How Do You Know If You're "Far Left" or Not?

[rucky]

What are the key issues you use to determine that?

Abortion? Don't think so.
Environment? Well, everybody says they're for the environment.
Guns? Maybe.

Gay marriage?
War?
Trade?
(edit) Progressive Taxation!?

Do you need to stray from the mainstream on all of these issues to earn the "far left" label, or would one or two suffice? Is it issues at all, or just general attitude and demeanor? Then isn't it a personality difference instead of political?

Maybe there's a single issue or leader the suspected person supports - a litmus test - you can use to determinine that label. Just so we can all agree on who's who here & insult each other more fairly & accurately.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

1. well you said far left

and i think yes on abortion, gay marriage, welfare state, universal health care, environmental protections etc....

[bif]

2. Take the test and find out

http://www.digitalronin.f2s.com/politicalcompass/questionnaire.pl?page=1

[rucky]

5. oh yeah that test

everybody tests left of our leaders.

unless your leader is Nelson Mandela or Ghandi

[ithacan]

17. strong left-libertarian!

beyond even Mandela and Dalai Lama...

I guess that makes me on the lunatic fringe? Because I think humans have the right to be treated as humans...

on edit: Specific details:

Economic Left/Right: -8.62
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -8.31

[MurikanDemocrat]

19. I'm Left -5.25, Libertarian -5.49

[gottaB]

29. -4, -4.67

Does that make me Bush-Lite, or Ghandi-Lite?

[Lydia Leftcoast]

3. If you don't think the mass media are the Gospel truth

and if you aren't a racist or survivalist, then you're "far left" according to some people's definitions.

[MurikanDemocrat]

4. Some common signs, possibly, of far left, are

ideological purity, ideological altruism

[rucky]

7. That's even more vague than "far left"

[maxanne]

8. nah

we know he means "Dean supporters."

[MurikanDemocrat]

23. I don't think it can be defined by a specific issue

I'm not sure how to explain what I mean - I haven't thought about defining it, but the far left or fringe left is more how they deal with the issues or approach the solutions than the issues themselves.

For example, we all agree the Iraq War was wrong, but we don't all agree that using the IWR as a litmus test for choosing a candidate is appropriate. That's where ideological purity and altruism come in.

I was choosing my words carefully because I don't want to get in a pissing match, but I could think of other examples of purity vs pragmatism.

[rucky]

27. And I could say that pragmatism has become dogmatic as well.

a product of the myth that purity & pragmatism are(edit) mutually exclusive, though I'd they're often in conflict with each other. the right path to walk is rarely the easiest.

ya gotta balance the two. i would say that people can lose sight in either one or the other, but having the ends justify the means (extreme pragmatism = "only results matter") is more socially acceptable right now. This could be why centrism can, despite its label, be seen as "extreme" to people who are popularly viewed as extremists.

Honestly, most of us are aware of the need for balance, but I think some of us take it upon ourselves to present the counter-argument more forcefully - to assure that we as a society won't lose sight of it. It's probably not as much conscious rationale, but more an instinctive reaction to things being out of whack. From where the pendulum seems to be swinging, that could appear to be extreme, but it's really a pragmatic way to get the pendulum swinging back toward that state of homeostasis we all want but will never be achieved.

[MurikanDemocrat]

30. I can sign on to your explanation. If I had to guess in hindsight,

I'd have to say the greatest conflicts and frustrations we see here between the 2 are when purity and pragmatism conflict with each other and no balance is sought, with, as you say, pragmatism being the more socially acceptable of the two.

I would also point out, having said that, that while DU appears left leaning to me in my short tenure in GD Primary, I see only a small vocal minority of the far left as being among the unalterable, or strictly "pure" and/or "altruistic".

For example, the test that is provided in this thread I fell among the Green Party, or slightly left of Mandela and Dalli Lama (sp?), as far as issues are concerned, but my ideology is more results/compromise oriented, so I align myself with the Democratic Party, and would never consider a 3rd Party option.

[Forkboy]

16. I get a kick out of people

who claim others are for purity...but call for purges here on DU :crazy:

[MurikanDemocrat]

24. I did not call for the purge

[Rich Hunt]

22. not so sure

I come out really far to the left on that political compass test, but I don't really have an 'ideology' and make all sorts of pragmatic concessions.

[randr]

6. If you imagine the earth revolves around the sun

you are more than likely to the left of any * supporter.

[BlueJazz]

9. I'm far left on just about every issue that.....

I can think of including Health Care, Women's rights, Taxes ETC......
Perhaps the only issue is Reparations to Blacks.
I feel that would open a large can of worms in the sense that society
would have to go back to the dawn of time and give money to every group that was ever conquered or held back.
On the other hand, I do believe in taxes paying for ALL advanced education as this is the one sure way to raise the boat for everyone.....and education to, at least, try to eliminate bigotry.

[rucky]

10. you sound crazy

"radical", even.

(in the surfer-dude sense of the word)

[Uzybone]

21. Reparations isnt a left/right issue

n/t

[Lexingtonian]

11. Oh, that's easy

If/when one of your far Left acquaintances tells you "That's definitely not PeeCee, man" your invisible key to the clubhouse is being taken away.

It's not any one issue. It's adherance to the set Party Line and behavior- attempts to be 'reasonable' are Not Good.

[Rich Hunt]

25. actually

...liberals and moderates practice the more silly forms of 'PC' that always get pinned on 'the left'.

Things like 'zero tolerance' policies and anything that stifles free discourse isn't very 'left'....unless in your in one of those nutty vanguard parties that likes to shout everyone down.

Some 'PC' is really just social snobbery in another form - where you don't want to engage people who hold views you dislike, because you're 'too good' for that.

[rucky]

28. that's more on the authoritarian/egalitarian spectrum

than left/right

Asscroft covered the bosom of lady justice.

[Q3JR4]

12. I'm further left

and more Libertarian than Ghandi. What does it all mean? Yo no se.

[rucky]

15. It means Ghandi is an evil despot & must be stopped.

n/t

[cryofan]

13. Are you serious? You didn't even MENTION Progressive Taxation!

it is a great indication of how propagandized Americans are when a liberal rattles off a list of "Far Left issues" and progressive taxation is not one of them.

All the rest of those issues you list are hardly a pimple on the ass of the Progressive taxation issue. All leftist issues derive from progressive taxation. Without that you do not have a Left, except in theory.

[rucky]

18. crap! fixed.

don't wanna think about taxes

[Snow]

20. Neither do I see either of you mentioning a social welfare

government, in the fashion of some of the scandinavian countries. For shame! We had a coupla very good informative threads on the topic here a few weeks back.

[FreeSpeechCrusader]

14. Here's the page comparing this year's candidates with George W.

http://www.digitalronin.f2s.com/politicalcompass/usprimaries.html

[stevebreeze]

26. here's my take on left right

Who took these positions;

We are all Keynesian's now.
support progressive tax cuts
universal national health care
universal min income (not wage income)
increase welfare payments
support clean air act
support clean water act
supported endangered species act
supported OSHA


Obviously this person did not accomplish all these goals. We still lack universal health care, and do not have a min income. But Richard Nixon did sign all these other acts into law. He also opened up China to the west. That poll is crap! The thing is we are not all of us so far to the left as the the right has through wise (from their perspective) use of the media managed to defined us as far left.

:kick:

[Kanary]

31. If you're ridiculed on DU

and your candidate gets trashed here on a daily basis, and you are called a commie on DU, then...

Naw.. just means you're not in the right wing category.....

Kanary

Another Delusional Diehard for Dennis!!

Kucinich 2004!