Posted by TFG on March 24th, 2008
Americans are liberal, by and large, judging by opinion poll majorities or trends pointing to acceptance of liberal goals like health care, ending the war, even gay marriage. But they’re reluctant to apply the label to themselves, due to a successful propaganda campaign to make the word and the concept distasteful. American political liberalism in Alterman’s view is less a philosophy than a pragmatic outlook; “government might help with this problem; if not, we’ll try something else.”
I can’t imagine why anyone would find that concept distasteful.
As for the rest of the story at the link, it’s some kind of exchange between the author and Eric Alterman at a book store gig. That whole “government might help with this problem” bit jumped out at me, though, as not-a-philosophy. That happens a lot lately, how much folks want to look to the government as a helper, and all the while bitching about this government. “The next government will be better, you see,” they seem to be saying. I find it bewildering. I find many things bewildering.
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March 24th, 2008 at 10:25 pm
Let me try to explain, then (I’m the author). There’s a difference between government run by people who are out to prove “government as solution for some public problems” is always bad — the Bush administration — and those who think it can do some good.
But I think I see where my quote of Alterman there would set off alarm bells. I make it sound as if he was saying “for any problem, always look first to government, only then elsewhere”. I don’t think that, nor does Alterman. And that’s not what he said, that was badly written on my part because I was more interested in other parts of the discussion.
I’ll listen to the CD again and try to get the part that I described there right. I was disappointed in Alterman about the ‘moral vanity’ bit you passed over. But I agreed with him in other respects including the one you noticed, but that I described poorly.
March 24th, 2008 at 10:48 pm
Well, first off, quite clearly, the Bush administration does not think that the government solution is always bad. That should be crystal clear. I haven’t had a government in my lifetime who doesn’t first look to government to solve problems. That’s the way governments work, even ours, the finest on earth. It bugs me that we have citizens who support them in this, despite the evidence to the contrary.
Second, one would hope it sets off alarm bells to a free-thinking individual, and the point was driven home rather clearly in my mind throughout your post. I think it was finely written. You did a fine job putting your position out there.
Third, I didn’t necessarily pass over it, so much as ignore it. The pronouncement of ‘moral vanity’ is part & parcel of the guilds. “We know better than you ever could.” Fine, whatever. My masters accumulate before me, in a heap as high as the sun. All with books to sell, it seems.
March 25th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
Liberals are always looking to pass some new law. It justifies their slobbering at the public trough. Most of the crep they pass does no one any good at all. Except when they slip a little footnote in to pay off one of their friends.
March 25th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
I thought the joke went, “I’m from the governnment and I’m here to help.” How did that become anyone’s pragmatic anything?
March 25th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
Elephino. Seriously, one day, I’d like to understand the thought process. It’s so out of kilter with our foundings. I know I’m not perfect in that regard, no one is, but I sure as hell strive for it and not in the other direction. Ach…hard to fight.