The American Left Defined

Let me preface this by saying that I will only be referring to American Leftists in this article. No I have not forgotten you European Leftists but for now the Americans are my immediate problem. Don’t worry my friends across the pond, I will gladly find a way to offend you another day.

First things first, you will notice that I refer to those on the Left, not as “Liberals” but as “Leftists”. Something within me prevents me from gracing them with that moniker when their core philosophy stands strikingly contrary to it. The American Heritage Dictionary defines “liberal” as:

“1.a. Open-minded; tolerant. b. Favoring civil and political liberties, democratic reforms and protection from arbitrary authority. 2.a. Tending to give freely; generous.”

While I can certainly see why it was appealing for 60’s era Marxists and other Leftists to appropriate this term for themselves, no intellectually honest person can believe that such a definition accurately describes the Left. Just for fun though, let’s give it a shot…..

The Left is decidedly open-minded and tolerant, of anyone who agrees with them and all ideas consistent with their own. Leftists favor all civil and political liberties, which allow them to live their hedonistic lifestyle free from consequences and personal responsibility. Leftists favor democratic reforms, as long as those reforms are neither spearheaded nor implemented by Conservatives, Libertarians and the like. Leftists are committed to protecting society from the dictates of arbitrary authority. Unfortunately the only “arbitrary authority” in the mind of a Leftist is that which is unassociated with any branch of government. They do however make an exception when those in charge the government are not Leftists. Then, and only then, is government considered an “arbitrary authority.” Finally, who can deny that Leftists are the most giving and generous people alive, with other people’s money. Ok, so maybe the Left is in fact, Liberal….Not!!

The American Left today is a strange mixture of three distinct, though sometimes overlapping, groups of people: Marxists/Socialists, Democratic Party Faithful and Environmentalists.

This half of our political and social dichotomy is results oriented. Contrast that with the Right which is process oriented. It is often said that the Left never considers the logical effects of its policies and ideas. I beg to differ. The Marxists and Environmentalists Left are well aware of the effect their policies and ideas have on our society and economy. It is only the Traditional Democrat who seems oblivious to issues of cause and effect. Whereas the Right is committed to ensuring equality of opportunity (Process Egalitarians), the Left is committed to ensuring equality of outcome (Results Egalitarians). Thus the Left typically takes an ends-justify-the-means approach to social, legal and economic issues.

I know some believe that there is no difference between Marxism and Socialism but Marxism is but one branch of the Socialist tree. Many Socialist thinkers proceeded and followed him, however it is Marx who has been credited with giving rebirth to an idea that, by the latter half of the 19th Century was falling into the abyss due to successful challenges from both economics and sociology. Oh, the good old days when most intellectuals understood both economics and human nature.

Karl Marx believed in dictatorship and revolution but understood that such was highly unlikely in the United States and Great Britain. Because our societies were so committed to the concept of liberty, the only manner in which to bring about his Socialist utopia would be through incrementalism. Hence, we have our American counterpart to the British Fabians (the force behind the Labour Party), known as Progressives.

For the record, Fabian Socialism owes its name to ancient Roman General Fabius Maximus. Fabius was known for never engaging the Carthaginians in direct attacks. Instead he opted for tactics intended to gradually weaken and demoralize his enemies. For the most part, he was quite successful at it. This then became the model for the incremental socialist revolution practiced by Leftist “intellectuals” in the England and the United States since the beginning of the 20th Century.

While the Right was sleeping Progressives assumed control over all of America’s cultural institutions albeit the three areas where their philosophy has the greatest potential to do long-term damage to the idea of “America” are Law, Science and History. Through judicial activism, junk-science and historical revisionism, the Left has amassed a mountain of intellectual jargon to support its beliefs. Moreover, their control over America’s educational institutions provide them with the captive audience needed to foster this their beliefs.

The most disturbing characteristic of this branch of the Left is the fact that they tend to be vehemently anti-American. No I am not one of those who describe all Leftists as anti-Americans. My charge is limited only to those factions of the Left who reveal themselves to be so.

Socialists believe that the free-market system, upon which America prides itself, is morally and ethically flawed. Therefore, anything that supports such a system is deemed evil and worthy of attack. They fail to see that “America” is not so much a place as it is an idea. It is an idea of Freedom, Individual Rights, Success and Rugged Individualism. It is the idea that we are all entitled to equal opportunity but are not guaranteed equal results. It is the idea that actions have consequences both good and bad. These are the ideas which make America, America. This idea however, is the single greatest threat to the realization of the Socialist dream.

True, America has strayed from it founding principals in far too many respect, but the core ideas of our nation has remained day after day, year after year, decade after decade. It is a virtual genetic code written on the hearts and minds of all who freely assimilate into our culture. It may be somewhat naïve on my part, but I firmly believe that no matter how successful this branch of the Left is, nothing short of a Stalinists or Khmer Rouge-like extermination will rid America of that genetic code. Thank God for the Second Amendment!!!

