There is a difference in temperament, though I think the 'populist right' is closer to the left in terms of temperament than to proper Burkean conservatives of the world.

There's always the lowest common denominator types in any group, who know nothing other than "my team good, your team bad."

I think the populist right is more vulnerable to this because, as I've said before, MAGA is a slogan, not a philosophy, so there isn't really a firm set of principles as a foundation.

The left has an ideology, but it is based in grievance, resentment, and group identity, and it explicitly rejects reason, so mindless, intense tribalism is a feature, not a bug.

There is also an escalatory cycle where if they do something to us, then we won't mind if ours do it to them. It's the road to perdition, but then again, just turning the 90000th cheek hasn't done the right any good either.

I believe in keeping to a set of principles, but I don't think letting yourself get repeatedly buttfucked by your enemies makes you "the bigger man."

The Left only understands one thing — power. They can be fought without sinking to their level, but it requires actual leaders with actual backbone, who understand this and will properly use their power to kick the commies out of their positions of power (e.g. DeSantis completely legally having police remove the commie State Attorney from his job).

The feckless turds who comprise the majority of the Republican party won't do this, which is why the populist right now exists.

I always have to fight back against my instinct that "everything is rotten, so it is desirable that everything burn down".

I feel this.