Let's define "extreme left"...

[SoCalDem]

healthcare for everyone
affordable college
real voting reform
living wages...unions
reliable retirement
affordable medicines
clean water
breatheable air
more peace.....less war
less secrecy in government
world-respected leaders
equal rights for EVERYONE
a real energy policy

etc etc


Why are these considered "extreme"?

If "right" has been running things for 6 years, and all it's managed to create, is vast "wrongs", why is "left" not a perfectly normal "remedy"?

The problems we have today are directly related to the UNDOING of "left-ideas" that were working just fine until Reagan/Bush1/Bush*² started chipping away at them..

We need those "left ideas" back .................ASAP..

[Selatius]

1. It's a remnant of the Cold War and to a certain extent Wilson's Red Scare

McCarthy wasn't the first to start the Red Scare in the US. It was Woodrow Wilson. Because socialists advocated many of those same things, it automatically tainted everybody else who did as well. The problem is not every socialist was a card carrying member of the Soviet Communist Party, and that was even more true during Wilson's presidency as the Soviet Union didn't exist at that time.

Perhaps the most influential democratic socialist in American history is none other than Martin Luther King, and the FBI labeled him and the SCLC as a nationalist black militant organization.

[Atman]

2. Anything left of a fundie nutbag.

Good enough?

[datadiva]

3. Anyone who disagrees with the Bush Regime n/t

[Warpy]

4. I laughingly call myself a left wing extremist

but honestly, I'm really a sort of low socialist. I think only a mixed system of socialism and capitalism can possibly be both competitive and humane.

That's the route successful formerly "communist" countries have started to take. Now they need to figure out how to prevent wealth from concentrating.

So just call me a pinko. I'll wear the label proudly. The red of my youth has been diluted by years of experience to a very pleasing color just this side of Puerto Rican pink.

[demosincebirth]

5. Being able to listen to others ideas without without

have a coronary is not a extreme-left trait.

The radical left also brought us Nixon for almost two terms in '68 & '72

All democrats embrace those ideas and many more you can dig up, but its the way we achieve those is where many on the extremes left differ from the democrats.

[JHB]

6. SPIN SPIN SPIN SPIN.... It's (mostly) just a load of spin.

There's a section out there that counts anything they don't like as "extreme left", but mostly it's all about the spin. The more they paint opponents as "extreme" "kooks", the more they can play the role of "resolute, but reasonable and rational, sensible and practical".

[ShrewdlyDone]

7. Sorry here is a truthful answer

Extreme left are people on this board and others that say the soldiers in Iraq are murderers. I will use a republican word here and don't shoot the messenger but this is where it comes from ... Anti-american. While inaccurate and extreme, it is no more extreme than accusing people that have devoted their life to their country of being murderers because of policies that our elected officials supported... including MANY democrats.

Extreme left are people that believe that any of these paries in the middle east are good/bad all the time.
There are no angels in the middle east... that's what makes it so difficult.

The extreme left SOUND (I emphasize SOUND) like they want socialist policies within government. What on earth do I mean? Look at california and anecdotal laws there. Or washington where if as a man you LIVE with a woman for a certain period of time who has a child (NOT YOUR CHILD) you have to pay Child support to her.

There are many American's tired of hearing things when they have a bad break as a cousin of mine had. He went in for welfare and was told since his wife had children... all by the same man... she was inelidgeable for welfare...

Extreme means extreme, and there are people and laws and policies on both sides that qualify readily.

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I count myself a Moderate Democrat. Moderate meaning to me, that I can at least tell when either side has lost their marbles.

ShrewdlyDone

[SoCalDem]

8. anecdotal "incidents" do not negate an overall policy of fairness

Americans have always 'seemed' to be a nation that appreciated "fairplay" and honesty.

republicanism is about selfish greed and spite..

being a citizen of a country should entitle one to more than just paying taxes (so that money can be used to start wars and be given to rich people who already have tons of money).

[ShrewdlyDone]

10. There is a problem though...

Not speaking to the Armed forces but more to the other 2 points I made above.

There is a problem for alot of people differentiating state democratic policies and national policies.

When I speak to people, most of the complaints are against the extreme state policies, and support the national agenda.

[RDU Socialist]

9. a lot of those views aren't "leftist" they're common sense

ask any normal american, and those views are shared.

[SoCalDem]

11. exactly my point... Dems always go on the defensive when

pundits call them "extreme left"..

republican "ownership" of framing is what's hurting us.. and the media megaphone for their nonsense...

in off years, there should be required training classes for dems to learn how to amplfy their core truths and to resist the temptation to reply to the nonsensical republican taunts..

It works because our "mouthpieces" always fall for it.

[Raydawg1234]

12. didn't somone say , "telling the truth in a world of univiersal deciet is

a radical act?"

So I guess in that respect we are extreme.

[Overseas]

13. Extreme left is nowhere to be seen these days

And Democrats should just laugh at that outrageous characterization. Ned Lamont and Fidel Castro, eh?

[INDIA]

14. My definition of the "extreme left"??

1.MIHOP and LIHOPers. Let's face it, if Gore was prez during 9-11, 90% of these believers wouldn't exist, they'd probably be from the extreme right.

2. Those who refer to Israel and the United States as terrorist organizations.

3. Those who support Chavez and Castro unconditionally. I'm not talking about people who admire specific things both have done, because IMO, they have done some good. I'm talking about those who will defend even the most indefensible actions of the two, like Chavez aligning himself with the presidents of Belarus and Iran, or ignoring Castro's atrocities by saying "Batista was worse!"

4. Those who claim election fraud in every single case where a Dem loses. I do think there are dirty tricks happening on the Repuke side, but supporters of our side have done the same(to a lesser degree IMO) One poster today claimed that EVERY SINGLE election in Georgia is rigged, and dared us all to prove him wrong. That's just insanity.

Besides those 4 things that irk me from our side, I'm damn proud to be a Democrat!

[Overseas]

15. But they sure are pulling a Newt Gingrich by tossing that word around

Fox and its echo channels-- far left far left far left -- losing strategy -- etc etc. And most Democrats have been too polite to call the Neo-Cons and the Petro-Cons the farrrright in public.