The Four Political Groups Explained

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And as promised, here is the script from my video:

I’m Mr. Beat and I like to think of myself as a (censored) and a bit of a (censored) as well
I’m sorry to censor myself, but I didn’t want to ruin the surprise. 

There are four types of political groups that every single human being on the planet is a member of, whether they realize it or not.

In this video, I’m gonna explain what those four political groups are.
Clone: Hey punk
Mr. Beat: I thought I told you to start a country in Antarctica
Clone: I did. It’s done. Marie Byrd Land. Beatlandia.
Mr. Beat: Oh, well thank you. Why are you here?
Clone: I’m here to ask you what’s a “political group.” (pause) What’s a political group?
Mr. Beat: A political group is- A political group is…

A group that forms in response to politics.

Clone (long pause): What’s politics again?
Mr. Beat: (quickly): How the power in government is distributed.

More broadly speaking, how power is distributed between people…period. That’s why I always loved the old quote, “Just because you don’t take an interest in politics doesn’t mean politics won’t take an interest in you.” (clips)
The people who say “I don’t want to make this political” are so cringe. Look man, we can’t escape politics. Politics is everywhere, and every day we are constantly affected by it. 

So anyway, I’ve noticed that throughout history four groups tend to naturally form in response to politics. It’s worth noting that this is something I’ve come up with…on my own. If you’re a political scientist watching this and you’re like, “well that just sounds like blah blah blah,” well then please let me know in the comments about that. But also remember I wrote the script for this video not KNOWING about blah blah blah, so don’t call me an idiot, please?

Alright, and I do mean to get political, but here are the four types of political groups. (hold up five fingers)
Clone: You’re holding up five fingers.
Mr. Beat: (look over, then slowly lower thumb) (mumbling) Thumbs not a finger

-Conservatives- (Hit the Brakes!)

Conservatives generally seek to keep things the same. They seek to preserve what’s good in the existing order. Now, that doesn’t mean they aren’t for SOME change, but conservatives want caution, slow evolution….incremental reform, not rapid revolution. Oh crap, am I starting to rap? (rap “they want caution/slow evolution/incremental reform/not rapid revolution”) 
Conservatives tend to think “why change what isn’t broken?” They say proceed with caution because we just don’t know what we might destroy. Conservatives tend to promote “traditional values.” 
Clone: What the heck does that mean?
Mr. Beat: THE RULE OF EXISTING LAWS
Prioritizing stability, safety, faith, family, a more limited government, the preservation of established institutions. Stuff like that. 

Now, being a conservative ain’t all biscuits and gravy. Their stubbornness to change can cause them to constantly be searching for allies to help them double down. They tend to favor whatever benefits the status quo, even if that means tens of millions of people are left behind. Often, conservatives tend to have the mindset that we don’t need to help more people. People are doing fine. Often, conservatives are financially stable themselves.

Overall, though, they tend to focus on the present, a present anchored by the past.

-Reformers- (Fix It!)

Reformers generally seek to change things for the better. They believe the existing system might be fundamentally sound, but it still requires…uh…significant updates, you could say. They aren’t looking to burn the house down….ehhh…..they just think the plumbing is backed up and the roof needs shingles, know what I’m sayin’? 

Of all the political groups, reformers tend to question things the most.
Reformers tend to value empathy, inclusion, justice, equality, and innovation. Reformers tend to trust human reason and experts. And they ain’t afraid to change existing institutions and they ain’t afraid to use the government to make changes. They tend to be pretty passionate about helping the marginalized and they generally tend to be open to new ideas. That all said, reformers recognize that pain for some is needed to help more people. But overall…yep…reformers believe that more people need help. Just like conservatives, reformers are usually financially stable themselves.

Now, being a reformer ain’t all macaroni and cheese. Their openness to new ideas can lead them to underestimate tradeoffs, human nature’s limits, the value of inherited wisdom, and unintended consequences. Sometimes they mistakenly dismiss tradition as nothing more than oppression.

Not only that, reformers often have a hard time actually getting stuff done. They tend to quickly create purity tests and are constantly looking out for traitors to the movement because….well because questioning things is what made them reformers to begin with.

Overall, though, reformers tend to focus on the future. How can we make life better for those who aren’t around yet?

-Reactionaries- (Erase and Rewind)

Well, Reactionaries react. They generally want change by tearing down and destroying everything. 
Reactionaries are often the most misunderstood group. Often, folks lump them in with conservatives or say they are extreme traditionalists. But they are definitely not conservative, and in some cases they couldn’t care less about tradition.

Like children, reactionaries let only their emotions guide their political perspectives….especially fear and anger. For the typical reactionary, it’s about feelings, not facts. 

Reactionaries often have nothing to lose and everyone to blame. This is the easiest way to spot a reactionary- they are often quick to scapegoat specific groups. Immigrants. Transgender folks. Billionaires. “The Media.”

Reactionaries tend to think we need to burn everything down and start over from scratch, they are perfectly ok with hurting a lot of people in order to do so, especially those aforementioned scapegoats. In fact, they would argue that they NEED to hurt people in order to fix the political order.

