# Left Wingers **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 1, 2003, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904 "2003-09-01T02:53:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Xploder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/a183cd/32.png) [@Xploder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xploder)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/1 "2003-09-01T02:53:53Z")
I don’t normally start ANY threads on the board but I have to start this one…I’d like to know if it’s just ME or has anyone else noticed that there seems to be a HUGE left-wing bend to the board lately? I’m not talking just politics but political correctness…saying anything about trailer trash people…using the words fat or gay…and MANY other things…is it just ME? I believe in the death penalty. I also believe that it should be broadcast LIVE on TV. I believe that if a woman wants an abortion then she should be able to get one without interference. I believe that we need a strong military to defend us from outside agitation. I also believe that we have the right to live as we want. Am I just talking out my ass or do others believe at least PART of this??? ---
**Author:** ![Scruloose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e68b1a/32.png) [@Scruloose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scruloose)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/2 "2003-09-01T03:07:34Z")
I have a theory, that may explain this. It’s just my theory, so I may be way off. It seems that when Clinton was in office, there was much ranting from the right, not so much from the left. Now with Bush, the more vocal rants come from the left. It seems that whatever side isn’t “getting their way” so to speak, is the most vocal. Or I’m wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Bruce\_Daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Bruce\_Daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bruce_Daddy)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/3 "2003-09-01T03:13:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Chandeleur \* > \*\*I have a theory, that may explain this. It’s just my theory, so I may be way off. It seems that when Clinton was in office, there was much ranting from the right, not so much from the left. Now with Bush, the more vocal rants come from the left. It seems that whatever side isn’t “getting their way” so to speak, is the most vocal. > > Or I’m wrong. \*\* Agreed. As a “righty”, I don’t have a lot to bitch about lately. Politically that is. ---
**Author:** ![Nocturne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9fc348/32.png) [@Nocturne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nocturne)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/4 "2003-09-01T03:15:10Z")
Or maybe, just MAYBE, those of us that are gay/bi really don’t LIKE the words “gay” or “faggot” or “lesbo” to be used as an insult, considering we have been threatened using those taunts. Would you call a black man a “nigger” to insult him? Furthermore, if you did, would you expect him to “take it”? Also, I was called “fat” most of my junior high years, not only by my classmates, but by my mother, which sent me spiraling into anorexia. I don’t think that’s particularly “cool” to use as an insult either. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/5 "2003-09-01T03:35:22Z")
I don’t know who first stated this “law” of human behavior, and I may have gotten the exact wording wrong, but the paraphrase: “Any organization will drift to the left politically unless there is an active effort to prevent it from doing so.” But you also me be more atuned to the differences (from your point of view) that you see in posts than you to the similarities. ---
**Author:** ![TaxGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@TaxGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TaxGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/6 "2003-09-01T03:55:02Z")
Hey **John Mace** , not to go all GD or GQ on you or anything, but do you have a cite for that? I’d be interested in reading something on it. Also, see the “why did december get pitted” thread for my views, which are generally in agreement with the OP. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/7 "2003-09-01T03:56:01Z")
Huh? You think only left-wingers use words like “fat” or “gay”? ---
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/8 "2003-09-01T03:59:46Z")
> [@](#): > > I believe in the death penalty. I also believe that it should be broadcast LIVE on TV. Let me check… yep, this is the Pit; Xploder, you are entitled to your views regarding the death penalty, similarly I am entitled to say that you´re an abominable asshole. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/9 "2003-09-01T04:00:50Z")
Having spent my youth in the South and knowing many fine people who live in trailers, and seeing some real advantages to living in one, I do get a little pissed about people being called “rednecks” or “trailer trash” and I fail to see how insulting people for their social backgrounds, especially people who agree with YOU on many points, can possibly help you in a discussion or debate. However, I do concede Chandeleur’s “It’s OUR turn!” point. The party in power tends to smugness, as if a temporary political advantage is permanent and correct. The difference is, we on the Left ARE correct by all valid measures of decency and humanity. (And you know how we know they are valid? The same way you guys on the Right figure–wrongly–that your measures are valid: the measures agree with us. There ain’t NO validation like SELF-validation! 😉 ) Xploder, I’ve been hanging around here about as long as you and I have seen no increase in the “Left Wing bend” you describe. Yes, there is an SDMB tendency to the Left that could be explained, were I one to stick my foot right into it, by an association of intelligence with liberal thinking, and there has been lately a greater tendency for the Rightists to whine about it in their inept way. (I try not to be TOO patronizing toward them, poor, benighted souls that they are, but it is difficult to not feel those pangs of superiority that are so unbecoming in a person dedicated to helping ALL of God’s children reach their full potential. 😉 ) I believe, though, that as you are getting so much personal and political reinforcement from the White House you see the same lack of support that has always been here as a steeper dropoff than it is. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/10 "2003-09-01T04:00:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by John Mace \* > \*\*I don’t know who first stated this “law” of human behavior, and I may have gotten the exact wording wrong, but the paraphrase: > > “Any organization will drift to the left politically unless there is an active effort to prevent it from doing so.” > > But you also me be more atuned to the differences (from your point of view) that you see in posts than you to the similarities. \*\* **John**. There is no such law. Any chance you can clean up your syntax so that I don’t misunderstand what you’re saying? ---
