Left versus Right
Posted 09-30-2009 at 16:50 by Zapfenstreich
[This is written in the context where "left" means somewhere along the continuum of Democrat-Socialist-Communist, while "right" means somewhere along the range of Libertarian-Republican. I do not buy the argument that Authoritarians are on the right. They are variants of leftists, all of whom gravitate towards more, rather than less, government. Anarchists are neither right nor left.]
The difference between leftists and rightists lies in their perceptions of themselves, perceptions that they extend onto others. The leftist believes that strong governments are necessary, in order to thwart the inherent tendency of people to do evil things to each other. This is because the leftist sees in his own heart a darkness that needs restraint. It is only his fear of the state’s threat of retribution that restrains his own evil tendencies, and he knows this, so he advocates for a strong state that will restrain his evil desires in all areas of life, except that of sexuality. The leftist’s desire to be coerced into avoiding evil comes from his fear that he, and others, will naturally commit evil, if given sufficient freedom. It’s not that he gravitates towards communism because he is evil, he gravitates towards it because he fears that he will become evil if allowed to.
The rightist prefers a weak government, so that his own freedom, and those of his fellow citizens, is an unencumbered as possible. This is because the rightist trusts himself to do good without coercion from the state. Often, but not always, the rightist looks towards religion for his guiding star on matters of morality. His positive opinion of himself is extended to those around him – he expects that the majority of people will naturally tend towards doing good without needing to be coerced into it. They need only be convinced of the right thing, to ensure that they do the right thing.
The rightist is an optimist – he trusts in the good of his fellow man. The leftist is a pessimist – he expects mankind to do evil if given the opportunity. Both are right, especially about themselves.
The difference between leftists and rightists lies in their perceptions of themselves, perceptions that they extend onto others. The leftist believes that strong governments are necessary, in order to thwart the inherent tendency of people to do evil things to each other. This is because the leftist sees in his own heart a darkness that needs restraint. It is only his fear of the state’s threat of retribution that restrains his own evil tendencies, and he knows this, so he advocates for a strong state that will restrain his evil desires in all areas of life, except that of sexuality. The leftist’s desire to be coerced into avoiding evil comes from his fear that he, and others, will naturally commit evil, if given sufficient freedom. It’s not that he gravitates towards communism because he is evil, he gravitates towards it because he fears that he will become evil if allowed to.
The rightist prefers a weak government, so that his own freedom, and those of his fellow citizens, is an unencumbered as possible. This is because the rightist trusts himself to do good without coercion from the state. Often, but not always, the rightist looks towards religion for his guiding star on matters of morality. His positive opinion of himself is extended to those around him – he expects that the majority of people will naturally tend towards doing good without needing to be coerced into it. They need only be convinced of the right thing, to ensure that they do the right thing.
The rightist is an optimist – he trusts in the good of his fellow man. The leftist is a pessimist – he expects mankind to do evil if given the opportunity. Both are right, especially about themselves.
Total Comments 2
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What an unbiased description! Let's see if I got it right.
Leftists - Democrats - have hearts of darkness, are pessimists who don't trust themselve, or anyone else, so they support big, humongous government to rein in their evil tendencies. Rightists - Republicans - are good and god fearing optimists who are so good - and believe that others are too - that they don't seek or need much government. Let people and corporations do whatever they want - it's gonna be good, you can count on that. If I were you I'd be careful - the government might declare you a "undeclared combatant" and ship you off somewhere. Oops - sorry - that was Republican Bush... |
Posted 10-03-2009 at 06:18 by Evela
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LOL, thanks for the comment. I can see that you're an atheist, or at least hostile to God, by your refusal to follow the traditional capitalization of His name.
But of course, since you're hostile to Bush as well as God, that makes you both unbiased and enlightened. Some perspective on yourself might be helpful. |
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Posted 10-14-2009 at 13:34 by Zapfenstreich
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