Ok so so far I have made reactionaries look pretty bad, so let me defend them a bit. Reactionaries are often financially struggling and only want to destroy the entire system because the system has not worked for them…like, at all. Most are not inherently bad people. They are just desperate, and often have been screwed over for GENERATIONS. They want reform, but don’t see reformers as allies because reformers tend to be privileged and still want to keep the current system and even still often benefit from the current system.

Overall, though, reactionaries look to a distant, often made-up past, and they often have no hope for the future.

-NPCs- (Autopilot)

Using a video game reference here for the youth, but Non-Player Characters, or NPCs, aren’t paying attention to politics.  NPCs seemingly lack a personal political compass. They uncritically absorb and repeat the dominant narratives and social cues of their environment. In other words, they go along with the majority without any independent analysis or skepticism. They’re background characters following a script. True followers. Sheep.
Sure, they’ll go along with change. Change can happen as long as there is no pain to get there. Like conservatives and reformers, NPCs also benefit from the status quo, but they just don’t care how or why.

In their defense, NPCs often have NO IDEA that they are NPCs. And often modern society offers so much work and distractions that of course they wouldn’t figure out that they are NPCs. And I should stress, they are NOT NPCs when it comes to everything. Some of the most intelligent, inspirational, and dynamic people in the world are NPCs. They’re just NPCs when it comes to politics.
Overall, NPCs are only focused on the immediate present. Cogs in the machine but don’t know. Stuck in each moment, with no desire to get out of it.

-These four political groups are not static-
So, to refresh. Reformers tend to push forward toward a utopian vision. Reactionaries tend to push backward toward an imagined golden age. Conservatives try to stay grounded in the workable past AND present without radical lurches either way. NPCs are just along for the ride.

I like to think of myself as a reformer, but at times I also feel more like a conservative.

And stop it with the stupid left wing-right wing crap- it’s time to admit that the old left wing-right wing political spectrum isn’t that accurate. I made a whole video about why that is, by the way. The fact is, there are not only people who self-identify as right wing who are actually reactionary, there are people who self-identify as LEFT WING who are ALSO reactionary.

Presenting my political group diagram! (with diagram behind me) 
NPCs here to represent where the true center of politics is. Reformers up here to represent where politics is going. Conservatives over here to represent where politics is staying. Reactionaries down here to drag everyone down to….ya know…

To be clear, we NEED all four groups. The healthiest societies probably need constant tension between all four groups. Especially reformers and conservatives. And yes, we even need reactionaries, as they remind us what happens if we completely give into our most destructive emotions. As long as they stay out of power. 

Conservatives- it works, keep it
Reformers- it’s ok, improve it
Reactaries- it’s so broken, so tear it all down
NPC- it’s just there, so uh, follow it?

Conservatives- caution, duty
Reformers- change and hope
Reactionaries- fear, loathing, resentment
NPC- Shoulder shrug emoji

Now you may be wondering, why did I draw up the diagram like this? First of all, why are there so many NPCs?
Well, according to a recent Gallup poll, more than 2/3 of Americans don’t follow politics that closely.^1  (pointing) So that’s, like, more than 66% of the population.

But the number of people in each political group is constantly changing! (slowly float off screen) Woah
 
When things are generally going well, the NPC group tends to grow and the other three groups tend to shrink. However, when things are NOT going so well, the NPC group tends to shrink and the reformer and reactionary groups …aka the change groups…tend to get bigger, especially the reactionaries group. When NPCs become politically activated, sad to say they often begin by becoming reactionaries, as it’s usually economic despair and disillusionment with the whole system that leads them to become politically active to begin with.

(walking in) And that’s what we’re seeing right now. Reactionaries have become such a big group that they have become a major political force, even taking over many powerful governments around the world.

Now, most republics prevent reactionaries, but some do slip into leadership, and when that happens…welllll terrible, terrible things can happen. I believe so many people are worried about the world right now because so many reactionaries have gained power when they’re often the least qualified to hold such power. (walk off)
 
(walk on screen) In my opinion, all other three political groups- reformers, conservatives and yes, NPCs, have to unite against reactionaries if we want our species to survive. 

I know, easier said than done. Reformers often look at conservatives as obstacles to progress. Conservatives often look at reformers as naive, reckless, and overly idealistic. Both reformers and conservatives often look at the NPC as the “swing vote” that is easily convinced by the loudest voice. All of them tend to put the reactionaries into the “basket of deplorables.” 

But have some empathy for reactionaries. They’re feelings are real. Their suffering is real. And they deserve to be happy. And yes, even some reactionaries can be reachable. Many reactionaries end up becoming conservatives and reformers, and yep, even NPCs if things get better enough.

So, at least for now, I am calling for all Reformers and Conservatives to put aside their differences to not only fight back against Reactionaries, but also to recruit NPCs to help them fight back against Reactionaries. And after we fight them. We help them, so that reactionaries never try to take over the world again. 

So what about YOU? What political group do YOU belong to? What political group do you think I belong to? Do you think my four political groups are crap? Well, they could be. After all, I kind of just made them up. I presented to you in this video a…how do you say…HYPOTHESIS? Political scientists feel free to put me in my place in the comments below. Thanks for staying curious!
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^1.https://news.gallup.com/poll/513128/attention-political-news-slips-back-typical-levels.aspx?utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_content=morelink&utm_campaign=syndication
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