I’m curious to know what readers would like me to cover next. I have pieces lined up on Islam, NGOs, Foucault, art, writing, AI, and more – all coming from the same philosophical position. I’d also be interested to hear which styles/modes you prefer – educational, satirical, topical/news, or something else. Any feedback is welcome, so feel free to let me know your thoughts in the comments.
I also opened The Gadfly chat recently. Come and join the discussions (open to all subscribers).
I like your philosophical style - it always gives me food for thought. And I appreciate how you leave a trail for readers to add ideas or amendments. You're also fine with people disagreeing as long as it's done in good faith.
I think it’s very interesting and seemingly quasi-Biblical that the death of Communism, (at least the Soviet/Bolshevik flavor), which had as a primary goal to achieve their warped notion of Utopia, global domination with Communism everywhere, has been replaced with Islam, which is far worse. Being ideologically fevered is dangerous enough but to be as fevered as Islam is with the delusional vision that they have Allah behind them makes them truly dangerous…
Add in “the terrorized.” Thinking of parents of trans- identified youths or wives of trannied-out men. They may be cowardly but they are too caught in threatening binds with too much at stake to be true cowards, imho. And the consequences they suffer for non-compliance can be enormous.
You are right about the terrorized. We are terrorized by these sadistic people who are enjoying crushing us under their boots while pretending to be victims.
What man uses the phrase: “entitled white middle-class cis male-identifying”
If you’re going to troll as a young radicalised woman using fake profiles, try not to be so transparent. It really gives your team a bad rep.
Or…. You could just try and adopt critical thinking, develop your own independent thoughts and avoid being cannon fodder for feminist Marxism altogether?
Thanks for clearing that up. Perhaps a little clue next time may better aide the casual reader of the intent?
I read your comment over a few times just to check if I wasn’t missing the clue. If it helps, I wasn’t criticising you per sei. Accordingly, because you’re not a 22 yo female art student with blue hair, a nose stud and an accusatory vocabulary worn on the hip as a side arm, you can ignore with impunity.
My daughter has become a fanatic. She doesn’t realize that she’s a member of the Hitler youth. I think she would turn us in for infractions of insane progressive rules. We can thank her expensive progressive University education for this. She’s upset that Israel and the US bombed Iran’s nuclear facility. She doesn’t seem to care about the women in any of these Islamic strongholds that she defends. Her “partner“ is a person who deceived her for years before coming out as a supposed woman. She says that’s OK and even though we were supportive, apparently we looked at them wrong and so now we are outcasts. Of course she hates Israel and is Pro Palestinian even though now she is “queer“. I guess she doesn’t realize what would happen to them in Gaza or she doesn’t want to know. She is nothing like the child I raised. That sweet, inquisitive, sensitive child has vanished. She is a brainwashed, cruel automaton who thinks she cares about things, but who hates the people who loved her the most. I know that this sad story is common.
I’m really sorry to read this. Ideology shouldn’t cost people their children, and the fact that our education system puts so much nonsense into impressionable young minds is a terrible indictment of our culture. Thanks for talking about it here.
I have appreciated your posts a great deal and am looking forward to reading your articles on this site.
I do not think that the woke and MAGA are similar in their behaviors or their psychologies, and there is some data that supports my analysis. (Would be happy to cite sources if anyone wants them). My focus is on creating strategies to defend ourselves from psychological abuse and bureaucratic abuse from woke movement members. I do not see MAGA as a threat to peoples' minds or lives in the same way that the woke movement is.
I think that categorizing the woke army into types enables us to better combat this destructive authoritarian movement. Many of us have been struggling to understand the enemy, who has so many different faces. I have been very irritated, for example, by so many peoples' comments that woke activists have "good intentions" and that they are nice people, "just like your friends and neighbors." My frustration has been resolved by articles like this one, which enable me to better understand how my lifelong friends, who are in fact "good people," have become mindless mouthpieces for the despicable woke ideology.
Woke activists, on the other hand, are consistently extremely manipulative and I assume they have been that way since birth or soon after. No one acts that way unless it is part of their lifelong approach to other people. People who study the manipulative behaviors that are characteristic of narcissists tend to recognize the same behaviors in woke activists, which enables us to be somewhat more effective in combating their destructive games.
James Lindsay has offered a different but related analysis that classifies woke movement members into levels of control, knowledge and intentionality about its theory and operations. He has discussed this on his New Discourses site, and I can probably find the reference if I look for it, but don't have it right now.
