replies to carl, wojtek:
Just the other day (14/9/05 3:53 pm), Carl Remick opined:
>> From: ravi <lbo at kreise.org>
>>
>> Just the other day (14/9/05 2:21 pm), Wojtek Sokolowski opined:
>>>
>>> The power of the right comes not from popular support and media
>>> spin...
>>
>> i am beginning to believe that the power of the right comes from
>> certain basic characteristics of human biology and psychology...
>> the need to form groups (and then bonds/loyalties within groups),
>> the resistance to change, the limited ability to reason, etc.
>
> There must be offsetting factors or humankind would still be a bunch
> of hunting parties living in caves.
>
> E.g., what's up with Scandinavians? Just over a millennium ago, they
> were the avatars of terrorism; as the Anglo-Saxon prayer went, "May
> God protect us from the fury of the Northmen!" Today, "Scandinavian"
> is synonymous with the rule of sweet reason and the welfare state.
> There is a continuing commitment to group interests throughout this
> saga, but the definition of group interest has evolved in this
> instance beyond the selfish combativeness extolled by conservatives.
>
yes, the offsetting factor is reality, truth, whatever you want to call it i.e., that our system is the only workable one. so, each time things get so bad (ww1, ww2, great depression, etc), or some benefit is so large (such as many of technological advances) that some reason has to be employed, some progress is gained. or when the challenges to the factor(s) i listed are minimized: such as the homogeneity of scandinavian society and the tough immigration laws of most of western europe causing lesser influence of group identity or conflict.
anyway, i am just thinking aloud here... i could be entirely wrong!
Just the other day (14/9/05 4:51 pm), Wojtek Sokolowski opined:
> Ravi:
>> its what i like to call the "mensa effect" or "front bench
>> syndrome" (you know, the kids who used to sit on the front bench,
>> at school, and always had, or had to have, the right answers? ;-)).
>> i lack the empirical data (an example of the limited reasoning i
>> pointed out ;-)), but i think this may be specific to the american
>> left.
>
> I dunno. I always thought of the lefties as the back bench crowd -
> the ones challenging the teacher, smoking weed in the bathroom,...
>
yeah, that fits the idea of the youth rebellion leading to leftist politics. student movements and all that. but i do not see a strong, organized student movement in the US. is there one?
in reality, what i see (and perhaps i am missing the larger picture) when i think of the left in the US, is a sort of debate for debate's sake... often about trivial points... and i am sure i have been guilty of that myself, on this list.
--ravi