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I'm an outsider to US politics (in that I'm Australian), but I'm really interested to know what widely held "left" views you think are "incorrect"? The topics

I'm an outsider to US politics (in that I'm Australian), but I'm really interested to know what widely held "left" views you think are "incorrect"? The topics I understand as being pushed by the left in the US just seem so centerist to me, based on the political landscape that I'm living in. Single payer health care, minimum wage increases, increases in social support nets... So many topics I'd love to hear the argument against from any stand point that isn't pure capitalist greed.

PoignardAzur 6y ago
The minimum wage increase that Biden is pushing for is radical. He wants a 15$/hour minimum wage, which if I believe Wikipedia would be the highest minimum wage in the world right now. Not saying that's a bad thing, but I think it would qualify as left-wing in most countries. Agreed about social safety nets and most other policies. Sometimes it feels Americans don't realize how uniquely chaotic and inefficient their system is, compared to every other western country. The healthcare system in particular.
- ansible 6y ago
  Eh, it isn't that radical. These people making minimum wage are likely working part-time, so they don't get medical insurance. They often have to find two or more part-time jobs. Do they are working more hours than a full time job, but still don't have medical. An increase in the minimum wage will help a little, but having affordable health care works help more.
- 542354234235 6y ago
  > would be the highest minimum wage in the world right now. Australia's minimum wage for people over 21 is over $15 USD for full time work, and over $19 USD for part time (you receive a 25% casual loading rate increase for part time work). [1] That comes out to about 70% of their GDP per capita (working 38 hours per week, 50 weeks a year). The US going to $15 an hour would only be 43% of GDP per capita. If the US paid its minimum wage workers according to our actual economic output per person, our minimum wage would be $24 an hour, to match Australia. I wouldn’t really call $15 an hour radical. [1] https://blog.aigroup.com.au/australia-had-the-highest-minimum-wage-in-the-world-in-2019/ https://blog.aigroup.com.au/australia-had-the-highest-minimu...
- temp8964 6y ago
  More economists agree it will increase unemployment per IGM survey https://www.igmchicago.org/surveys/the-us-minimum-wage/ https://www.igmchicago.org/surveys/the-us-minimum-wage/
- goatinaboat 6y ago
  The minimum wage increase that Biden is pushing for is radical. He wants a 15$/hour minimum wage By 2025, and only for Federal workers. The small print in that promise that only came out after the election.
plake 6y ago
Also not an American, but the US left has a lot of controversial views that are nothing to do with the things you've listed. Surely you've heard of some?
- Fuzzwah 6y ago
  Maybe I shouldn't have given any examples. Clearly I'm not aware of the problematic topics. Can you share some?
dcolkitt 6y ago
I would say the time the NYT literally covered up the crimes of Stalin, might have been one point where its ideological bias led it off track. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Duranty https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Duranty
zo1 6y ago
What do you mean by incorrect? Because you're asking us to prove/argue that Left policies are incorrect. By correct/incorrect do you mean: Moral/Immoral? Right/Wrong? Fair/Unfair? If we can agree on judging policies, platforms, ideologies and beliefs on a shared set of criteria, then we can move forward, otherwise we're just shouting at each-other. You can tell me all day long that it's fair for me to get my stuff taken away without my consent by an entity because I got born within it's "borders"; but that won't make it fair for me within my moral framework, irrespective of how much I deplore the suffering of the poor and unfortunate and want to help them.
- Fuzzwah 6y ago
  The comment I responded to said: > in my opinion it's artificially solidified their confidence on how "correct" they feel they are about political topics. I was wondering what topics these were.
chmod600 6y ago
The US has four states with population comparable to Australia. It would be perfectly centrist for a couple states to enact the policies you mention, assuming they can work out the details and balance the books. When these policies turn into wild success stories, other states might follow. It probably makes sense to start with some small-medium sized, well-governed blue states first, like when MA implemented Romneycare. But the left position is to enact these polcies nationally across the US, which has >10x the number of people in your country. And there are a ton of details that nobody really even wants to talk about, and no plan to adapt when things don't work out. So, we are just supposed to trust Congress with a huge amount of extra money and a lot more power because the title of the bill sounds nice? There are also a lot of policies that seem uniquely designed to punish the "right". I am pro-choice, but I recognize that a lot of people in the US are really, really not. But a lot of people on the left don't just want it legal, they want to use taxpayer money to pay for it. Think about how that makes tens of millions of evangelical Christians feel? There are enough pro-choice organziations that they can pool money from pro-choice people to subsidize abortions. The taxpayer money isn't needed. Why force it?
- edmundsauto 6y ago
  Couldn't this argument be made for the Border Patrol, or the war in Iraq? There are lots of things my tax dollars pay for that I find morally repugnant.
  - chmod600 6y ago
    It's a matter of degree and alternatives. Borders and wars are clearly the domain of the federal government as described by the Constitution. If you don't like it, your only real option is to elect better people. Yeah, it sucks when our leaders invade Iraq for no reason, and then we elect one of few diseenting voices to be our next president and then he... invades Libya. So I realize my words are cold comfort, but there's no much else I can say. But abortion funding is not the domain of the federal government and there is not much reason for it to be. There are plenty of private citizens who are pro choice and could fund abortion subsidies. It would probably be easier to do that than fight a political battle over it, which also costs money. A government should govern the people that are actually here, not who you wish were here. Maybe in some places nobody minds abortion, but the US is not one of those places. So, we've got to respect those tens of millions of people at least enough to not spend their money on abortion.

