At around 26/10/06 9:45 am, Louis Proyect wrote:
>
> Her critique is based on cheap demagogy, and poorly applied at that.
> As I said before, it is an attempt to tip the scales in favor of one
> side in a debate. The "Marxist-Leninist" left is skilled in this, but
> uses different terminology--"petty bourgeois" being the favorite. But
> it amounts to the same thing. Who wants to be labeled "petty
> bourgeoisie"? It conjures up images of epicene college professors
> with subscriptions to the Nation Magazine who send money in to
> Amnesty International and drive Volvos.
I drive a VW, I am not a college professor, and I do not have a
subscription to The Nation (I read it online), but that sounds like me!!
And I am not from the West and by western definitions, perhaps not even
a leftist!
> They are second cousins to
> the stereotypical Blue State voter. "Western Leftist" is simply a new
> term for what amounts to the same thing.
As a non-Westerner (of sorts) I warm to this sort of leftist. The
Nation, when not wrong, speaks clearly and meaningfully, and even when
wrong, is mostly well-intentioned. When I think Western Leftist in the
scary sense, I think of those who are prone to mock other cultures
("primitivism", "alternative", etc) or impose their analysis upon them.
Or people like Christopher Hitchens and Seymour Hersh... the real White
Man's Burden types.
--ravi