This group of people are loyal only to the Democratic Party. Unlike their Marxist/Socialist brethren, they actually love their country. What they hate are those who disagree with them, namely, Republicans, Conservatives and Libertarians. When they attack America note that they are not attacking the country per se. No, they are attacking the fact that the wrong people are in control of it. Hence, their attacks cease when their guys are in the driver’s seat. Notice the calming effect the Clinton years had on this group? Hypocrisy? Yes. But at least their consistency makes them predictable.

They do not hate the electoral process, they just hate it when that process results in a victory for the other side. They do not hate government, they just hate the fact that their political and ideological enemies control it. They do not hate the judicial system, they just hate judges who refuse to legislate from the bench. They do not hate the Founding Fathers, they just hate everything the Founding Fathers believed, stood-for and represented (Ok, so they also hate the term “Founding Fathers” also). I could go on with this but I’m sure you get the point. As Ann Coulter says, “Conservatives disagree with Liberals (sic), but Liberals hate Conservatives.”

At times it can be somewhat difficult to distinguish Democrats from the other branches of Leftism. Just remember that many Democratic politicians, when sounding like Marxists and/or Environmentalists, are usually just pandering to their base on the Left in the same way that Republicans pander to Conservatives and Libertarians.

Yes, they can be annoying, but it is unfair to characterize all Democrats as anti-American.

This is the really fun group on the Left. These people have but one goal in life; to return the world to its pre-industrial state. Some would even prefer its pre-human state but they haven’t yet worked out the details of that one. The most frightening idiosyncrasy of Environmentalists is their propensity to use violence.

Environmentalists are Gia-worshipping, tree-hugging, Earth-loving fanatics who believe that the worst thing to happen to the Earth is human ingenuity. As America is the virtual epitome of human ingenuity, that makes America the root cause of all of the Earth’s problems. They don’t actually want to live anyplace else, they just want America to cease being a haven for free-market enthusiasts and stop that annoying habit of exporting free-market ideas to the rest of the world. Their beliefs are synonymous with Marxism in some respects but they don’t really crave a Socialist form of government. Environmentalism, though mired in Socialism, views Socialism as a means to an end and not the end itself.

Additionally, Environmentalists believe that everything that damages our environment can be traced back to some form of capitalist conspiracy. Furthermore, Environmentalism is their religion. This is the reason they become so enraged when they feel that their beliefs are under attack, reminiscent of “Christianity” of old and modern-day Islam. In like manner, they have no qualms about using force to achieve their goals. It is not enough that you agree that there has been irresponsible stewardship of our environment, you must completely reject your beliefs in private property rights, individual freedom and free-market ideas or you are a part of the great capitalist/corporate conspiracy that is destroying the planet.

Speak with any honest Environmentalist (Ok, stop laughing, there are a few). They will admit that Socialist regimes (i.e. the former USSR and China) have caused more environmental destruction than exists in so-called “Capitalist” countries. Of course their explanation for this falls back on the capitalist/corporate conspiracy argument.

Perhaps you may have wondered why I did not mention Pacifists as members of the Left. Fact is, Pacifists, like Populists, are neither Left nor Right. All Leftists occasionally masquerade as Pacifists yet we know that few, if any, genuine Pacifist will be found among them. Leftist “pacifism” is merely a mask for anti-Americanism or anti-Conservatism/Republicanism/Libertarianism and/or anti-Capitalism.

True Pacifism adheres to the philosophy of “turn the other cheek.” They live their lives according to the principal that man can only destroy the body, whereas God can destroy the soul. Their reluctance to use violence is genuine myopic love of their fellow man no matter how naïve we may view it. Thus they make great moral leaders but horrible (and sometimes suicidal) political leaders.

Leftists, on the other hand, who put on a Pacifist’s face for the camera always reveal themselves for who they truly are. Any attempt to sound like a Pacifist becomes a springboard to a basic ad hominem attack. They cannot keep up the charade because it pains them not to mention the evil of America, the stupidity and/or evil of the Right or attributing the motives of their enemies to some capitalist/corporate conspiracy. In effect, all charges raised in opposition to war come from an existing paradigm. Anyone who has ever witnessed one of the Left’s radical demonstrations should see quite clearly that the Left is but Pacifist.

At times it seems that these groups all meld into one. That is a perfectly reasonable observation. Unfortunately, not taking the time to understand the differences between them can and will hinder your ability to engage them properly. Yes, they all have in common a basic belief system that unites them. They all, on one level or another, hate or are suspicious of anyone who disagrees with them which makes them an endless source of richly comical stupidity. Their style of argument is simple: obfuscate when you can, prevaricate when you cannot. I am often torn between viewing the philosophy of the Left as semi-articulate asininity or passionate prevarication.

No matter how you define them, never make the mistake of believing that they are all the same.

I'm printing this out for my liberal friends. It seems to me that many of Democrat friends when confronted with the facts, see the light. I just hope they vote the right way next time.

EXCELLENT POST

There is only one grave dificency left, which would be nice if it could be addressed.

Unfortunately those that pose as conservatives, yet are moderate Bush-Bot types don't yet have the courage to stand on raw principle, thinking that would work.

When one compromises with corruption it is the corruption that erodes ones ethics and right position. NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND. Only fools think that compromising with the corrupt will ultimately get you to where you want to be.

The deficiency is only that those who should view this article and understand it will refuse to.

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