Manus Celer Dei Posted March 17, 2005 Report Posted March 17, 2005 It has come to my attention that people from different countries often have differing views on what is and is not left or right wing. For example in my country (New Zealand), I would be considered by most of my countrymen to be a right wing supporter, however I have noticed (not on this board per se, but on other boards certainly) that my views are often considered left wing. The question is: how wide is the divergence between the concept of left and right wing politics amongst the members of this board, and what do you feel is the cause of this?
MonteZuma Posted March 17, 2005 Report Posted March 17, 2005 I think the US (and maybe Canada) is the exception. I suspect that most other western countries share a similar view about left and right orientation. So IMO, the core of this question is why is America so different? Undoubtedly it has something to do with individualism and the capitalist ethos. That might have begun with the history and pattern of European settlement and the at!@#$%^&*ude towards property rights. That may have encouraged the entrepreneurialism that made the the US wealthy. As a result, the American dream became the pursuit of happiness through wealth. I think those sorts of things/changes happened elsewhere, but with less speed and intensity. Also, right wing politics is basically the politics of 'conservatism'. Conservatives generally want things to remain unchanged. Therefore right wing politics will vary depending on the culture of the country that you refer to.
Vile Requiem Posted March 18, 2005 Report Posted March 18, 2005 The US has not had a true "right wing" party since Goldwater in 64, and has not had a true "left wing" party since 92. We now have the party of moderates vs the extreme right wingers. It's rather fustrating when you think of the nice things we could have if we had a little balance. As to the difference between European/American ideas of "wings", I feel this is due to American greed. About 50% of this country is unwilling to support any type of federal funded "welfare" (note the quotes), although everyone seems to love their Social Security. Whereas Canadian/European countries tend to have these benefits in place, thus their views of what cons!@#$%^&*utes left/right wing policies is different.
»Ducky Posted March 18, 2005 Report Posted March 18, 2005 Undoubtedly it has something to do with individualism and the capitalist ethos. That might have begun with the history and pattern of European settlement and the at!@#$%^&*ude towards property rights.Still trying to find out why we call it Soccer and not Football >.>
MonteZuma Posted March 19, 2005 Report Posted March 19, 2005 Other issues highlight the difference between the US and the rest. Gun culture, jingoism, militarism, crime and punishment, litigation, free enterprise, motoring, education, sports, religion, drugs, health care, etc. Each of these is a topic in itself, but each has some stark examples that demonstrate right wing/conservative tendencies in the US compared with the rest of the world.
Aileron Posted March 19, 2005 Report Posted March 19, 2005 Frankly, the US is centered and Europe is left wing. This is because for the greater part of the last century they have been between the capitalist United States and the communist Soviet Union. They took a position between these two groups, socialism. To them, this position was balanced. Putting the US on the right and Soviets on the left. Their error comes from the fact that they did not take into account that they did not factor fascists, which were eliminated in WWII, or the leftover monarchies throughout the world. When you factor EVERYBODY in, you realise that the US is actually kinda left wing and Europe is REALLY left wing. Canada and Australia placed themselves between the US and Europe.
MonteZuma Posted March 20, 2005 Report Posted March 20, 2005 Socialism is not and has never been the dominant paradigm in western Europe. State ownership in western Europe, Australia and New Zealand has historically been restricted to critical infrastructure only. The greater emphasis on public welfare in most western countries outside of the US highlights the fact that Europe is further left than the US. But where you put the centre is up to you. But I can't think of any nation that is more conservative and further right than the US.
Aileron Posted March 21, 2005 Report Posted March 21, 2005 ........................................................................................... letse...nations more conservative than the US....hmmm....all of Latin America possibly minus Cuba, Venezuela, and Brasil, all of Africa, the entire Middle East, and a few nations in southeastern Europe. I know that's more of a list of regions than a list of nations, but political opinion usually is more regional than border bounded anyways.
MonteZuma Posted March 21, 2005 Report Posted March 21, 2005 The focus of this discussion has been on developed western democracies (ie people that are likely to post on Internet bulletin boards, especially this one). I could probably count on both hands the number of people that I've shared a bulletin board with that come from the countries you've mentioned. There may be third world countries that lean further right than the US. Most of them probably don't have a long history with democracy or high living standards. Their citizens views on "gun culture, jingoism, militarism, crime and punishment, litigation, free enterprise, motoring, education, sports, religion, drugs, health care, etc." are not directly comparable with ours. Apples and oranges.
Sass Posted March 22, 2005 Report Posted March 22, 2005 I agree with Vile that we have had an 'over influence' of conservative values over the past several years since Bush took office. It was needed however to offset the leftist ghosts that impeached Clinton left in 2000. I too am getting sick of elder law-makers putting legislation together such as "removing funding from universities which have cheerleaders that show too much skin". That is really happening - check out the latest news about that anywhere. That guy needs a real job. The pendulum will swing back soon enough to balance things out.
Dav Posted March 28, 2005 Report Posted March 28, 2005 I too am getting sick of elder law-makers putting legislation together such as "removing funding from universities which have cheerleaders that show too much skin". That is really happening - check out the latest news about that anywhere. That guy needs a real job. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Things like that really do annoy me, political correctness is making our sociaty go backwards. Its like the government is: 1. Too prudeish to allow sex and sex related matters to be openly discussed in sociaty. 2. Too concerned about our interactions that cirtain terms are "pollitically incorrect" and "fround upon" although they have been used for years. 3. Too afraid of the change in the social environment as each generation passes.
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