Again, a little history lesson will show why this is the case. The totalitarian states of the last century, such as the USSR, were based on two seemingly contradictory ideas: that future society will be classless and non-violent; and that to achieve this goal, society in the present must employ the most extreme means of enforcement, including concentration camps and capital punishment. There is a logic at work here. To achieve utopia, human nature must be remade. And what is a better way to do so than by violence? When you severely punish non-violent “hate crimes” but let actual felons go free, it is because you believe that the latter are victims of racism or poverty, while the former possess a poisonous mindset that needs to be stamped out. I do not accuse progressives of hypocrisy. They are worse than hypocrites: they are true believers.
The progressive left are fish in a barrel. But we can't take our eyes off the progressive right, which has a different M.O. The very concept of a progressive right probably seems strange at first blush, but we might contrast it with the liberal right, which will also strike some as strange. Stir in the populism and we have the fault lines of a fracturing West.
Again, a little history lesson will show why this is the case. The totalitarian states of the last century, such as the USSR, were based on two seemingly contradictory ideas: that future society will be classless and non-violent; and that to achieve this goal, society in the present must employ the most extreme means of enforcement, including concentration camps and capital punishment. There is a logic at work here. To achieve utopia, human nature must be remade. And what is a better way to do so than by violence? When you severely punish non-violent “hate crimes” but let actual felons go free, it is because you believe that the latter are victims of racism or poverty, while the former possess a poisonous mindset that needs to be stamped out. I do not accuse progressives of hypocrisy. They are worse than hypocrites: they are true believers.
Excellent. Well argued and on point. Worth the subscription cost.
Thanks Garry… both for the subscription and the praise. It means a tremendous amount.
The progressive left are fish in a barrel. But we can't take our eyes off the progressive right, which has a different M.O. The very concept of a progressive right probably seems strange at first blush, but we might contrast it with the liberal right, which will also strike some as strange. Stir in the populism and we have the fault lines of a fracturing West.