On 10/25/06, Michael Perelman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
This discussion now seems to be between Yoshie & Lou. Time to take it off list?
I hope not. It has been a reasonably informative discussion so far. Louis' original objection to Yoshie's use of the term "Western lefties" seems like nitpicking. Without denying the diversity of opinion within such a group, it seems pretty clear who Yoshie refers to by that term: for instance most of us on PEN-L would qualify as "Western lefties" irrespective of our other differences. Just because such a classification is not precise and homogenous does not mean it is not useful. That said, Louis got to the crux of the matter by citing several reports of disaffection against the Chinese regime that seemed to originate partly from "Chinese leftists". This would appear to contradict Yoshie's assertion that the "oppressions" that Western lefties see in many "Eastern" governments may be seen differently by the local populations. While Louis is surely correct in pointing out the reality of the "oppressions" in China and elsewhere, it is also true that the level of popular discontent is easily exaggerated in Western leftist forums like PEN-L. I cannot speak for China, but the very negative view of the economic reforms in India presented here does not seem to match the opinions of people in India from what I can tell. Partly of course this is because the oppressed (by definition) do not have anyone to speak for them and their voices remain unheard. Still it seems to me that Yoshie might have a point.. -raghu.