Thanks, Sandra – glad to hear you find these pieces useful, and many thanks for your support.
"I do not see MAGA as a threat to peoples' minds or lives in the same way that the woke movement is." I agree with you on this, which is why it remains my focus here. I worry about all of it, but progressive authoritarianism, anti-Westernism, Islamism, antisemitism... these are what keep me up at night.
I follow James Lindsay, too. He understands this stuff as well as anyone.
I think there are some similarities between woke and Maga. Woke is far more destructive as a whole. My problem with maga is the insane Covid denying anti-VAXxer wingnut fringe. Also, some of them absolutely hate women. You know, the kind that wears the wife beater Trump T-shirt and follows Andrew Tate. Either way, women are in trouble.
It does seem grim, but also I feel better about what is going on in the U.S. now than I did a couple years ago. I am less hopeful about Europe, especially the U.K. I hope we make it in at least some places in Western Civ.
Questioning the safety and efficacy of vaccines is not the same as being anti-vax and is in fact pro-science.
Andrew Tate followers are a disaffected minority and most MAGA supporters, I believe, are disgusted by him. I'm not sure who considers them MAGA, though MAGA is probably more likely to benefit if they vote.
"Maybe it’s because I spent years working in PR for a British institution that I can detect progressive orthodoxy in parts per million. I can pick it up in the throat-clear before a politician says “people who menstruate”. I know within seconds of meeting someone if they will use a word like “intersectional” unironically." Frederick, when I laugh out loud in my office at the first paragraph, I know I'm in for something good! Excellent job today & incisive descriptions of the various woketard types---they all play a role. Their collective amnesia is coming next, but thankfully with social media receipts, most will be outed as opportunistic liars. Increasingly, I have very little time for their nonsense & pray their downfall is imminent.
I prefer to think of three groups of self-identifying progressives, MAGAs, and "Independents:" Committed, Commitable, and Coffeeshop; easier to parse and understand.
All these self-identifying ideological slaves just change their vocabulary to fit their groupthink, though progressives do more screaming.
Someone who is free to pick and choose what s/he agrees with from all parts of the spectrum, who doesn't attend rallies and demonstrations, and who does not donate to any ideological causes.
Sounds to me like you're saying that freedom is when people live their lives according to your standards.
Lord knows how tunnel visioned some people can be. But they are free to be like that. My objection is when they attempt to force my participation. Now, THAT'S a problem.
If someone joins a group that cannot accept new ideas or people with them, they have become slaves. If a group's worldview has to be accepted whole and without exception, that outfit's a bunch of slaves and dictators.
But people are entirely free to live like that if they want. Just don't call them free.
The ultimate conundrum. Am I slave to my wife? Or she to me?
In Hotel California, the Eagles make the observation, "We are all just prisoners here, of our own device." It is not a happy song. It is not about marriage.
I came to realize. long ago, that there are indeed people who prefer to enslave themselves, rather than be responsible for their own life. Sad, but true.
I wrote this a number of years ago, and it still holds up:
I too have a woke-radar and a hypersensitivity to wokeness... Experiencing progressive talk gives me real, physical pain.
Being asked often why and how the progressive craziness got hold of our institutions, I had difficulties to explain. This essay provides the answer -- it is a racket. The question is how do we push back. The Gadfly takes an optimistic stance: "The good news is that every protection racket collapses eventually – and progressivism will be no exception." I hope he is right, but as of now, I see very little change of vibe. I see the True Believers and Fanatics are circling the wagons, and the Cowards -- well, they remain cowards. The Careerists and Opportunists are changing the tune somewhat, but that's about all. The problem is we have too many True Believers and Fanatics ensconced in the system... And too many Cowards who are abetting them.
You're in good company here, Anna! I think lots of us are in the same boat. Btw, look out for new threads in the Gadfly chat; it would be great to hear your thoughts there too. Thanks.
Great analysis as ever. I know lots of cowards and I’m afraid I’ve lost patience with them to a certain extent. I can understand the fear of losing a job but many that I know are retired, so there’s no excuse. I often wonder how many children could have been saved from destroying a healthy body, if all those cowards had spoken up years ago or at the very least, done a modicum of research.
As regards your pinned comment- I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all your pieces but sarcasm is probably my favourite. As for topics, Islam is now such a big threat to the west, (especially with the upcoming Islamophobia definition in the UK) I’ll look forward to your thoughts on that.
