Left and Right

Let’s look at the conversation that goes on between the left and the right in America. In the way the two sides talk to each other, they reveal what they care about, each trying to convince the other of what’s important to them, and each talking past the other, hearing each other, but rarely listening.

On the left, what is important is facts, reason, education, and protecting the vulnerable from those who would exploit, harass and subjugate them. The left understands that in a diverse community freedom comes with sacrifice. As an example, during the pandemic when it was clear that the best way to protect each other was to wear a mask, and to limit interpersonal contact, the left embraced such a proactive, easy, near-painless sacrifice, because the left understood that the small sacrifice was worth it. The left used reason and facts and common sense to encourage this small sacrifice, the only sacrifice I’ve ever been asked to make for my country. And of course, I did it, because it was barely a sacrifice. And obviously worth it. A very easy decision.

On the right what is important is opinion. Opinion, emotion, absolute liberty, and never being told what to do. During the pandemic, the leader of the right, the president of the entire country made fun of masks. He discouraged their use, and encouraged others to not put up with being told what to do. Apparently even this small sacrifice was too much for these Americans on the right. Rather than use facts or reason or common sense to explain why the right wouldn’t make this sacrifice, they simply said it was their opinion they shouldn’t have to. They used insults to demean and undermine the legitimacy of the experts calling for the sacrifice. They do this because that’s what is important on the right, insults and opinions, and getting your way, and never having to sacrifice.

The left convinces itself of things by examining them with reason, consideration and within the context of history, trying to understand what they don’t. The right convinces itself of things through threats and fear and making fun of what they don’t understand, attempting to make it go away. 

Because it’s how their own beliefs work, the left doesn’t understand why reason and facts aren’t convincing to the right. And because it’s how their own beliefs work, the right doesn’t understand why insults and threats aren’t convincing. The left, in frustration at having their knowledge insulted, brings more facts and more experts and more studies to overwhelmingly prove their points, sure more information will enlighten others. The right, in frustration at having their opinions called wrong, up their insults to violence, not understanding why their opinions aren’t being believed, not willing to consider what they don’t like personally, sure that more force will enlighten others. 

The left, largely an urban population, deal with issues about population density, about getting along with neighbors, about what types of activities are suitable or safe in a dense population. The left promotes education and research to broaden the opportunities for all. The right, largely a rural population, struggle with the lack of services and opportunities in areas where people are scarce. The right denigrates education and research, while it promotes indignation, self-reliance, and guns.

The left wants more education and less guns. The right wants less education and more guns.

The left, placing an importance on facts and accuracy, refer to our current president’s regime as fascist. Because throwing insults are what they value, the right assume that’s what’s also important to others. But the left calls him a fascist because it’s accurate, and in order to deal with a problem, it’s helpful to first have clear definitions. The right doesn’t get that though, because accuracy isn’t important to them. The insult and the emotion are important to them. As an example the fascist president during his election rallies would refer to the Democratic party as fascist/socialist/communist/anarchist, clearly not understanding the meanings of those words and simply using them like insults, because that’s what is important, the insult, the opinion, trying to make others look bad. Appearances. They assume the left is insulting them, because that’s how they operate.

This is why we are living in a society where the right lives in a fantasy world. The men on the right, the men of our country who despite all the many differences they all share, ostensibly could always be counted on to revere bravery, courage, honor and sacrifice. But now American men largely back this cowardly rapist who has never worked a day in his life, and we cannot count on these men any longer because they are caught up in a war of trading insults and trying to be on the winning team. No one wins when reality is seen as a battle between teams. This, however,  is the right’s desired outcome. A divided country squabbling over nonsense while a handful of billionaires divide the world between themselves. 

I’d really like to convince any of you on the right to reconsider the actual reality you live in, and I’d like to think you are open enough to see what you’ve done in believing this almost transparent conman who calls himself president. But I don’t have that faith in you. The evidence of your willful ignorance is too strong and just paints you as cowards, dumb ones at that. 

And on the left, the fantasy world you live in is that Democrats are left. I’d like to convince you that there is no left in America. The Democratic party is simply the center-right portion of our capitalist society. The party that thinks private capital can be convinced to share profits. A real left in this country would not fall for this scam. A real left in this country would never stop calling out the hand-in-glove fit of capitalism and fascism. A real left in this country would organize working people into a movement to make shareholders of each of us. A real left in this country would stop supporting the least bad choice, and would create the America we were promised.

Our two parties do not represent left and right. They are the two-headed beast of capitalism, and any chance we have to save ourselves in 2025 from this clearly fascist regime and the reality they are attempting to force-fit us into lies in first understanding that a real Left has yet to be born here. Now is the time.