# The Far Right, The Far Left, What Do They Have In Common. **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 22, 2013, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004 "2013-01-22T14:22:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![pchaos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/258eb7/32.png) [@pchaos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pchaos)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/1 "2013-01-22T14:22:21Z")
They both have to eat. It’s the economy gals and guys. Whether we are talking about the U.S. or around the world, people have to eat. So what is the economy of the future going to look like. Since the politicians in the U.S. can’t figure it out. Why don’t we help them out? How do we create more jobs. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/2 "2013-01-22T14:33:07Z")
How do we create more jobs? Build stuff. America should build big, useful things. How about a big program to modernize our electrical grid in every state. Repair and reinforce every road and bridge that needs it. Extend and upgrade rail lines. High-speed wi-fi in every city that is actually competetive with the rest of the world. All of these would benefit citizens with both practical and useful jobs, and the upgraded infrastructure that would be built. ---
**Author:** ![Debaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3da27b/32.png) [@Debaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Debaser)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/3 "2013-01-22T14:34:40Z")
Of course both the far left and far right both want a better economy. (Most of them, I guess you can exclude the truly crazy from both sides from any assumptions.) The problem is that they disagree about how best to do it. Right wingers think that by spending more than we have and piling on the debt that Obama has we are stifling economic growth. Cutting taxes and spending and letting individuals and businesses have more money in their pockets will lead to economic growth for all. Left wingers think that deficit spending during a recession makes sense, as the government can help keep the economy going during a tough economic time. Injecting cash into the economy by printing money and doing government stimulus will help pull us out of a recession. They can’t both be right. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/4 "2013-01-22T14:37:47Z")
The only thing both have in common is the lust for power. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/5 "2013-01-22T14:49:50Z")
> [@](#): > > The Far Right, The Far Left, What Do They Have In Common. They are both composed of a bunch of nuts. > [@](#): > > They both have to eat. It’s the economy gals and guys. Whether we are talking about the U.S. or around the world, people have to eat. So what is the economy of the future going to look like. Not sure what this has to do with the thread title, to be honest. Are you asking what the left and right agree with wrt the economy? I’d say not much if anything. And that’s the problem. Both may want to do something about the economy, but are, er, well, diametrically opposed as to how they think this needs to be accomplished. > [@](#): > > Since the politicians in the U.S. can’t figure it out. Why don’t we help them out? How do we create more jobs. Depends on whether you ask the left or right wing as to what answer you get. Ask the left and the way to get the economy going is to borrow a ton of money, put people back to work by having the government spend that money, tax the rich, increase regulation and wages for workers, increase regulation on companies, build a Green Economy, etc etc…then sit back and watch the economy boom in the new workers paradise. On the left you can pretty much turn every one of those concepts around to it’s opposite to get their stance. If you like, watch [these](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0nERTFo-Sk) [two](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTQnarzmTOc) rap videos on the different ways to look at the economy. The two aren’t really either far left or far right, but the left certainly aligns with Keynes and the right more with Hayek. They have a good beat and are pretty funny IMHO. 😛 And besides, I always wanted to post two YouTube videos that everyone MUST see… ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/6 "2013-01-22T15:22:10Z")
> [@pchaos](#): > > They both have to eat. It’s the economy gals and guys. Whether we are talking about the U.S. or around the world, people have to eat. So what is the economy of the future going to look like. > > Since the politicians in the U.S. can’t figure it out. Why don’t we help them out? How do we create more jobs. Congratulations. You’ve managed to create a thread title with two items(the far right and the far left) that have absolutely nothing to do with the topic of the thread, and the actual topic(job creation) isn’t mentioned in the title at all! ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/7 "2013-01-22T15:32:27Z")
They’re both made of people! ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/8 "2013-01-22T15:37:34Z")
And people like to eat bacon! ---
**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:** [January 22, 2013, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/9 "2013-01-22T15:37:57Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > They’re both made of people! So is Soylent Green. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/10 "2013-01-22T15:38:42Z")
The one thing the far left and far right have in common is blaming the Jews. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/11 "2013-01-22T15:40:26Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > The one thing the far left and far right have in common is blaming the Jews. And the word “far”. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/12 "2013-01-22T16:05:33Z")
They’re both carbon-based life forms. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/13 "2013-01-22T16:07:01Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > They’re both carbon-based life forms. Do you have a cite confirming this?? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/14 "2013-01-22T16:07:08Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > They’re both carbon-based life forms. Cite? ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/15 "2013-01-22T16:16:21Z")
What they both have in common is a blind devotion to a particular ideology as opposed to a desire to actually solve problems through sound reasoning and logic. Alos, economics isn’t about “creating jobs”. It’s about creating a fair and sustainable system for meeting the needs and wants of the people who participate in the economy. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/16 "2013-01-22T16:30:18Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > What they both have in common is a blind devotion to a particular ideology as opposed to a desire to actually solve problems through sound reasoning and logic. Also, their chief weapon is surprise… fear and surprise; two chief weapons, fear, surprise, and ruthless efficiency! Er, among their chief weapons are: fear, surprise, ruthless efficiency, and near fanatical devotion to the Pope! Sorry, someone had to say it. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/17 "2013-01-22T16:36:04Z")
Hunter S Thompson was a pretty big gun advocate. I think it was Larry King who once said he’d like to seat Thompson and Rush Limbaugh next to each other on a long flight, because he thought they’d get along famously. Said that rather than being opposite ends of a linear spectrum, the Far Left and the Far Right actually met each other coming around the corner on a curve. ---
**Author:** ![skdo23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@skdo23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/skdo23)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/18 "2013-01-22T16:38:33Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > What they both have in common is a blind devotion to a particular ideology as opposed to a desire to actually solve problems through sound reasoning and logic. This. For example, Market Fundamentalism is the belief that government regulations should be abolished because of their fallibility, whereas Socialism is the belief that markets should be abolished because of their fallibility. Just two factions using the same logical fallacies and simplistic distrust of ambiguity to advance different ideologies. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/19 "2013-01-22T16:44:15Z")
A fundamental disconnect from the realities of Human Nature, a blind insistence that “if only everyone would do things they way we want, everything would be perfect”, and usually, a fundamental anger over the way the world is (and isn’t how they want) that they’re willing to use violence to force people into the proper molds (if only they had power!) ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2013, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004/20 "2013-01-22T16:47:21Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Hunter S Thompson was a pretty big gun advocate. I think it was Larry King who once said he’d like to seat Thompson and Rush Limbaugh next to each other on a long flight, because he thought they’d get along famously. Said that rather than being opposite ends of a linear spectrum, the Far Left and the Far Right actually met each other coming around the corner on a curve. Larry King is not usually thought of as a font of wisdom, but to each his own. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-far-right-the-far-left-what-do-they-have-in-common/648004.md?page=2)