When you have two opposing camps, it's always more pleasing to have somebody from the enemy switch and join your side, than for somebody who used to be neutral to join you. When a former neutral joins camp A, all that does, in the eyes of members of A, is to validate their views. "Woohoo, more confirmation that we're right. What else is new?" When a member of B switches to A, that validates A and invalidates B, which is a lot more pleasing. It's "woohoo" + "gotcha!" Even on its own, a gotcha may be more pleasing than a woohoo. If somebody leaves B and joins C instead of A, and starts attacking B, that may still be more enjoyable for members of A than if a neutral joins A, and starts attacking B. It's the difference between getting a pat on the back and seeing your enemy getting kicked in the leg - many would prefer the second. And A's enjoyment is of course mirrored by B's resentment - that's what makes it fun.

But a switch from B to A is even more pleasing to members of A if the person only switches partly, and retains enough of their views or other characteristics to still, formally, be a member of B. This provides members of A with a double-gotcha. That the person hasn't completely joined A is not important - A probably has no shortage of supporters, so why weep? What's important is that this doubly invalidates B's view on that particular issue. It's seen as authentic, as principled. To members of A, the half-way switch shows that not even members of B have any reason to hold those particular views. This shifts the frontline from "A vs B" to "A and smart B's vs dumb B's". This is true even when "A" and "B" are meaningless for ideological grouping purposes.

You may be guessing where I'm going with this, (or maybe not - I'm sorry for being theoretical, I just want to write this down.) Think right vs left, conservatives vs liberals, market supporters vs the anti-globalization movement, atheists vs Christians, pacifists vs warmongers, Europe vs the US. Don't we just love hearing former members of the enemy camp explain how they went wrong, and current members of the enemy camp adopting some of our own views? I believe this is a factor in why former repentant communists are popular with conservatives, why Christians are eager to show that Darwin became a Christian on his deathbed, why pro-war right-wing bloggers quote pro-war leftists, why George Soros is popular with anti-globos, why former Conservative PM Kåre Willoch is popular on the Norwegian left, why Michael Moore is wildly popular in Norway, and maybe even why Americans read pro-war Norwegian blogs. It validates one's views in a way that goes beyond naked arguments. Again: A factor, not the only reason, but it can be a decisive factor in breaching a treshold for attention-worthiness.

And it's not necessarily an irrational factor either. Being a former Christian and a former pacifist, for instance, gives me insights into those worldviews others may not have. And sometimes the best criticism of an ideological camp comes from its own members. But the pleasure taken in signing up enemy defectors or semi-defectors for your own cause, that is irrational, (though perhaps more an interesting irrationality than a dangerous one).

Bjørn:
I highly recommend taking a quick look at the intellectual transformation of a woman by the name of Tammy Bruce.

regards,
Joe

Bjørn,

Your thoughtful analysis made me think of something:

I know of dozens of prominent conservatives in the US who were radical leftist in their younger days. Reagan, Horowitz, Bruce, and countless others.

However, I can't think of a single serious leftwing politician/columnist who were conservative or rightwing earlier in life.

Is this just accidential? It seems to me that a political intellectual transformation only goes one way : From left to right.

For the record, I don't consider Arianna Huffington serious, nor do I consider the Palestine issue a left-right issue.

I remember a witty play of words by a german friend of my family.

"If you're young and blue, you've got no heart"
"If you're old and red, you've got no brain"

Paraphrased from memory. It may be a famous quote or whatever, but I don't know the origin except the friend of my family :-)

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