Why Conservatives are Happy and Leftists Are Angry

I am sure that move on etc can and probably have taken the same data and come to completely different conclusions. Still the pp I extracted is an accurate take on my perception of many (not all) on the left. One of the thoughts I had but did not include in my comments on DU is that it might be nice to live in Utopia, but we don't.

www.frontpagemag.com/2014/steve-moeller/...d-leftists-are-angry

..."Leftist’s See the World as “Half-Empty”



Leftists, in contrast, tend to be more pessimistic and focused on what’s wrong with our society instead of what’s right with it. They have been conditioned to see the glass as half-empty instead of half full. Many leftists believe, as Karl Marx did, that the capitalist system is inherently unfair and morally wrong. People on the far left believe that they and many other people are victims of social and economic injustices. Apparently, they compare the realities of our system with some utopian society that has never and will never exist. The perceived gap between the ideal society and the real world is a big source of distress for leftists."...

Apparently, they compare the realities of our system with some utopian society that has never and will never exist. The perceived gap between the ideal society and the real world is a big source of distress for leftists."...

I've thought this very thing for many years now... it's easier to imagine a world that you want than it is to face reality and work with it.

I studied "Utopia" when I was in college (back in the dark ages)

Maybe that is why I do not lean left now, except when I limp

BlazerBob wrote: I am sure that move on etc can and probably have taken the same data and come to completely different conclusions. Still the pp I extracted is an accurate take on my perception of many (not all) on the left. One of the thoughts I had but did not include in my comments on DU is that it might be nice to live in Utopia, but we don't.

www.frontpagemag.com/2014/steve-moeller/...d-leftists-are-angry

..."Leftist’s See the World as “Half-Empty”



Leftists, in contrast, tend to be more pessimistic and focused on what’s wrong with our society instead of what’s right with it. They have been conditioned to see the glass as half-empty instead of half full. Many leftists believe, as Karl Marx did, that the capitalist system is inherently unfair and morally wrong. People on the far left believe that they and many other people are victims of social and economic injustices. Apparently, they compare the realities of our system with some utopian society that has never and will never exist. The perceived gap between the ideal society and the real world is a big source of distress for leftists."...

From the article:

Social democracy, an ideology advocating progressive reform of capitalism, emerged in the 20th century and was influenced by socialism. Yet unlike socialism, it was not collectivist nor anti-capitalist. It was not against the state; rather it was broadly defined as a project that aims to correct, through government reformism, what it regards as the intrinsic defects of capitalism by reducing inequalities. Several commentators have noted strong similarities between social liberalism and social democracy, with one political scientist even calling American liberalism "bootleg social democracy".

www.boundless.com/political-science/text...liberalism-132-1891/

Little did I know:

The meaning of "conservatism" in America has little in common with the way the word is used elsewhere, since what most Americans consider conservatism is what much of the world considers liberalism or neoliberalism.

www.boundless.com/political-science/text...onservatism-131-4219

On the half full half empty divide, I found this:

The physicist says that the glass is not empty at all - it is half-filled with water and half-filled with air - hence, fully filled on the whole!

I see Leftists as completely empty headed.

HEARTLESS wrote: I see Leftists as completely empty headed.

Do you really believe that or are you trying to summon the wicked witch? I don't agree that leftists or liberals or Democrats are empty headed at all, I think when it comes to politics, they have chosen a side just like we have and too often stick to their guns even when they see their leaders of choice blowing it, just like the right tends to do. But like you I disagree with how they think, especially when it comes to giving government more and more power over our lives. I know many liberals who are smarter than me in many ways because of their education or their experiences. That doesn't mean they are smarter when it comes to politics, that's always debatable.

I think this board has a chance to become a great place to debate politics and current events without attracting another LJ or VL who just want to sling excrement and foment hate. I'm starting to like this place much better again and I'll bet more people on the left and right eventually join in if it stays this way. Just something to think about man.

I'm hardly the big bad wolf. If they have something to say, say it. Socialism in all its forms has proven to be a failure time and time again. They believe they have some higher mental ground and assume free markets and capitalism are where greed and other human flaws come from. Not true, its why socialism always fails, human flaws.

Just a personal observation, Conservatives tend to focus on what is and how things work while Liberals tend to focus on the way things should be while not being overly concerned with what it actually takes to bring about the changes they desire. Life should be fair but it's not so get out there and compete, if little Timmy got a trophy for playing soccer it ought to be a reflection of his abilities as compared to his peers instead of a token that only indicates participation.

Saw this from Robert Reich and thought it was appropriate to this discussion:

Years ago I wrote that all elections in America center on four basic narratives:
(1) The triumphant individual who overcomes huge obstacles to eventually succeed (the Right says anyone with enough guts and gumption can make it; the Left focuses on equal opportunity.)
(2) The benevolent community that joins together to achieve the common good (the Right celebrates private charities such as "a thousand points of light;" the Left emphasizes public services).
3) The rot at the top, comprised of the privileged and powerful who conspire against the rest of us (the Right focuses on government; the Left, on big corporations and Wall Street).
(4) The mob at the gates that threaten us from beyond our borders (the Right worries about foreign powers; the Left worries more about global trade).
The first and second stories are about hope; the third and fourth about fear.
In the 2014 midterm elections, the two fearsome narratives predominate. Republican’s “rot at the top” is Obama and Obamacare; Democrat’s “rot at the top” should be big corporations suppressing wages and the Right suppressing votes, but they’re not telling that story.
Republicans’ “mob at the gates” are immigrants, terrorists, and Ebola. The Democrat’s “mob at the gates” should be growing totalitarianism and intolerance around the world, but they’re not telling that story, either.
Why aren't the Democrats telling their versions?

I agree with both of you. And Heartless, my point is that I'd rather pick apart the socialist ideology by actually having a conversation with the believers instead of just creating enemies with them and accomplishing nothing. I sat down and talked politics with my dad recently (who is very far left) and I was able to change his mind on a couple points which I saw as a huge step forward. He's still a lefty, but when presented with a few facts, he started to understand where I was coming from. But he's definitely angry that life isn't as fair as he thinks it should be... I just want to convince him that life is only as far as it can be.