Comments on: Two Kinds of Progressives

By: zenyenta

zenyenta — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 03:11:24 +0000

I think there’s another category – rational radicals. Most of the people I know in offline life who are interested enough to discuss politics are way to the left. I mean, they’re not insulted by being called Marxist-Leninists. Just don’t get them confused with Trotskyites or Maoists who were in entirely other camps. But after many, many years they too have become divided between the process oriented and outcome oriented. The outcome oriented radicals believe that they’re living in the reality based community and by all means, ask for more, but it’s got to be done by building consensus, not by trashing the best we’ve got, and it has not been lost on them that Obama is head and shoulders above anyone they thought they could hope for just a year or so out.

By: Miller

Miller — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 22:38:32 +0000

I’m really happy that someone of Nate’s recent stature is around to lend credence to my long-held position that progressives are divided into two groups: Those who divide progressives into two groups and those who don’t.

By: Pierce R. Butler

Pierce R. Butler — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 20:07:39 +0000

Maha – thanks for the clarification.

Swami – yeah, I was struck by the same thought… but I considered just about any of the icons on display would’ve done as well.

* Wanders off in search of pic of Patty Hearst in her “Tanya (’smash the fascist insect!’)” stage… *

By: felicity

felicity — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 19:37:08 +0000

Radicals are right-brained and rationals/reasoners are left-brained. Since the entire population is divided along those lines, perhaps effecting ‘change’ is best achieved by appealing to both? (A thousand years ago I read that ending the slave trade in England was primarily effected by two men, one on the ’street’ and one in parliament. They didn’t work together but they worked toward the same end.)

Pure right-brainers are an interesting bunch – like 20 percent of them believe that the sun goes around the earth every 24 hours, or the earth and everything on it was created about 7 thousand years ago and in 7 days, or the guy who said that if English was good enough for Jesus Christ, it should be good enough for the rest of us. Rational/reasoners won’t get to first base with that bunch, but radicals just might.

By: MH

MH — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 17:50:29 +0000

“In my case, my ultimate goal is not so much to enact progressive policies (although that would be nice) as it is to create a nation in which the people received factual information and could have rational, substantive debates about issues.”

Valuing rational debate and abiding by the will of the majority are THEMSELVES progressive/liberal ideals, largely by default, as conservatives started abandoning those values when well-informed voters, after a thorough airing of a problem, stopped expressing a preference for conservative solutions.

By: Swami

Swami — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 16:52:57 +0000

Bonnie.. Here’s the real Swami. Have a look into my life.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/22781790@N07/3262544008/

By: Pat Pattillo

Pat Pattillo — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 08:14:54 +0000

…overactive limbic systems. This affliction is not exclusive to either the right or the left.

By: Bonnie

Bonnie — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 06:29:42 +0000

I’ve always wondered what you looked like, Swami.

By: Swami

Swami — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 05:54:10 +0000

Not to make light of Pierce’s comment..But isn’t it strange how the generated icon seems tailor made for the comment.

By: maha

maha — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 04:22:33 +0000

Pierce — I wasn’t talking about all radicals, just the subset of radical progressives as Nate Silver defined them.