Thanks, TT. Yes, it's understandable why someone would not want to risk their job while trying to support their family (I don't think of these as cowards), and it's awful that some people are put in this position – nurses, etc. But the journalists and others who said nothing about the grooming gangs, for example, really deserve our contempt. Same with the trans lot.
You omitted one class, and perhaps the most dangerous one. That’s the patronizing hypocritical nepo baby class who claim that they should tell the rest how to live but don’t do a single one of their proposed actions (see climate, immigration, diversity, taxes etc etc etc)
Fair point. I tend to think they fall in the fanatics category or spread over the others somewhat. But you might be right. Will give this some thought. Thanks.
There is overlap but the defining characteristic is that they think they’re special and therefore deserving of special treatment. And you can’t question them or point out their hypocrisy because they are the in crowd. This is why they latch on to whatever new imaginary protected class is in vogue. You know, like the alphabet people making new status labels to claim their special class without actually doing anything of value.
I hadn't noticed that nepo-babies were a particularly problematic subset of work progressivism. I guess to the extent that the term nepo-baby implies someone who received underserved advantage and likely a loud platform, whatever good or bad they do is amplified.
I like your taxonomy because it breaks things down a bit more than the usual binary or "spectrum" approach.
What's really needed is a serious study of the whole phenomenon. I have long maintained that Leftist progressivism is a secular religion and needs to be analyzed using the sociology and anthropology of religion.
Jordan Peterson, some time ago, divided them into "PC egalitarians" and "PC authoritarians" -- the former being rank-and-file idealists and followers, the "useful idiots of the revolution" of which there are now millions -- and the latter being the more elite group who are motivated by power lust and who create the narratives that the followers adopt.
As a former activist in "peace and social justice" issues (and now a conservative), I can verify this is true. I have seen it. The idealists, such as I was, try to organize and either learn to sell out or get shut down by the authoritarians.
Leftist progressivism can be distinguished from traditional or classical liberalism. Bill Maher, for instance, calls himself a classical liberal, and he mocks radical Leftism. Dave Rubin is another who uses this identifier. I would say Douglas Murray is another. These men are egalitarians. Leftists are not; they are cultural Marxists trying to impose a new hierarchy, one with them at the top.
One thing that irks me about the term "liberal" as used as a pejorative in the USA is that it should really be illiberal or anti-liberal. The Left is now against human liberty, not for it.
A key distinguishing feature of radical ideologies, religious or secular, is the tendency to see reform as no longer a viable option, leading to symbolic acts of destruction, such as tearing down statues. Taken to the furthest extreme, these acts can turn into terrorism and murder, e.g., "trans shooters."
Leftist progressivism is characterized by identitarianism and an ambivalent attitude towards social democracy as being too moderate. They are Utopians at heart, who want the ancien régime to be torn asunder, e.g., "smash the patriarchy."
Some traits of Leftism:
- focus on race, gender, and cultural identity as paramount
- the view that success or failure is "systemic", and outside an individual's control (we see this, for instance, in the critique of the judicial system as 'racist' and defence of criminals based on upbringing)
- supports the endless expansion of the state into all aspects of life, leading to high taxes and the ballooning of government bureaucracy
- belief that the USA and the West in general are morally inferior and "problematic" based on a superficial understanding of the history of slavery and colonialism (e.g., criticism of Western philosophy as "Eurocentric")
Moderate Lefists or "liberals" in the USA are troubled by the excesses of radical Leftism but submit to it because they have been led to think that Trump and MAGA are far worse, even "fascist." They are not revolutionaries, but they can be "useful idiots" for it, e.g. the old people at No Kings rallies. A good example of a moderate leftist is the late actor Rob Reiner. I have relatives who are as well. They have a bad case of TDS. Moderates remind me of the sheep in Animal Farm who bleat what the pigs tell them to. All Western nations are full of such people. I live in Canada, where it is common.
There is apparently something called "the Progressive Values Scale (PVS)", a psychological tool used to "measure attitudes that distinguish progressives from traditional liberals" with regard to their differing "views on cultural identity, systemic inequality, and political activism." I don't know how accurate it is.
To check out where you are on the spectrum, see the Political Compass test (https://www.politicalcompass.org/). My score is Economic Left/Right: 4.0
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 3.23. The questions on this one make you think.