PoignardAzur 6y ago

The minimum wage increase that Biden is pushing for is radical. He wants a 15$/hour minimum wage, which if I believe Wikipedia would be the highest minimum wage in the world right now. Not saying that's a bad thing, but I think it would qualify as left-wing in most countries. Agreed about social safety nets and most other policies. Sometimes it feels Americans don't realize how uniquely chaotic and inefficient their system is, compared to every other western country. The healthcare system in particular.

ansible 6y ago
Eh, it isn't that radical. These people making minimum wage are likely working part-time, so they don't get medical insurance. They often have to find two or more part-time jobs. Do they are working more hours than a full time job, but still don't have medical. An increase in the minimum wage will help a little, but having affordable health care works help more.
542354234235 6y ago
> would be the highest minimum wage in the world right now. Australia's minimum wage for people over 21 is over $15 USD for full time work, and over $19 USD for part time (you receive a 25% casual loading rate increase for part time work). [1] That comes out to about 70% of their GDP per capita (working 38 hours per week, 50 weeks a year). The US going to $15 an hour would only be 43% of GDP per capita. If the US paid its minimum wage workers according to our actual economic output per person, our minimum wage would be $24 an hour, to match Australia. I wouldn’t really call $15 an hour radical. [1] https://blog.aigroup.com.au/australia-had-the-highest-minimum-wage-in-the-world-in-2019/ https://blog.aigroup.com.au/australia-had-the-highest-minimu...
temp8964 6y ago
More economists agree it will increase unemployment per IGM survey https://www.igmchicago.org/surveys/the-us-minimum-wage/ https://www.igmchicago.org/surveys/the-us-minimum-wage/
goatinaboat 6y ago
The minimum wage increase that Biden is pushing for is radical. He wants a 15$/hour minimum wage By 2025, and only for Federal workers. The small print in that promise that only came out after the election.

plake 6y ago

Also not an American, but the US left has a lot of controversial views that are nothing to do with the things you've listed. Surely you've heard of some?

Fuzzwah 6y ago
Maybe I shouldn't have given any examples. Clearly I'm not aware of the problematic topics. Can you share some?

dcolkitt 6y ago

I would say the time the NYT literally covered up the crimes of Stalin, might have been one point where its ideological bias led it off track. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Duranty https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Duranty

zo1 6y ago

What do you mean by incorrect? Because you're asking us to prove/argue that Left policies are incorrect. By correct/incorrect do you mean: Moral/Immoral? Right/Wrong? Fair/Unfair? If we can agree on judging policies, platforms, ideologies and beliefs on a shared set of criteria, then we can move forward, otherwise we're just shouting at each-other. You can tell me all day long that it's fair for me to get my stuff taken away without my consent by an entity because I got born within it's "borders"; but that won't make it fair for me within my moral framework, irrespective of how much I deplore the suffering of the poor and unfortunate and want to help them.

Fuzzwah 6y ago
The comment I responded to said: > in my opinion it's artificially solidified their confidence on how "correct" they feel they are about political topics. I was wondering what topics these were.

chmod600 6y ago

The US has four states with population comparable to Australia. It would be perfectly centrist for a couple states to enact the policies you mention, assuming they can work out the details and balance the books. When these policies turn into wild success stories, other states might follow. It probably makes sense to start with some small-medium sized, well-governed blue states first, like when MA implemented Romneycare. But the left position is to enact these polcies nationally across the US, which has >10x the number of people in your country. And there are a ton of details that nobody really even wants to talk about, and no plan to adapt when things don't work out. So, we are just supposed to trust Congress with a huge amount of extra money and a lot more power because the title of the bill sounds nice? There are also a lot of policies that seem uniquely designed to punish the "right". I am pro-choice, but I recognize that a lot of people in the US are really, really not. But a lot of people on the left don't just want it legal, they want to use taxpayer money to pay for it. Think about how that makes tens of millions of evangelical Christians feel? There are enough pro-choice organziations that they can pool money from pro-choice people to subsidize abortions. The taxpayer money isn't needed. Why force it?

edmundsauto 6y ago
Couldn't this argument be made for the Border Patrol, or the war in Iraq? There are lots of things my tax dollars pay for that I find morally repugnant.
- chmod600 6y ago
  It's a matter of degree and alternatives. Borders and wars are clearly the domain of the federal government as described by the Constitution. If you don't like it, your only real option is to elect better people. Yeah, it sucks when our leaders invade Iraq for no reason, and then we elect one of few diseenting voices to be our next president and then he... invades Libya. So I realize my words are cold comfort, but there's no much else I can say. But abortion funding is not the domain of the federal government and there is not much reason for it to be. There are plenty of private citizens who are pro choice and could fund abortion subsidies. It would probably be easier to do that than fight a political battle over it, which also costs money. A government should govern the people that are actually here, not who you wish were here. Maybe in some places nobody minds abortion, but the US is not one of those places. So, we've got to respect those tens of millions of people at least enough to not spend their money on abortion.