Official 2020 US Election: Democratic Party Discussion

[Jumpin]

SpokenTruth said:

Jumpin said:

Andrew Yang has adopted the slogan "Not let, not right, but forward" which is interesting, because it's not a Democratic Party slogan but one used by Green Parties. I don't think the US one, in particular, uses it (at least I can't find any reference), but just next door it is the main slogan of the Green Party of Canada, and they've used it since 2008.

I can't seem to find reference of affiliation, is Yang a former Green Party member?

Clever but probably only accurate inside of Europe/Canada. In the US, the left is forward....at least more forward than the right.

The definition of left and right are pretty subjective in the US.

I have found people who have said that Elizabeth Warren is not a leftist. Some claim only Tulsi Gabbard is on the left. Others say only Bernie Sanders is on the left. A large number seem to think Biden is not on the left. It's a bit of a headscratcher to me. Maybe Biden is closer to centrism, but IMO he is clearly on the left.

From my POV all of the candidates except maybe that one balding guy (forget his name) are on the left.

I am unsure what puts Bernie Sanders to the left of Elizabeth Warren and her thrust for strengthening worker union power over the last 7 years, her campaign position on breaking up big corporations, and implement a wealth tax. It seems the majority of people from the US seem to think that Bernie is to the left of that. I think the only thing Bernie is really to the left of Warren on is the rhetoric (she claims to be a capitalist, he claims to be a socialist, the truth is they're both capitalists).

Anyway, it's difficult for me because I think with the US there are a large variety of different opinions of what "left/right" even means, and it is difficult to keep track of them all. It seems to be a selection of arbitrary policy positions that sometimes trade around. But, really a good rule of thumb is:

Right = hierarchy
Left = equality
Conservative = reactionary (can be left or right, but is typically right) - progressive is the opposite of conservative.
Liberal = freedom (can be left or right, and is not necessarily typically left, most right-wingers are actually liberals too) - authoritarian is the opposite of liberal.