And also the Political Typology test (https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/quiz/political-typology/). This test tells me I am a "faith and flag conservative" along with 10% of the public (just 10%?!) I do not sanction these online tests, but they're interesting.
Excellent piece! It reads as if I wrote it myself… After reading a few critical books such as Orwell and “Witness” by Whitaker Chambers, I feel I understand the left FAR BETTER than most leftists “think’ they understand themselves…
When you read Witness you understand just how long and how deep the Left has infected America. The revelations about Harry Dexter White, who was one of FDR’s closest confidants explains a lot about how the federal government went from a necessary evil to a malignant nanny…
Great summary of the woke landscape. One class you could add is the 'Woke Celebrity'. I'm never sure with them whether they actually believe what they say or whether they're worried about not being invited to the next party/movie/gala event.
Thanks for reading!
I’m curious to know what readers would like me to cover next. I have pieces lined up on Islam, NGOs, Foucault, art, writing, AI, and more – all coming from the same philosophical position. I’d also be interested to hear which styles/modes you prefer – educational, satirical, topical/news, or something else. Any feedback is welcome, so feel free to let me know your thoughts in the comments.
I also opened The Gadfly chat recently. Come and join the discussions (open to all subscribers).
I like your philosophical style - it always gives me food for thought. And I appreciate how you leave a trail for readers to add ideas or amendments. You're also fine with people disagreeing as long as it's done in good faith.
Thanks, Stephanie.
I think it’s very interesting and seemingly quasi-Biblical that the death of Communism, (at least the Soviet/Bolshevik flavor), which had as a primary goal to achieve their warped notion of Utopia, global domination with Communism everywhere, has been replaced with Islam, which is far worse. Being ideologically fevered is dangerous enough but to be as fevered as Islam is with the delusional vision that they have Allah behind them makes them truly dangerous…
Good point – and I agree. Will cover Islam again soon.
I enjoy reading whatever you write really.
Add in “the terrorized.” Thinking of parents of trans- identified youths or wives of trannied-out men. They may be cowardly but they are too caught in threatening binds with too much at stake to be true cowards, imho. And the consequences they suffer for non-compliance can be enormous.
You are right about the terrorized. We are terrorized by these sadistic people who are enjoying crushing us under their boots while pretending to be victims.
I take back what I wrote about cowardly. There’s nothing cowardly about self-preservation when the whole world is arrayed against you.
“Thank you, Fred, for reaching out to share your lived experience as an entitled white middle-class cis male-identifying imperialist oppressor.” 🤮
Thank you, but I need to "educate myself" more on these issues. Will be holding a struggle session with myself tomorrow.
What man uses the phrase: “entitled white middle-class cis male-identifying”
If you’re going to troll as a young radicalised woman using fake profiles, try not to be so transparent. It really gives your team a bad rep.
Or…. You could just try and adopt critical thinking, develop your own independent thoughts and avoid being cannon fodder for feminist Marxism altogether?
I was being sarcastic. I am a man. And it was a joke.
Thanks for clearing that up. Perhaps a little clue next time may better aide the casual reader of the intent?
I read your comment over a few times just to check if I wasn’t missing the clue. If it helps, I wasn’t criticising you per sei. Accordingly, because you’re not a 22 yo female art student with blue hair, a nose stud and an accusatory vocabulary worn on the hip as a side arm, you can ignore with impunity.
Thanks and yes sarcasm doesn’t travel well. My attempt at a clue (obviously failing for you) were the speech marks. Never mind.
An old English teacher ( a wild tempered Scotsman who smoked a pipe) once critiqued a piece I had submitted with the comment:
“This isn’t satire boy, it’s sarcasm. The former requires nuance and finesse the latter, the dull edge of a hammer.
To that end, you commend yourself admirably”
I was 14 at the time and I had held that as a a compliment for at least two years before the penny dropped. 😝
Lowest form of whit etc. Touché mon amis.
My daughter has become a fanatic. She doesn’t realize that she’s a member of the Hitler youth. I think she would turn us in for infractions of insane progressive rules. We can thank her expensive progressive University education for this. She’s upset that Israel and the US bombed Iran’s nuclear facility. She doesn’t seem to care about the women in any of these Islamic strongholds that she defends. Her “partner“ is a person who deceived her for years before coming out as a supposed woman. She says that’s OK and even though we were supportive, apparently we looked at them wrong and so now we are outcasts. Of course she hates Israel and is Pro Palestinian even though now she is “queer“. I guess she doesn’t realize what would happen to them in Gaza or she doesn’t want to know. She is nothing like the child I raised. That sweet, inquisitive, sensitive child has vanished. She is a brainwashed, cruel automaton who thinks she cares about things, but who hates the people who loved her the most. I know that this sad story is common.
