Passionate hatred can give meaning and purpose to an empty life. Thus people haunted by the purposelessness of their lives try to find a new content not only by dedicating themselves to a holy cause but also by nursing a fanatical grievance. A mass movement offers them unlimited opportunities for both.

Eric Hoffer (1902-1983) American writer, philosopher, longshoreman

True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements, Part 3, ch. 14, § 75 (3.14.75) (1951)
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