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| SHARED SACRIFICE PROGRESSIVE POLITICS AND CULTURE 2 July 2009 |
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| If only politics were really about the force of better argument. If only there really were consequences for moral hypocrisy and policy blindness. Then, the optimism of the liberal left would be warranted. For while profound policy and moral failure can momentarily shift the political advantage, at least where "bourgeois" and electoral politics are concerned, material power trumps policy and moral failure. Whether discussing ridiculous conspiracy theories and census lies, sex scandals, or the generally obvious lack of intellectual nuance on the part of the GOP, Liberal commentators are both observationally correct and sociologically incorrect. It's true that, to judge by any recent public example, the intellectual deficit between conservatives and those left of them is obvious; it is not true that emphasizing such an intellectual deficit will achieve a lasting political advantage. The reason for this is not that Americans are stupid--for the most part, we aren't--or even that we are afraid--we are all too frequently afraid. The reason the whole plurality of left groups, from moderate lefties who want health care reform to those opposed to imperialism and war, need to prepare for a coming rightward shift is that the antecedents are still there. The same people own the same stuff and are capable of generating more mass ideology, and if necessary more bullets, than we would ever think of producing or using. And the right has smelled blood. Conservative commentator Bruce Walker cites the success of anti-spending propositions in the May California elections (including, inappropriately, a limit on legislative salaries, which the left also supports), in positing a coming fall of Obama Liberalism, while simultaneously celebrating conservative gains in European elections. He's not alone; publications like Human Events, the ironically named American Thinker, and others keep chanting sea change, day after desperate day. What if they're right? What if their constant repetition both helps make them right, and reflects the hatred of all things Obama and all things to the left of Obama, a hatred that, as we know, takes on a life and power of its own? Combine that with the contracting global economy, the rise of extremism as a seemingly legitimate method of dissent and political methodology, and you have conditions ripe for a "first hearing" scenario: a planet full of desperate people willing to listen first to the divisive, panic-induced paranoia of demonizers rather than the optmistic internationalism of uniters. |
| Although there are probably another dozen factors behind a coming resurgence of conservatism, I'll only list three here--just to get the discussion going: 1. Pissed off white people wanting to "get off the grid" This probably warrants an entirely separate article. In short, there's a whole lot of working class whites who, having realized that their boy lied to them for eight years, are now convinced that the Republicans are as corrupt as they already had decided Democrats were. Instead of organizing with other groups, though, or even really "organizing" with each other, these guys (mostly guys, some gals I've talked to too) are subscribing, implicitly or explicitly, to a "get off the grid" libertarianism. This GOTG libertarianism is a product of their desire for a rejection of corporate capitalism that doesn't require forming coalitions with people of color, white liberals or progressives, immigrants, and so on. The election of Obama is especially frustrating for many of these whites. Unable to rely on racist stereotypes (which inability inspires their bitter muttering over "political correctness"), ill-equipped to accept the genuine "racial" significance of Obama, suspicious of his name and his wife and his confidence, and correct in their belief that their lives will not improve on his watch (though not for the reasons they suppose), the white conservative working class is an alienated class, an intellectual lumpen, and a target for demagogues who can code their racism in an argument for total disengagement. Why is are the GOTGers important? Not necessarily because they'll go to the first charismatic Republican that can emerge from the present pile of crap--although many will. GOTGers, Truthers, and Birthers are important because they sap strength and focus from progressives, and because they make the general political atmosphere drift so far into the crazy right that the moderate, pro-business, deregulating, friendly corporatists look reasonable by comparison. A third reason, immeasurable in numbers but important to the spirit of progressivism, is that many of those back-to-nature-and-guns folks could have made good, thinking progressives, had they been able to overcome their fear of colored folks and universal health care. 2. Global inching rightward The coup in Honduras is the latest reminder of the power of anticommunism in Latin America. "Chavismo" may have succeeded in pushing out Imperialism 1.0, but its own blowhardedness may not succeed against Imperialism 2.0. Meanwhile, the wave of right-wing gains in Europe have, in a stunning historical irony, made that continent seem more conservative than our own. "The European left," writes Robert Kuttner, "such as it is, got clobbered in the recent elections for the European parliament. In the next parliament, center- right parties will have almost twice as many seats as social democrats. Of left parties, only the Greens gained slightly. Far-right nationalistic parties picked up strength." The common denominator in recent defeats for the left, whether electorally or with guns, has been a lack of vision and leadership. As Kuttner argues in his essay, "This is surely a moment for a compelling program to constrain capital in the broad public interest. Capitalism has demonstrated once again why it is not capable of being self-regulating." But left groups are fragmented across the planet, and most of the more intelligent groups spend more time arguing with each other than finding ways to double, triple, or quadruple their numbers by joining forces. Most of the anti-corporatocracy left spends too much time occupying one or the other side of an unproductive reform/revolution dichotomy. As a result, they excel at the disciplined critical analysis essential for political education and change, but balk at forming a mass movement that, while it may be composed of parties who disagree with one another about some things, would almost assuredly capture seats in parliaments, win local and even national elections, and be a genuine force rather than an array of intellectual dens. As Kuttner concludes, this is equally true in Europe, where " American progressives used to look longingly" for examples of truly effective progressive politics and policy." |
