Why I Am Not A Progressive

Michael Shellenberger ^ | 10 Aug2021 | Michael Shellenberger

[Rummyfan]

For all of my adult life I have identified as a progressive. To me, being a progressive meant that I believed in empowerment. In 2002, when I co-founded a labor-environmental coalition to advocate for renewable energy, the symbol we chose to represent us was of Rosie the Riveter, an image of a woman factory worker during World War II flexing her muscle beneath the words, “We Can Do It!”. When President Barack Obama ran for office in 2008, it seemed fitting to me that he chose the slogan, “Yes we can!”

But now, on all the major issues of the day, the message from progressives is “No, you can’t.” No: poor nations like Bangladesh can’t adapt to climate change by becoming rich, insist progressives; rather, rich nations must become poor. No: we can’t prevent the staggering rise of drug deaths in the U.S., from 17,000 in 2000 to 93,000 in 2020, by helping people free themselves from addiction; rather, we must instead provide Safe Injection Sites and Safe Sleeping Sites, in downtown neighborhoods, where homeless addicts can use fentanyl, heroin, and meth safely.

Progressives insist they are offering hope. Many scientists and activists yesterday said that, while we have gone past the point of no return, when it comes to climate change, and that “No one is safe,” we can make the situation less bad by using solar panels, windmills, and electric cars, albeit at a very high cost to the economy. And in California, progressive leaders say that we just need to stick with the progressive agenda of Safe Injection Sites and Safe Sleeping Sites until we can build enough single unit apartments for the state’s 116,000 unsheltered homeless, most of whom are either addicted to hard drugs, suffering from untreated mental illness, or both.

[asinclair]

Many of the differences between conservatives and progressives revolves around the consequences of choice. Notice how progressives like to reward poor choices with their programs: welfare for the work-adverse; abortion for the sexually irresponsible; needle swaps for the medically irresponsible; and the list goes on. Conservative tend to be "you made your bed, now lie in it" about choice.

Then you have knee-jerk reactions to Big Problems that follow the same trend. For example, "climate change" has the progressives saying "no, you can't do that, you have to do it THIS way because that's what I would prefer." Conservatives just want the job done. Consider the nuke/no-nuke question. Progressives say "No nukes" because they expect any new power plants will be like the old plants. Conservatives are open to new technology, like molten-salt thorium reactors small enough to sprinkle in many locations.

Conservatives like their facts straight. Progressives like to dress up their facts in pretty, and in many cases misleading, words and phrases.

These and other observations is why I shun the progressive label.

[rlmorel]

"...the symbol we chose to represent us was of Rosie the Riveter, an image of a woman factory worker during World War II flexing her muscle beneath the words, “We Can Do It!"

I know the guy is a reformed Liberal...but that one was a typical choice for them.

I would have chosen this one:

[rlmorel]

"...Many of the differences between conservatives and progressives revolves around the consequences of choice..."

I have felt that one of the major problems we have in this country, is that there are a large group of people both advocating for laws and implementing those laws, and they don't have to live with the ramifications of their actions.

People like Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Mitch McConnell and too many others to even name.

[aquila48]

Great article.

I’m going to send it to my progressive “acquaintances” but I doubt they’ll read it or make any impression on them if they do

[qaz123]

Pretty decent article. He tap dances around the fundamental baseline for all on the Left……..their Hypocrisy and their refusal to not live with or deal with the consequences of the policies they support. IE Cori Bush and Maxine Waters.

They want to defund the cops just not the ones that patrol their liberal, hipster upscale enclaves in the cities.

But one of the things that makes me laugh is when people like this guy talk about police policies and coming up different strategies to combat violence. They just can’t understand that human nature is human nature. Bad folks are going to do bad things. Nothing anyone can do about that.

They think they have all the answers because they think their world view is perfect. But they can’t see the first for the trees.

In other words, their ideas, in their minds, are great in theory, but have very little use in the real world. So they just sling sh*t, ignore the results and head to the micro brewery when things go sideways.

[The Right Edge]

STUPID. Can’t understand the similarity between nihilism and lies.