James Love writed:
Declan McCullagh wronged:
Jamie, I may have missed the fab 50s but I suspect you spent a little too much time in the psychadelic 60s. In 1997, a leftist can best be defined as a big government fetishist. :)
A "big government fetishist" is cute, but it seems fairly non-specific. Are moral majority types leftists? Are the supporters of the Department of Commerce leftists? Are supporters of a bloated defense department leftists? Can't get enough of that CIA funding leftists? IMF supporters are leftists? FED lovers are leftists? Groups that lobby for higher crop supports are leftists? S&L bail out supporters are leftists? Supporters of GATT are leftists? Are supporters of more NIH funding leftists? (how about the PhRMA support for this?) Supporters of aggressive new government programs to define (and enforce) new Intellectual Property rights are leftists?
Declan McCullagh replied:
Jamie, if you're seriously confused about the differences between left-wing and right-wing groups I can help educate you, perhaps with a few rules of thumb. But I suspect that you really don't want a serious answer.
That's my cue...prepare for a deadly non-serious answer. The left-wing and right-wing extremests have finally moved so far off of center that they have completed the circle of the Tao, moving in opposite directions, and will shortly be exactly the same for a brief instant, before continuing on to become the polar opposite of what they previously were. {They will, however, each remained as convinced as ever that the 'other' is totally wrong in their beliefs, despite the fact that the 'other' will now hold beliefs exactly in tune with their own 'old' beliefs.} Actually, recent discussions about the need for the Republicans and Democrats to work toward redefining themselves so that there is actually a difference between them indicates that society and government have reached a stage where it is getting very difficult for members of an 'individualist' society to keep pretending that there is a difference between 'discrimination' fascists and 'equality' fascists, 'free-market' fascists and 'communist' fascists, 'moral' fascists and 'immoral' fascists. Right...let's throw out the bums who are passing laws to 'force' us to imprison Jews and elect bums who will pass laws to 'force' us to imprison Jew-haters. Nazi - "I don't put them in the ovens, I just turn on the gas." Fascist - "I don't freeze them to death, I just turn off the gas." LISTEN UP!!! (I'LL TYPE SLOWLY...) Faster horses, older whiskey, younger women, more money. Democracy is a political system designed to put Fascism in the hands of the people. Fascism is a political system designed to take Democracy out of the hands of the people and into the hands of the Machine. Money and Guns... Guns - "If we were caught hiding Jews, the Gestapo would send us to prison with them." "If we spoke out against the actions of the Israelies, the Justice Department would arrest us as members of a hate group." "If we resisted the Nazi Party, we were hounded from our jobs and reviled by our neighbors." "If we supported the Communist Party, we were hounded from our jobs in Hollywood and reviled by our neighbors." "If we called John Gilmore a cocksucker, we were forcefully unsubscribed from the CypherPunks mailing list." Money "Those with the most money can buy the most guns." NEWS FLASH!!! Whether you are forced to 'do right' or forced to 'do no wrong' will depend on whether the 'leftists' or the 'rightists' have the most money and guns. NEWS FLASH ADDENDUM!!! Those seeking to 'save' you are likely to afflict as much damage to your rights and freedoms as those seeking to 'oppress' you. NOTE TO BOY SCOUTS!!! If an old lady doesn't want to cross the street, that is an act of 'passive aggression' and you have a right to use as much force as necessary to get her across the street. Is there a difference in the degree of 'dead' between a person shot by a left-hander and one shot by a right-hander? Do you have a preference for having an individual, a government or a corporation as your dictator/oppressor? Is it of great concern to you to be allowed to 'vote' as to which person gives you an unneeded prostrate exam? By the time everyone reaches agreement on the proper definition of 'leftist' and 'rightist', it will be time to turn to the person chained to you in the dark, dank prison cell, and ask them what their defenition of 'imprisonment' is. Don't take any wooden dictators... TruthMonger