I’m really sorry to read this. Ideology shouldn’t cost people their children, and the fact that our education system puts so much nonsense into impressionable young minds is a terrible indictment of our culture. Thanks for talking about it here.
I appreciate your saying that. It’s devastating.
Also sorry to hear of your tragic loss.
I have appreciated your posts a great deal and am looking forward to reading your articles on this site.
I do not think that the woke and MAGA are similar in their behaviors or their psychologies, and there is some data that supports my analysis. (Would be happy to cite sources if anyone wants them). My focus is on creating strategies to defend ourselves from psychological abuse and bureaucratic abuse from woke movement members. I do not see MAGA as a threat to peoples' minds or lives in the same way that the woke movement is.
I think that categorizing the woke army into types enables us to better combat this destructive authoritarian movement. Many of us have been struggling to understand the enemy, who has so many different faces. I have been very irritated, for example, by so many peoples' comments that woke activists have "good intentions" and that they are nice people, "just like your friends and neighbors." My frustration has been resolved by articles like this one, which enable me to better understand how my lifelong friends, who are in fact "good people," have become mindless mouthpieces for the despicable woke ideology.
Woke activists, on the other hand, are consistently extremely manipulative and I assume they have been that way since birth or soon after. No one acts that way unless it is part of their lifelong approach to other people. People who study the manipulative behaviors that are characteristic of narcissists tend to recognize the same behaviors in woke activists, which enables us to be somewhat more effective in combating their destructive games.
James Lindsay has offered a different but related analysis that classifies woke movement members into levels of control, knowledge and intentionality about its theory and operations. He has discussed this on his New Discourses site, and I can probably find the reference if I look for it, but don't have it right now.
Thanks, Sandra – glad to hear you find these pieces useful, and many thanks for your support.
"I do not see MAGA as a threat to peoples' minds or lives in the same way that the woke movement is." I agree with you on this, which is why it remains my focus here. I worry about all of it, but progressive authoritarianism, anti-Westernism, Islamism, antisemitism... these are what keep me up at night.
I follow James Lindsay, too. He understands this stuff as well as anyone.
I think there are some similarities between woke and Maga. Woke is far more destructive as a whole. My problem with maga is the insane Covid denying anti-VAXxer wingnut fringe. Also, some of them absolutely hate women. You know, the kind that wears the wife beater Trump T-shirt and follows Andrew Tate. Either way, women are in trouble.
I agree with all you said. The Democrats are far more misogynistic than the Republicans at this point, and the woke radicals also hate white people.
True.
It does seem grim, but also I feel better about what is going on in the U.S. now than I did a couple years ago. I am less hopeful about Europe, especially the U.K. I hope we make it in at least some places in Western Civ.
Questioning the safety and efficacy of vaccines is not the same as being anti-vax and is in fact pro-science.
Andrew Tate followers are a disaffected minority and most MAGA supporters, I believe, are disgusted by him. I'm not sure who considers them MAGA, though MAGA is probably more likely to benefit if they vote.
"Maybe it’s because I spent years working in PR for a British institution that I can detect progressive orthodoxy in parts per million. I can pick it up in the throat-clear before a politician says “people who menstruate”. I know within seconds of meeting someone if they will use a word like “intersectional” unironically." Frederick, when I laugh out loud in my office at the first paragraph, I know I'm in for something good! Excellent job today & incisive descriptions of the various woketard types---they all play a role. Their collective amnesia is coming next, but thankfully with social media receipts, most will be outed as opportunistic liars. Increasingly, I have very little time for their nonsense & pray their downfall is imminent.
Thanks. Alice! Glad that got a laugh 😆
I prefer to think of three groups of self-identifying progressives, MAGAs, and "Independents:" Committed, Commitable, and Coffeeshop; easier to parse and understand.
All these self-identifying ideological slaves just change their vocabulary to fit their groupthink, though progressives do more screaming.
If these are the "ideological slaves," how do you identify a free person?
