking, drug trafficking, CEMA, privatizations, pinocheques and Banco Riggs”. El Ciudadano: https://www.elciudadano.com/1973chilememoria/el-historial-de-corrupcion-y-delincuencia-de-pinochet-y-su-familia-trafico-de-armas-narcotrafico-cema-privatizaciones-pinocheques-y-banco-riggs/07/31 ).

What happened to Pinochet happened during a dictatorship, which is doubly aggravating. But now, in a half-democracy (See https://www.lemondediplomatique.cl/es-chile-un-pais-democratico-por-juan-pablo-cardenas-s.html), with resources to oversee and prosecute, we must keep in mind that politics, in itself, is neither evil nor perverse, but rather an essential mechanism for the functioning of democracy. Therefore, it is necessary to demand maximum transparency in the state’s bureaucratic apparatus, establishing oversight mechanisms and demanding evaluation and management techniques in the administration, but without neglecting the oversight of those who are responsible for implementing these measures.

LEGAL CORRUPTION.

In Chile, as in other countries, there are laws regulating lobbying, but, according to comparative experience, this lends itself to facilitating corruption. The eradication of lobbying is highly unlikely. In the case of the US, Obama tried, but the Supreme Court blocked it. Lobbies operate in all areas where economic or financial interests intersect, all too often becoming arenas for influence peddling. This requires a Comptroller’s Office and a Prosecutor’s Office attentive to their activities, and grassroots actions to expose them. Therefore, analyses of corruption are-luis-mesina.

TAX HAVENS

There are many who use tax havens with impunity, without consequences, and who even dare to run for elected office. The issue is even more serious when this now-hidden capital largely comes from the illegal profits it fosters, whether through arms trafficking from the corporations that manufacture them and facilitate, through flags of convenience and with the help of friendly countries, arms trafficking to war zones or armed conflict zones, tax fraud, and other illegal acts. (See: Tax Havens: Justice in Exclusion. By Ricardo Guerrero at https://www.ciperchile.cl/2020/05/05/paraisos-fiscales-justicia-en-la-exclusion). So, when citizens ignore the warnings, they behave just as Ortega y Gasset denounced, that is, as citizens without personality, as mass citizens. Breaking this trend requires an empowered and ethical citizen.