10 Things the Progressive Left No Longer Believes In
If we want peace, we need principles. Time to choose.
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One of my kids decided to try high school for a couple of years after being homeschooled since kindergarten. As a result, I found myself in the school office on more than one occasion making the transition. There, sitting in the waiting area, I got used to looking at a poster on the wall, which proudly said, “If you know what you stand for, it limits what you fall for.”
I’ve thought about that a lot over the last few years, wondering if anyone knows what they stand for anymore. Especially lately, as video of a parent keying a Tesla while their kids flip the bird to the camera tears across the internet. In Portland, someone else was arrested and released after trying to blind the staff of a Tesla dealership with a laser.
While it’s one thing to have differing ideas about how to solve problems and what the role of the government should be in that, attacking the property of a complete stranger and encouraging your kids to join you in this disrespect is an entirely different thing.
I hope that mother is prosecuted, not out of vindictiveness, but as a just punishment for vandalism. Generally speaking, I value forbearance in cases of emotion overcoming better judgment, and I’m not advocating for anything outside of current sentencing standards. But when a crime has become so trendy that parents are ushering their kids to casually disrespecting the law and the rights of other people, that crosses a line.
How do we hold together as a country when we no longer value civility?
The wave of Tesla vandalism, along with a decade marked by riots and violent protests under the banner of BLM, raises a deeper question: what do people on the progressive left actually value?
I don’t know, but judging by actions, I think we can infer what they don’t value.
Here are 10 of those things.
Objective Truth – In the far left stronghold of Academia, textbooks and curricula propose alternative definitions of truth, suggesting that lived experience can be as valid—or even more so—than empirical research. At the same time, concerns about research integrity, such as the widespread use of p-hacking to manipulate data, have led many to question the reliability of published studies.
Free Speech – Not only is Academia rife with speech codes, but many prominent Democrats have spoken out against free speech with an unprecedented attack playing out under the past administration.
Meritocracy – Admitting students based on race and criteria other than merit got so bad that the Supreme Court had to step in to stop racist policies. To be eligible for an Oscar, you first have to include and make your movie about the right type of people, not make the best movie. I hate to even think about DEI based hiring practices among professions like pilots, firefighters, surgeons and air traffic controllers.
Humility – Abusing power often begins with elevating one’s own views and interests above others. This dynamic has been particularly evident under the Biden Administration, at Harvard, and in the frequent instances where mobs have silenced speakers. Hollywood, too, has seen a surge of stars who criticize their own films and the fans who support them. While it's true that disrespect for this value isn't exclusive to the progressive left, their actions have been notably more vocal in recent times.
Religious Freedom – It’s now common for Codes of Ethics in left leaning professions to preclude religious freedom. People have lost their careers due to their religion, and some churches have been ripped apart as they lost their unifying thread.
Nuance – If those on the progressive left were willing to have a conversation, say about transgender biology, the wheels would come off over examining issues of autogynephilia, psychopathy, and other personality disorders, not to mention social contagion as malignant causes for claiming transgender status. Even slight deviation from the accepted orthodoxy on a number of issues can lead to social ostracism. Agreeing to disagree is a thing of the past in their circles.
Civil Disagreement – Along with nuance, people on the progressive left will sooner key a Tesla than talk with a Tesla owner. Even in Congress, democrats sat on their hands and used signs to complain about the new administration. You can see this repeated at many dinner tables across the country.
Artistic Freedom – Many schools no longer teach Shakespeare, and J.K Rowling is routinely denigrated for standing up for her beliefs. Countless other artists without a billion dollars to sustain them have quietly melted back into shadows. Movies are creatively bankrupt and stagnant. It remains to be seen how this plays out going forward.
Historical Context – Much of the art of the past, along with the work of our Founding Fathers, is now dismissed in progressive circles like Academia as bigoted simply because elements of their lives don’t align with today’s standards. Teachers and other liberal groups ignore the fact that their contributions were groundbreaking in their time and played a crucial role in shaping the freedoms we enjoy today, including the rejection of practices like slavery that had existed since the dawn of civilization. Historical context is also lost in discussions about Christopher Columbus, Mahatma Ghandi, Winston Churchill, and even Abraham Lincoln. Many other historical figures have also been denigrated for not living up to today’s standards of perfection.
Rule of Law – Some states have gone so far as to ignore federal law, like Maine, and others fail to enforce things like their own shoplifting laws to their detriment. It’s unclear how far states will take their refusal to follow federal law, but it’s worth reflecting that in the past, such disagreements have led to war.
I’ve tried to maintain connection to old friends on the left despite these differences, however tiny the doses I can tolerate of their rhetoric even on Facebook. Still I often hear admittedly progressive left leaning folks justifying behavior like vandalizing Teslas by saying that Trump is a totalitarian and the equivalent of Hitler. It’s painfully obvious in these instances that they haven’t read their history. But let’s reflect. If that were really true, would damaging property be a constructive way to fight back?
Consider.
Say this was Nazi Germany, would keying Nazi cars have been effective in stopping that totalitarian juggernaut? I think not. History tells us that in true totalitarian states, such action by citizens would be met with a swift response, no due process, and a better than average chance of lethal punishment.
But that’s not happening now. Some perpetrators are walking away after arrest without bail.
That all the more demands the question, what’s going on here? Does people’s outrage that they are not getting their way justify lashing out? It doesn’t for me. Perhaps personal dignity is also something some people no longer value as well.
Let’s call this what it is, hyperbole and catastrophizing, maybe even a temper tantrum.
Thinking everything is a disaster regardless of contrary evidence only hurts us. Not listening to one another hurts us. Refusing to talk to each other hurts us. I can’t speak for the rest of the country, but I, for one, don’t want to run the war experiment. I value peace. So knock it off. Have conversations, question your assumptions and be open to other perspectives. These are the foundations of cooperation.
What do you think?
Housekeeping
Running late with my writing this week. I’ll have to fill in the gaps next Friday. But I did get some reading done!
On the Bookshelf
Reading has occurred. Nothing is finished yet, though. Give me a minute.
We Have Never Been Woke The Cultural Contradictions of the New Elite by Musa al-Gharbi
Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman! Adventures of a Curious Character by Richard Feynman
The New Know-nothings: The Political Foes of the Scientific Study of Human Nature by Morton Hunt
Moral Calculations: Game Theory, Logic and Human Frailty by Laszlo Mero
The New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocrypha: New Revised Standard by Marc Brettler, Carol Newsom, Pheme Perkins
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About
Diogenes in Exile began after I returned to grad school to pursue a Clinical Mental Health Counseling master’s degree at the University of Tennessee. What I encountered, however, was a program deeply entrenched in Critical Theories ideology. During my time there, I experienced significant resistance, particularly for my Buddhist practice, which was labeled as invalidating to other identities. After careful reflection, I chose to leave the program, believing the curriculum being taught would ultimately harm clients and lead to unethical practices in the field.
Since then, I’ve dedicated myself to investigating, writing, and speaking out about the troubling direction of psychology, higher education, and other institutions that seem to have lost their way. When I’m not working on these issues, you’ll find me in the garden, creating art, walking my dog, or guiding my kids toward adulthood.
You can also find my work at Minding the Campus
They only believe in control and they use whatever buzzwords and buzz topics work to gain control. They are emotionalism addicts maliciously and dishonestly manipulating more gullible and insecure cowards than them, while pretending to project care for others so they give them the power to slit their throats.