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You confuse "the left" with maillists. In most discourse among leftists you do not have a cascade of one or two sentences of metaphoric profundity, nor do you have people posing questions then leaning back smugly refusing to answer their own questions. The snarkiness you observe is with rare exceptions grounded in this sort of (non)communication.
I think it is a serious mistake, incidentally, to respond to any question (other than simple queries of fact) unless the person asking the question also gives his/her own answer to the question posed.
And having said that, I took a second look at your post & now note that you yourself have engaged in the snarkinesds you bewail. What is _your_ opinion_ this question you raise? :-)
Carrol