In the early 1960’s when Lyle Stuart, Paul Krassner, and I were publishing the sole truly “alternative” periodicals, we had the same kind of problem with self-professed “liberals” and “progressives”, and others on the so-called “left,” that is in evidence today. We could publish 1,666,666 sentences with which one of our subscribers agreed, but if we published one sentence with which he or she disagreed, we would receive a poison pen letter: “I thought you were the one publisher and writer in the world I could trust to tell the truth. I thought you were the one on whom I could depend [meaning depend on always agreeing with ME]. But now you have said [whatever it was]. How dare you say such a thing? You have betrayed me. Cancel my subscription.”
Paul used to refer to such individuals as “kneejerk liberals.” They have a set mind on 101 positions, and they insist that everyone to be construed as a “liberal” or “progressive” (whatever they might mean by those undefined and undefineable terms) must adhere rigidly to each and every one of those positions. If any one of them is not met, the person who deviates from it is the enemy with whom there will be no compromise.
I found the same problem when I tried to participate with individuals on the “left” in meetings, seminars, efforts to organize a platform, and the like. The participants were so occupied with tearing each other to pieces that they could not agree on a united front for social reform. Today that remains one major reason, though not the only reason, why people on the so-called “left” (however that term may be defined) have limited influence on national and international affairs.
Common goals ought to be apparent to anyone who considers herself or himself a liberal or proressive: Redistribution of wealth, elimination of poverty everywhere, unlimited expenditures of money and resources to prevent disease and to provide affordable or free medical care for everyone, curbs on destructive overpopulation, protection of the environment of the earth and the atmosphere above it, universal freedom of expression, spread of democratic institutions, elimination of all totalitarian regimes of any kind, and the conversion of the U.S.A. today from the present oligarchy run by an aristocracy bent on self-protected wealth and power to a genuine democracy.
Instead of concentrating and cooperating on ways to achieve those common goals, self-professed “liberals” and “progressives” continue to engage in uninformed, bigoted invective that they use to attack anyone who dares to disagree with them on any issue or any segment of any issue. The reincarnation of King George, the aristocracy which runs the nation, loves it.
If you consider yourself a “liberal” or a “progressive” who wants to bring about national and international social reform, you had better understand that there are millions in the world who construe themselves as seeking the same basic results that you want, but who are not going to agree with you on certain issues. Either compromise with them on the common goals or drown in your own myopic invective.