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Not sure why you're downvoted. I tend to think of leftist as relating to left wing ideologies (socialism, Marxism, communism, whatever), but in many internet en

Not sure why you're downvoted. I tend to think of leftist as relating to left wing ideologies (socialism, Marxism, communism, whatever), but in many internet enclaves, it seems to refer to being on the further and of the American Democrat party.

kuzimoto 7y ago
Yes, "leftist" is referring to the most radical part of the Democratic party, which is trending more socialist. So both parts are correct.
- habnds 7y ago
  That is what I think, but in usage, for instance here, the person is identifying Cali as a bastion of leftist policies and I don't think Cali is particularly far left. Harris, Feinstein and Pelosi are all pretty center, until 2011 they had a Republican governo,r and these tech companies and their values are decidely not liberal. Further, Cali is home to some very conservative politics, Devin Nunes is way out there as is Kevin McCarthy. The idea of leftist doesn't seem consistent with the usage.
  - tropo 7y ago
    Since you don't think California is particularly far left, I'd love to know your list of states that are. Where would you rank California? Perhaps pondering that question will trigger a recalibration.
habnds 7y ago
I had some speculation about what the term is so flexible originally that I removed in the interest of actually hearing what people think :)
C1sc0cat 7y ago
More standard centre right positions (in UK /EU terms ) in a lot of cases - Pres Obama was in UK Terms a on nation Tory like Rory Williams or Ken Clark.
Izkata 7y ago
Correct-ish. In the US, "left", "liberal", and "Democrat" have been related for so long that they've been nearly synonymous for a good two decades. Which isn't the case in almost any other part of the world.
- dragonwriter 7y ago
  > In the US, "left", "liberal", and "Democrat" have been related for so long that they've been nearly synonymous for a good two decades. Which isn't the case in almost any other part of the world. In most of the world (outside of some one party states where the ruling party shifts with the poltiical winds to avoid losing dominance, like Mexico when it was under one-party rule), especially in multiparty democracies, the association of ideologies with parties is much stronger and more consistent than in the US. That aside, the dominant ideology of the Democratic Party has actually been consistent for a little over two-decades, but that ideology is center-right neoliberalism, not leftist. “Lefist” has mostly been associated with the Democratic Party because of the propaganda efforts of the even farther right party, not because of any real substance. It's only recently (since about 2014) that a faction even vaguely leftist has given any significant challenge to the dominant center-right faction of the Democratic Party.
  - rayiner 7y ago
    That’s all correct, but you’re choice of starting point is a bit misleading. FDR was not a center right neo-liberal. There was a brief interregnum during which Clinton and Obama governed as center-right economically and center-left socially. To someone who grew up during that period, the allegations of socialism from the right never made any sense to me. It was only recently when Democrats started fighting to distance themselves from Obama that I understood the criticism from the right. I would also argue that you’re understating the profound shift that has happened in the last two years. The Green New Deal is an openly socialist document, and every Democratic candidate has committed to supporting it. It’s again the party of FDR, not the party of Clinton or Obama.
    - jakelazaroff 7y ago

kuzimoto 7y ago

Yes, "leftist" is referring to the most radical part of the Democratic party, which is trending more socialist. So both parts are correct.

habnds 7y ago
That is what I think, but in usage, for instance here, the person is identifying Cali as a bastion of leftist policies and I don't think Cali is particularly far left. Harris, Feinstein and Pelosi are all pretty center, until 2011 they had a Republican governo,r and these tech companies and their values are decidely not liberal. Further, Cali is home to some very conservative politics, Devin Nunes is way out there as is Kevin McCarthy. The idea of leftist doesn't seem consistent with the usage.
- tropo 7y ago
  Since you don't think California is particularly far left, I'd love to know your list of states that are. Where would you rank California? Perhaps pondering that question will trigger a recalibration.

habnds 7y ago

I had some speculation about what the term is so flexible originally that I removed in the interest of actually hearing what people think :)

C1sc0cat 7y ago

More standard centre right positions (in UK /EU terms ) in a lot of cases - Pres Obama was in UK Terms a on nation Tory like Rory Williams or Ken Clark.

Izkata 7y ago

Correct-ish. In the US, "left", "liberal", and "Democrat" have been related for so long that they've been nearly synonymous for a good two decades. Which isn't the case in almost any other part of the world.

dragonwriter 7y ago
> In the US, "left", "liberal", and "Democrat" have been related for so long that they've been nearly synonymous for a good two decades. Which isn't the case in almost any other part of the world. In most of the world (outside of some one party states where the ruling party shifts with the poltiical winds to avoid losing dominance, like Mexico when it was under one-party rule), especially in multiparty democracies, the association of ideologies with parties is much stronger and more consistent than in the US. That aside, the dominant ideology of the Democratic Party has actually been consistent for a little over two-decades, but that ideology is center-right neoliberalism, not leftist. “Lefist” has mostly been associated with the Democratic Party because of the propaganda efforts of the even farther right party, not because of any real substance. It's only recently (since about 2014) that a faction even vaguely leftist has given any significant challenge to the dominant center-right faction of the Democratic Party.
- rayiner 7y ago
  That’s all correct, but you’re choice of starting point is a bit misleading. FDR was not a center right neo-liberal. There was a brief interregnum during which Clinton and Obama governed as center-right economically and center-left socially. To someone who grew up during that period, the allegations of socialism from the right never made any sense to me. It was only recently when Democrats started fighting to distance themselves from Obama that I understood the criticism from the right. I would also argue that you’re understating the profound shift that has happened in the last two years. The Green New Deal is an openly socialist document, and every Democratic candidate has committed to supporting it. It’s again the party of FDR, not the party of Clinton or Obama.
  - jakelazaroff 7y ago