Someone who is free to pick and choose what s/he agrees with from all parts of the spectrum, who doesn't attend rallies and demonstrations, and who does not donate to any ideological causes.
Sounds to me like you're saying that freedom is when people live their lives according to your standards.
Lord knows how tunnel visioned some people can be. But they are free to be like that. My objection is when they attempt to force my participation. Now, THAT'S a problem.
Not my standards, their own.
If someone joins a group that cannot accept new ideas or people with them, they have become slaves. If a group's worldview has to be accepted whole and without exception, that outfit's a bunch of slaves and dictators.
But people are entirely free to live like that if they want. Just don't call them free.
The ultimate conundrum. Am I slave to my wife? Or she to me?
In Hotel California, the Eagles make the observation, "We are all just prisoners here, of our own device." It is not a happy song. It is not about marriage.
I came to realize. long ago, that there are indeed people who prefer to enslave themselves, rather than be responsible for their own life. Sad, but true.
I wrote this a number of years ago, and it still holds up:
https://individualistsunite.substack.com/p/how-free-are-you
Yes, you are slaves to each other. Be happy.
I never understood Hotel California; made as much sense as Stairway to Heaven.
I too have a woke-radar and a hypersensitivity to wokeness... Experiencing progressive talk gives me real, physical pain.
Being asked often why and how the progressive craziness got hold of our institutions, I had difficulties to explain. This essay provides the answer -- it is a racket. The question is how do we push back. The Gadfly takes an optimistic stance: "The good news is that every protection racket collapses eventually – and progressivism will be no exception." I hope he is right, but as of now, I see very little change of vibe. I see the True Believers and Fanatics are circling the wagons, and the Cowards -- well, they remain cowards. The Careerists and Opportunists are changing the tune somewhat, but that's about all. The problem is we have too many True Believers and Fanatics ensconced in the system... And too many Cowards who are abetting them.
You're in good company here, Anna! I think lots of us are in the same boat. Btw, look out for new threads in the Gadfly chat; it would be great to hear your thoughts there too. Thanks.
Great analysis as ever. I know lots of cowards and I’m afraid I’ve lost patience with them to a certain extent. I can understand the fear of losing a job but many that I know are retired, so there’s no excuse. I often wonder how many children could have been saved from destroying a healthy body, if all those cowards had spoken up years ago or at the very least, done a modicum of research.
As regards your pinned comment- I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all your pieces but sarcasm is probably my favourite. As for topics, Islam is now such a big threat to the west, (especially with the upcoming Islamophobia definition in the UK) I’ll look forward to your thoughts on that.
Thanks, TT. Yes, it's understandable why someone would not want to risk their job while trying to support their family (I don't think of these as cowards), and it's awful that some people are put in this position – nurses, etc. But the journalists and others who said nothing about the grooming gangs, for example, really deserve our contempt. Same with the trans lot.
I think I'll be covering Islam soon!
The MSM, especially the BBC has a lot to answer for.
I used to feel proud of the BBC (last century). Absolutely loathe the organisation now. Dreadful propaganda racket. I hope I live to see it defunded.
Keep the light entertainment and dramas, bin the news and most of the comedy.
Same.
I wonder what the proportions are. True believers must be pretty rare, despite being the knot that ties it all together.
Maybe you could make another post like this, though with different kinds of resisters.
That's a nice idea. I've pinned a comment at the top; feel free to let me know your thoughts there too. Thanks, Jakob.
You omitted one class, and perhaps the most dangerous one. That’s the patronizing hypocritical nepo baby class who claim that they should tell the rest how to live but don’t do a single one of their proposed actions (see climate, immigration, diversity, taxes etc etc etc)
Fair point. I tend to think they fall in the fanatics category or spread over the others somewhat. But you might be right. Will give this some thought. Thanks.
I think the nepo-babies are just like the celebrity activists, and frequently are one & the same. I think they're all Opportunists in that sense.
Aren’t they found among the Fanatics or true believers or careerists?
There is overlap but the defining characteristic is that they think they’re special and therefore deserving of special treatment. And you can’t question them or point out their hypocrisy because they are the in crowd. This is why they latch on to whatever new imaginary protected class is in vogue. You know, like the alphabet people making new status labels to claim their special class without actually doing anything of value.
Yes, particularly powerful thus especially toxic and dangerous
I hadn't noticed that nepo-babies were a particularly problematic subset of work progressivism. I guess to the extent that the term nepo-baby implies someone who received underserved advantage and likely a loud platform, whatever good or bad they do is amplified.
