Fresh Start Political Thread

[nonniey]

Good read and I think he hits the nail right on the head.

"What Happened To You?
The radicalization of the American elite against liberalism

By Andrew Sullivan

........In the successor ideology, there is no escape, no refuge, from the ongoing nightmare of oppression and violence — and you are either fighting this and “on the right side of history,” or you are against it and abetting evil. There is no neutrality. No space for skepticism. No room for debate. No space even for staying silent. (Silence, remember, is violence — perhaps the most profoundly anti-liberal slogan ever invented.)

And that tells you about the will to power behind it. Liberalism leaves you alone. The successor ideology will never let go of you. Liberalism is only concerned with your actions. The successor ideology is concerned with your mind, your psyche, and the deepest recesses of your soul. Liberalism will let you do your job, and let you keep your politics private. S.I. will force you into a struggle session as a condition for employment......"

[SunnySide]

Originally Posted by nonniey

Good read and I think he hits the nail right on the head.

"What Happened To You?
The radicalization of the American elite against liberalism

By Andrew Sullivan

........In the successor ideology, there is no escape, no refuge, from the ongoing nightmare of oppression and violence — and you are either fighting this and “on the right side of history,” or you are against it and abetting evil. There is no neutrality. No space for skepticism. No room for debate. No space even for staying silent. (Silence, remember, is violence — perhaps the most profoundly anti-liberal slogan ever invented.)

And that tells you about the will to power behind it. Liberalism leaves you alone. The successor ideology will never let go of you. Liberalism is only concerned with your actions. The successor ideology is concerned with your mind, your psyche, and the deepest recesses of your soul. Liberalism will let you do your job, and let you keep your politics private. S.I. will force you into a struggle session as a condition for employment......"

The CRT debate is just the latest squall in a tempest brewing and building for five years or so. And, yes, some of the liberal critiques of a Fox News hyped campaign are well taken. Is this a wedge issue for the GOP? Of course it is. Are they using the term “critical race theory” as a cynical, marketing boogeyman? Of course they are. Are some dog whistles involved? A few. Are crude bans on public servants’ speech dangerous? Absolutely. Do many of the alarmists know who Derrick Bell was? Of course not.


I have exactly the same principles and support most of the same policies I did under BarackObama. In fact, I’ve moved left on economic and foreign policy since then. It’s Democrats who have taken a sudden, giant swerve away from their recent past.

https://andrewsullivan.substack.com/...ned-to-you-e5f

^^ this is his main point ... centrist elite liberals are being forced to the far left
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First, Ive noticed writers now (when they have a POV to get to), tend to list the cons early on and quickly summarily dismiss them .. so as to seem balanced or comprehensive or fair in what they are about to say next. Its fine. Very Tucker Carlson esque.

Second, I disagree with his main premise that you cant be liberal anymore and are being forced to be the super woke liberal under this "successor ideology".
He writes well above my IQ and perhaps I am not "elite" and he is .. so I cant say whether the "elites" have been radicalized. Im not "elite" compared to him. Perhaps what he writes is true of what he sees in his small cape cod uber rich seaside town. I live in a townhouse in Columbia Md.

But I disagree with his broad brush premise that you cant just be a Obama level liberal and now are forced to be the super woke "successor ideology".

I think Im a centrist obama type democrat. I want immigration laws to be enforced. I do think Jeremiah Wright is a race baiting idiot who skewed his vision of America, ignoring the progress weve made.

I dont think black inequality in society is solely bc of "white supremacy". I think black communities have equal parts as the root of the problem and solution.

How can he say he hasnt changed .. but then say I am being forced to go from obama liberal to a super woke liberal? Im the same liberal I was 10-15 years ago.

Lastly, his conclusion as a warning that allowing "tribalism" from both sides to define us all will be the end of us .. is a drum that has been beaten by many writers, many times. He seems to think he is the first one ringing that warning bell.

interesting read ... miss its mark though. I feel like he was writing to confirm some bias held by a centrist to far right Republican, and that was his target audience vs a centrist liberal like me ... even though his article was trying to define the current state of affairs of the centrist liberal.

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please post more articles that you come across, interesting read