Collision hostages – 03/31/2023 – Dora Kramer

Back to the scene, if not the crimes yet to be legally configured, but the scenario of national politics where there is no sign of pacification in sight, Jair Bolsonaro has arrived to confront. And the PT, in the voice of the party president, has already shown that it is up for the fight. “Are you coming back, genocidal?”, provoked Gleisi Hoffmann on the eve of the antagonist’s disembarkation.

With the ring armed, Brazil remains a prisoner of conflicted narratives. Two opposing forces that feedback in a dynamic of exchanged signals, which hijacks the debate and makes Brazilians hostages of permanent collision. Checking whether President Luiz Inácio da Silva will join the fray or leave the task to spokespersons. In essence, it comes to the same thing, in the mutual lineup of the favorite bad guy.

The combatants differ in content, but they are similar in form. They worship the mythology of the hero, are intolerant of contradictions, have a talent for creating distractions, feed persecutory fantasies, harbor grudges, show themselves to be omnipotent, do not allow others to overshadow them, prophesy like someone who discovered gunpowder and see the opponent as an enemy to be annihilated.

There are other similarities. Let’s stick to the most obvious ones so as not to attract the ire of the heralds of the false equivalence thesis. The ones described above suffice to draw the line that demonstrates the attractiveness that exorbitances have on voter conduct.

Attractive enough to overcome the sense of moderation seen in polls. See the coincidence. In 2021, the consultancy Quaest pointed out that 57% preferred an alternative candidacy to Lula or Bolsonaro. In 2023, Ipec also pointed out that 57% would like the same for the next presidential election.

The appreciation for the center was not seen at the polls in 2022. Nor is it seen now, although the tide could turn if the extremes continue to be more busy creating an issue, betting on fear and rejection.