# Radical (Extreme) Left in US **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 21, 2012, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radical-extreme-left-in-us/638457 "2012-10-21T22:18:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Steken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Steken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steken)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radical-extreme-left-in-us/638457/21 "2012-10-23T22:43:25Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Pretty much. The Soviet Union under Stalin was definitely as nationalistic as all hell; but not all Marxist-Leninists around the world are Stalinists. Exactly. High five! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radical-extreme-left-in-us/638457/22 "2012-10-23T23:20:31Z")
There’s just not that much energy on the far left anymore. The Communist Party USA is a recognized political party, sure, and their goals are pretty far left, but they’re pretty non-violent and don’t do much anymore but lose elections. The Black Panthers have been defunct now for thirty years, and the totally unrelated New Black Panther Party has accomplished one act of voter intimidation (properly prosecuted, regardless of what Fox News says), and practically nothing else. The Weather Underground is defunct, along with the much-less-radical SDS. Outside of a few groups like Greenpeace, the ELF and some other animal rights groups, I’m having trouble coming up with anything, and it may be wrong to label the ELF and Greenpeace left-wing. They’re environmentalist, sure, but that’s hardly communist or revolutionary in intent, and I can’t find any evidence that they’ve killed anyone, either. Media channels? Geez, Youtube, maybe? There are no far-left TV channels that I’m aware of, and far-left newspapers have such a tiny impact that I can’t name any off the top of my head. I don’t know of any radical left radio programs, or anything like that. ---
**Author:** ![listedmia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e0b2c6/32.png) [@listedmia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/listedmia)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2012, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radical-extreme-left-in-us/638457/23 "2012-10-24T01:55:19Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > Well, some of the people affiliated with Occupy Cleveland did try to blow up a bridge. I think that these individuals are a good example of leftist terrorists, but the reality is they are extremely rare in the US, and the far fringe of Occupy - most of the Occupy people disliked them before they were known to be terrorists, and were bascially horrified when they found out what they were up to. > [link] The general consensus in anarchist circles (or at least the ones I know) is that those guys were patsies, coerced into violence by an FBI informant who came up with the plan and offered to help them obtain supplies: [http://www.indiegogo.com/Cleveland4Justice](http://www.indiegogo.com/Cleveland4Justice) Take all this with a grain of salt, none of us were there or know exactly what happened. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2012, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radical-extreme-left-in-us/638457/24 "2012-10-24T04:06:45Z")
> [@jasg](#): > > The [Earth Liberation Front](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_Liberation_Front) might fit the bill. Just before the UW [firebombing](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Washington_firebombing_incident) in 2001, they were flagged as domestic terrorists by the FBI. [Tre Arrow](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tre_Arrow). Then there is the [1970 Sterling Hall Bombing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sterling_Hall_bombing). ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2012, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radical-extreme-left-in-us/638457/25 "2012-10-24T12:05:28Z")
Animal rights activists and environmental extremists have committed acts that could be considered terrorism, and occasionally they’ll get some support from Hollywood celebs, but as with the socialist/communist groups they have almost zero relevance in political terms. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2012, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radical-extreme-left-in-us/638457/26 "2012-10-24T23:09:17Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > Animal rights activists and environmental extremists have committed acts that could be considered terrorism, and occasionally they’ll get some support from Hollywood celebs, but as with the socialist/communist groups they have almost zero relevance in political terms. If you think about it, it is an almost psychotic attitude. I mean I love my pets to death, but the idea of committing serious felonies (even assault or murder) for, what? Because animals are cute and trees are pretty?! I have more (if little) respect for someone who’s a communist because they think capitalism exploits the poor than a group that wants to burn down a Hummer dealership (and their owners) because they think they use them to run over egret’s nests! 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radical-extreme-left-in-us/638457.md?page=1)