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naraburns  nihil supernum  1yr ago (text post)   34966 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of March 6, 2023

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If left and right are different versions of enlightenment philosophy, this leaves open the possibility of an opposition from outside the enlightenment. But you dont seem to think theres anything in that box. Anytime you argue that someone is not a real rightist, they are placed firmly in the "left" box. Why do you think that is?

I argue that they're both versions of Enlightenment philosophy. @HlynkaCG, if I've understood him properly, believes that the Right we mutually draw from is the true Enlightenment, and the left branch out through the Jacobins and Hegel and Marx is something else. This is, near as I can tell, pretty near to a purely terminological disagreement.

He's putting them in the "left" box for the same reason I put them in the "Enlightenment" box: They're secular materialists who believe that they know how to solve all our problems through the twin powers of meticulous sociopolitical theorycrafting and permanent removal of all the Bad People. They have a number of qualities they share between them, and our argument is that those qualities are vastly more consequential than their differences. These similarities are not a recent development, and go back all the way through the history of hard-left and fascist movements.

They have a number of qualities they share between them, and our argument is that those qualities are vastly more consequential than their differences. These similarities are not a recent development, and go back all the way through the history of hard-left and fascist movements.

Basically this ^

But you dont seem to think there's anything in that box.

There is but it's not particularly relevant to this discussion. If anything your formulation of the problem is precisely backwards. Anything that isn't hugging the extreme left of the Overton Window gets painted as "right wing" because when as far as most academics are concerned secular progressivism with at least two-scoops of Marx and Hegel is the default.

However, and this is kind of the point of this whole series. To someone who grew up outside the academy the difference between a queer intersectionalist preaching social justice because they believe blacks are incapable of succeeding on their own merits and a queer intersectionalist preaching white nationalism because they believe in HBD seem trivial in comparison to the differences between both of them and the median voter. That the former may be identified as "far left" while the latter is identified as "far right" is a product of the narcissism of small differences and a demonstration of just how divorced academia (and theMotte) has become from mainstream US politics/culture.

ETA: Also Holy thread necromancy Batman.

There is but it's not particularly relevant to this discussion

I wasnt particularly disagreeing with you; I genuinely would like to know what you think is in there.

secular progressivism with at least two-scoops of Marx and Hegel

How much do you know of Hegel? My impression is that while he caused a lot of brainrot, you are closer to his object-level positions than to Hobbses.

Also Holy thread necromancy Batman.

Im here so rarely now, I pick out the pearls.

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