An analysis of the Left from the Left

By Jon Jay Ray @ Dissecting Leftism

Editor's Note:  This is part of a series of articles based on comments made by the author comparing leftism with conservatism.  Tomorrow, "Thoughts on Leftism, Part II" will appear followed by at least two more segments dealing with conservatives and the Supreme Court of the United States. 

James Bloodworth, a British Trotskyist, unleashes a broadside at"Comrade" Jeremy Corbyn, the current hero of the British Left. He rightly excoriates Corbyn for his antisemitism and sympathy for tyrants. Bloodworth's major point is that too much Leftist thinking is simplistic, something that is undeniably true.

It is simplistic to the point of sheer ignorance a lot of the time. For instance, anybody who says that rent control is a good way of providing housing for the poor clearly hasn't got a blind clue about housing provision. It is in fact a good way of HALTING new housing provision.

The major form of simplistic thinking that Bloodworth identifies is the Leftist view that "capitalism" is the source of all the world's ills and that America is the home of capitalism. So America is public enemy no. 1.

That the government grab for the health system and the ever-more onerous regulations of the EPA have made America under Obama very little different from most European countries has escaped their notice.

Extremely simplistic thinking does have a lot of appeal. The vast bulk of the population is very poorly informed politically so simple answers can easily appear right to them. Simplistic thinking is a good vote winner. It will probably grab the majority of votes from welfare dependants and people in humble occupations. And there are a lot of those. So Corbyn and the Left generally are probably not as obtuse as they seem. Their motto is "keep it simple and say it often". It's like a Coca Cola advertisement. And, like Coca Cola, it sells.

Bloodworth, however, appears to be more principled and less cynical. He actually believes that there are some groups of people that need protection and help -- and thinks that helping them is what Leftism is all about. Like all Leftists, he thinks that taking money off "rich" people is how you do the helping but he does not lose sight of the objective.

I actually think Bloodworth is too optimistic. I think the Left have a bigger problem than simplistic thinking. Bloodworth seems unaware of how deeply angry many of his fellow Leftists are. They relish destruction of the world they hate. Their "caring" is just camouflage for their hate. So people who really do destroy capitalism around them -- such as Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez -- do genuinely seem like good guys to many Leftists, such as Corbyn. Bloodworth underestimates Corbyn's hate motivation. Bloodworth has the handicap of being a genuine and principled Leftist rather than being just a hater.

Thoughts on Leftism!