Will Walker
@Teri_Kanefield Can you point to a prominent “authoritarian of the left” in American politics today? I mean, there are cranks out there, and there are Russia-inspired trolls making trouble ostensibly from the left, but who or what is a serious authoritarian of the the left?
Dec 10, 2022 at 4:23pmWeb
Show threadAphrodite (recharging)Dec 10, 2022

@Wawalker @Teri_Kanefield

Sinema.

She started as a Green, then became a D and announced she’s officially Independent.

How does that shift occur?

If one is sincere in belief in Green politics, it does not. Consensus is a pillar of Green politics.

She wore and proclaimed support for the labels of “the Left” on queer issues etc but only because IMHO she was personally affected.

Since being in office she’s courted big business and she seems to DGAF about her constituents.

Show threadWill WalkerDec 10, 2022
@Aphrodite @Teri_Kanefield Sinema is certainly not on the left now, if she ever was, and while I’m disappointed with her trajectory, even she does not appear to be an authoritarian in a normal sense of the word. Just a massive sell out.
Show threadAphrodite (recharging)Dec 11, 2022

@Wawalker @Teri_Kanefield

There is a phenomenon sometimes called the hippie to fascist pipeline. In the last Canadian election, one could see the Green to PPC (far right) pipeline.

These hippies said they wanted to change the world. Counterculture was how they showed they weren’t The Man, but deep down they wanted to be The Man.

So over the years these hippies shift to being more openly authoritarian.

They seek authority, and politically that is seen as right wing… am i making sense?

Show threadWill WalkerDec 11, 2022
@Aphrodite @Teri_Kanefield Yes, completely. Sinema may be in the process of that transition. Horrible in any case. Which is why I find it odd that anyone would think there is an authoritarian threat “from the left.” No one I can think of is espousing an authoritarian takeover to promote liberal causes. At best, some are trying to implement structural changes to safeguard democratic representation.
Show threadAphrodite (recharging)Dec 11, 2022

@Wawalker @Teri_Kanefield

I think there’s a misinterpretation of my lay suggestions.

Sinema has not changed her view.

Her view has always been maximizing personal power for personal benefit.

She is no more a “leftist” than I am a frog. She draped those views over herself because they fit well enough over her brown shirt to almost hide it, and because she could claim personal benefit from those views.

Show threadAphrodite (recharging)Dec 10, 2022

@Wawalker @Teri_Kanefield

Occupy Democrats also seems to fit that mold.

They publish clickbait, they hypersensationalize, and they craft and push fake news.

They also do not, to my knowledge, provide direct support for any candidates.

And apparently the Daily Dot concurs with that opinion.

https://www.dailydot.com/debug/occupy-democrats-election-fund-controversy/

Occupy Democrats cite high cost of memes after left-wing PAC accused of not distributing funds

The left-wing media outlet Occupy Democrats is facing scrutiny online over how it spends the money it has raised.

The Daily Dot
Show threadSHell4747Dec 10, 2022

@Aphrodite @Wawalker @Teri_Kanefield

how on earth is that actually "authoritarian"??

authoritarian means what here? something besides "not chosen by populace, having power despite the wishes of the populace, a person or group that imposes policy per own ideology without regard for democratically derived decisions"?? the only place this could be applied to anything like the "left" is Dem politicians with masks & vaccines so

tell me how it applies to anyone actually to the left of Joe Biden