Quote:
Originally Posted by Seeker
When you look at history, I can't think of a single movement by the right wing that moved society forward.
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Lemme guess. Any historic movement you liked, you labeled "left wing" and any movement you hated, you labeled "right wing".
So the anti-slavery movement in which the Republican party was rooted now becomes "left-wing" to satisfy your agenda, right?
And anti-communism was a left-wing achievement, too, correct?
Try thinking of it this way.
Traditional conservatism is rooted in the idea of preserving institutions that provide freedom, peace and economic well-being for the greatest number. This is typically expressed in an inclination towards small, less intrusive government and individual liberty.
Socialism, or progressivism, or liberalism, or whatever name it hides behind this week has a predisposition towards instituting "change" because change is - in left-wing minds - an unalloyed good. Frequently - in fact almost always - this involves the government - led by all the bright and uncorrupted minds - seizing control over a greater portion of the wealth of the nation and its industries, because, well government has all the solutions and knows what good for the common folks.
When the shit hits the fan, as it inevitably does with ever bigger government, the left tends to blame the collapse on having the wrong people in government. It's always the corrupt leaders and not the actual governing philosophy that is to blame. There are still those who think communism would have worked if only the "right people" had been leading it.
Opposing bad ideas is every bit as important as pushing for new ideas.
Soviet Russia and Fidel's Cube were virulently homophobic, but your average American leftie will tell you that only right wingers are homophobes. The left likes religious folks if they support the welfare state or oppose slavery (the abolitionists), but has no use for them if they oppose abortion.
The left doesn't like racism, so they decide it must be a characteristic of the right wing, regardless of the beliefs of the right-winger in question.
The label "right wing" is mostly useless. The left uses it to encompass:
1) anybody they deem racist or homophobic;
2) religious conservatives who are not racist, favor big government and the taxes to go with it, but oppose abortion and gay marriage (i.e., most Catholics),
3) fiscal conservatives who are not racist, oppose big government and high taxes, want better border control, are neutral on legal abortion, and don't care about gay marriage so long as it doesn't increase the deficit
4) libertarians who are not racist, oppose big government and regulation, favor open borders, want to eliminate income taxes and most government programs, favor gay marriage, and legalized drugs, and think public schools should be eliminated in favor of a voucher system for everyone.
You go figure that out.
The label "left wing" is much more consistently used by conservatives. If they want to grab all the money, they are lefties. See? It's simple.
THIS SHIT HOLE CONTINUES