I like your taxonomy because it breaks things down a bit more than the usual binary or "spectrum" approach.
What's really needed is a serious study of the whole phenomenon. I have long maintained that Leftist progressivism is a secular religion and needs to be analyzed using the sociology and anthropology of religion.
Jordan Peterson, some time ago, divided them into "PC egalitarians" and "PC authoritarians" -- the former being rank-and-file idealists and followers, the "useful idiots of the revolution" of which there are now millions -- and the latter being the more elite group who are motivated by power lust and who create the narratives that the followers adopt.
As a former activist in "peace and social justice" issues (and now a conservative), I can verify this is true. I have seen it. The idealists, such as I was, try to organize and either learn to sell out or get shut down by the authoritarians.
Leftist progressivism can be distinguished from traditional or classical liberalism. Bill Maher, for instance, calls himself a classical liberal, and he mocks radical Leftism. Dave Rubin is another who uses this identifier. I would say Douglas Murray is another. These men are egalitarians. Leftists are not; they are cultural Marxists trying to impose a new hierarchy, one with them at the top.
One thing that irks me about the term "liberal" as used as a pejorative in the USA is that it should really be illiberal or anti-liberal. The Left is now against human liberty, not for it.
A key distinguishing feature of radical ideologies, religious or secular, is the tendency to see reform as no longer a viable option, leading to symbolic acts of destruction, such as tearing down statues. Taken to the furthest extreme, these acts can turn into terrorism and murder, e.g., "trans shooters."
Leftist progressivism is characterized by identitarianism and an ambivalent attitude towards social democracy as being too moderate. They are Utopians at heart, who want the ancien régime to be torn asunder, e.g., "smash the patriarchy."
Some traits of Leftism:
- focus on race, gender, and cultural identity as paramount
- the view that success or failure is "systemic", and outside an individual's control (we see this, for instance, in the critique of the judicial system as 'racist' and defence of criminals based on upbringing)
- supports the endless expansion of the state into all aspects of life, leading to high taxes and the ballooning of government bureaucracy
- belief that the USA and the West in general are morally inferior and "problematic" based on a superficial understanding of the history of slavery and colonialism (e.g., criticism of Western philosophy as "Eurocentric")
Moderate Lefists or "liberals" in the USA are troubled by the excesses of radical Leftism but submit to it because they have been led to think that Trump and MAGA are far worse, even "fascist." They are not revolutionaries, but they can be "useful idiots" for it, e.g. the old people at No Kings rallies. A good example of a moderate leftist is the late actor Rob Reiner. I have relatives who are as well. They have a bad case of TDS. Moderates remind me of the sheep in Animal Farm who bleat what the pigs tell them to. All Western nations are full of such people. I live in Canada, where it is common.
There is apparently something called "the Progressive Values Scale (PVS)", a psychological tool used to "measure attitudes that distinguish progressives from traditional liberals" with regard to their differing "views on cultural identity, systemic inequality, and political activism." I don't know how accurate it is.
To check out where you are on the spectrum, see the Political Compass test (https://www.politicalcompass.org/). My score is Economic Left/Right: 4.0
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 3.23. The questions on this one make you think.
And also the Political Typology test (https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/quiz/political-typology/). This test tells me I am a "faith and flag conservative" along with 10% of the public (just 10%?!) I do not sanction these online tests, but they're interesting.
Excellent piece! It reads as if I wrote it myself… After reading a few critical books such as Orwell and “Witness” by Whitaker Chambers, I feel I understand the left FAR BETTER than most leftists “think’ they understand themselves…
Glad you enjoyed it, Steve! I've not read "Witness"; I'll look into it. Thanks for your support!
When you read Witness you understand just how long and how deep the Left has infected America. The revelations about Harry Dexter White, who was one of FDR’s closest confidants explains a lot about how the federal government went from a necessary evil to a malignant nanny…
I like what you say, and I like how you say it.
Thank you.
Great summary of the woke landscape. One class you could add is the 'Woke Celebrity'. I'm never sure with them whether they actually believe what they say or whether they're worried about not being invited to the next party/movie/gala event.
Yes, they do sort of deserve their own category, as they're so influential. I'll file them under The Opportunists for now.
I’d be interested in your take on how this type of thinking is impacting literature/ art.