| 3. The GOP could become functional again Even if there were nothing but cheese-brains at the top, we all know of rank-and-file Republicans who can run campaign offices competently, and the party itself will enjoy the advantage of outsidership and all that other political drama jazz. The important thing is that adversity and struggle brings out strength in movements, and that applies to conservative movements too. Political parties learn things. According to the Associated Press, the debate about whether to call Democrats "socialists," as banal as such a debate may seem, spurred a real fight between the Party's moderates and conservatives. Such a divide, and the struggle within it, will ultimately be good for the Republicans. They will recover from this malaise, perhaps not gaining a majority, but possibly becoming a thinking and effective opposition representing the interests of their wealthy, individualist constituency. The fundamental lack of progressivism on the part of Democratic leadership, moreover, means that the similarities between the two parties when compared to alternatives can swing a lot of voters back to the GOP, where they'll feel more ideologically pure. While it is true that the GOP numbers continue to be low, they aren't getting much lower. Meanwhile, however, "the ranks of independents have skyrocketed since November's presidential election, the latest Pew Research Center poll shows." Democrats, as is inevitable for the majority party, have begun to lose some ground, while unaffiliated voters are growing to record highs. Some of those independents and unaffiliateds might be coming from the GOP, but they're also coming from the Democrats, and in any case, they are all there for the taking by a minority party that manages to get its message straight. Finally, remember the GOTG crowd? How even if they don't build compounds in the woods, they'll still push politics rightward? Well, the "less government" message will resonate every time something doesn't go precisely right with the ruling party's attempts at a mixed and managed economy. As " target="_blank">Bill O'Reilly, of all people, pointed out in a recent column, much of the vitriol spewed at Cheney reflects the fact that the progressives who supported Obama realize their own President isn't that much different. In any case, Cheney had nowhere to go but up, and bottom-feeders like O'Reilly are the first to spot such upswings. Internationally, a fragmented left faces what any thinking person would have predicted: the rightward onslaught that always gets to speak first in a time of global economic crisis. Where the left has power, it lacks nuanced thinking, and where it has good thinkers, it lacks power. Domestically, a reasonable prediction is that moderate Republicans will take ostensive control of the GOP, creating space for conservatives who want to come along for the ride, providing their votes and fighting for the inclusion of some (the most winnable) parts of the conservative agenda. Such power hasn't left the GOP; it has simply become dormant due to the shocking incompetence and comic buffoonery of Bushism. The question is not whether, but when, the right will come back, as well as what to do about it. Matt J. Stannard is the Editor of Shared Sacrifice Media, and blogs at the underview. |
| THE RIGHT WILL RISE AGAIN MATERIAL AND IDEOLOGICAL SIGNALS OF A COMING CONSERVATIVE RESURGENCE 2 July 2009 by Matt J. Stannard |
Despite the ideas and goals of the Democratic
Party's most progressive members, those
members don't run the Party, so it's important
to remember why the GOP just doesn't look
that much worse. Readers looking for signs of
the Republican Party's continued demise would
do well to remember that Democrats are not
getting along so well these days either. In
response to Barack Obama's waffling on the
Guantanamo Bay shutdown, the U.S. Senate
"voted overwhelmingly to block funding ...
dealing another blow to one of President
Obama's signature national security issues."
Obama's willingness to embrace many GOP
tactics in the War on Terror can't be seen as
anything less than a partial vindication of those
tactics. Similarly, Obama's position on health
care reform is pretty similar to the moderate
wing of the GOP.
Party's most progressive members, those
members don't run the Party, so it's important
to remember why the GOP just doesn't look
that much worse. Readers looking for signs of
the Republican Party's continued demise would
do well to remember that Democrats are not
getting along so well these days either. In
response to Barack Obama's waffling on the
Guantanamo Bay shutdown, the U.S. Senate
"voted overwhelmingly to block funding ...
dealing another blow to one of President
Obama's signature national security issues."
Obama's willingness to embrace many GOP
tactics in the War on Terror can't be seen as
anything less than a partial vindication of those
tactics. Similarly, Obama's position on health
care reform is pretty similar to the moderate
wing of the GOP.
| The common denominator in recent defeats for the left, whether electorally or with guns, has been a lack of vision and leadership. The most intelligent groups spend more time arguing with each other than finding ways to double, triple, or quadruple their numbers by joining forces. |
| Notice how easily nationalism can come off looking pro-worker... |
| "If I get shot, I'm blaming you, birdbrain. Boy will I be sore. " Read The Underview: the blog of Matt J. Stannard |