**Author:** ![Tanaqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Tanaqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tanaqui)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/11 "2003-09-01T04:11:32Z")
> [@](#): > > I’m not talking just politics but political correctness…saying anything about trailer trash people…using the words fat or gay…and MANY other things…is it just ME? Gee, I wasn’t aware that “being an asshole” and “right winger” were the same thing. I also wasn’t aware that pro-choice was a typical right-wing political position. 😕 Maybe the problem is that many people here do not agree with YOU. Most people don’t agree with me on everything either, tragically. You’re just gonna have to live with it. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/12 "2003-09-01T04:11:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by C K Dexter Haven \* > \*\*Huh? You think only left-wingers use words like “fat” or “gay”? \*\* Um, no, actually I think the OP posits that only _right_ wingers use terms like “fat” and “gay” and “trailer trash” as insults, that only _left_ wingers take offense at this, and that since people on this Board _do_ take such offense, the Board therefore has a leftward tilt.😕 ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/13 "2003-09-01T04:12:01Z")
I am politically indifferent on many issues including major ones like abortion, the death penalty, and gun (control). I dislike the ‘us against the rest of the world’ attitude. You can’t choose where you are born. Similarly you can’t choose what race, sex, or social climate you are born into, so why criticise anyone who is not the same race, sex or wealth as you? I believe contries should co-operate for the benefit of the world, not compete for the benefit of themselves. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/14 "2003-09-01T04:12:50Z")
Sounds like just plain ol’ dialectical materialism to me, in the sense that Marxist theory posits an inevitable trend to history, which would imply something inherent in the evolution of organizations. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/15 "2003-09-01T04:19:45Z")
Ooops. Was talking about **JM** ’s “law”. ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/16 "2003-09-01T04:24:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Xploder \* > I’m not talking just politics but political correctness…saying anything about trailer trash people…using the words fat or gay…and MANY other things…is it just ME? So now you have to be a liberal to not call people hurtful, insulting, or degrading names? > [@](#): > > I believe in the death penalty. Yeah. So do quite a few people around here. What’s your point? > [@](#): > > I also believe that it should be broadcast LIVE on TV. Fox or Pay-Per-View? > [@](#): > > I believe that if a woman wants an abortion then she should be able to get one without interference. Again, is there a point here? Do you sense a rabid pro-life bent to the SDMB? If so, would you argue that this is a viewpoint traditionally associated with liberals? > [@](#): > > I believe that we need a strong military to defend us from outside agitation. Yeah. So do a lot of people around here. There are also a lot of peacenicks. We get a nice mix. I’m not going to ask again if you have a point, but rather just assume that you don’t. > [@](#): > > I also believe that we have the right to live as we want. Yes, you’ll find that to be a quite unpopular opinion around here. Will somebody please get this man a copy of the Communist Manifesto so we can set him straight? :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![minty\_green](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f6c823/32.png) [@minty\_green](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minty_green)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/17 "2003-09-01T04:56:10Z")
Is it just ME or has anyone else noticed lately that there seems to be a HUGE number of Pubbies desperately trying to hammer that second hand into the cross lately? Jesus F. Christ, guys, your schtick is officially old and stinky. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/18 "2003-09-01T05:27:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by samclem \* > \*\ ***John**. There is no such law. > > Any chance you can clean up your syntax so that I don’t misunderstand what you’re saying? \*\* Of course there is no such law, which is why I put that word in quotes. Call it an observation. I don’t have a cite. I read it somewhere years ago and it stuck in my mind. I’ve had a few more glasses of wine since that last post, so I should be able to clean up the messy syntax. _In vino veritas_.🙂 See below: > [@](#): > > I don’t know who first stated this “law” of human behavior, and I may have gotten the exact wording wrong, but to paraphrase what I remember: > > “Any organization will tend to drift to the left, politically, unless there is an active effort to prevent it from doing so.” > > But it might just be that you are more apt to notice it when you encounter posters who differ from your point of view than when you encounter those with whom you agree. So it might seem there is a preponderous of leftish thinkers on this board if you are of the conservative persuasion. I hope that makes more sense. If not, I may have to uncork another bottle… ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/19 "2003-09-01T05:34:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by minty green \* > **Is it just ME or has anyone else noticed lately that there seems to be a HUGE number of Pubbies desperately trying to hammer that second hand into the cross lately?** I have noticed a large number of martyrs lately, so much so that I’m planning cross-fittings every day from noon to three. First one hundred sacrificial lambs get free coffee! ---
**Author:** ![county](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce7236/32.png) [@county](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/county)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2003, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904/20 "2003-09-01T05:34:56Z")
Well, I wanna know if a fat, gay woman who lives in a trailer should be allowed to get an abortion on live TV? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/left-wingers/198904.md?page=2)