08-29-2019, 01:50 PM
(This post was last modified: 08-29-2019, 01:51 PM by Eric the Green.)
(08-28-2019, 01:49 PM)David Horn Wrote:(08-27-2019, 05:15 PM)pbrower2a Wrote:(08-27-2019, 09:42 AM)David Horn Wrote:(08-26-2019, 01:00 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: Using the word populism to describe right-wing propaganda and those who fall for it is inappropriate. Populism means restoring power to the people. Right wing "populism" appeals to the fears of the people so that their power can be taken away. It is not populism at all...
You are almost alone in believing that RW populism isn't what it clearly is: populism! In fact, most political scientists who study this believe that the ideological, self-centered version is far and away the most common type, and those characteristics are exactly what attracts believers to tyrants and autocrats of all stripes.
Populism is, by definition, emotional and anti-intellectual. People functioning on emotion tend to be lead by the strong emotions: hate and fear. Love and the other softer emotions don't have the impact, and tend to need intellectual bolstering to be viable.
Do we really have any left-wing populism in America?
I think Bernie Sanders is a LW populist, though he may be a solo act. Elizabeth Warren, his closest ideological match, seems to be a more traditional though certainly LW candidate. You might argue that AOC and the Squad are also populists, but they seem to be more SJW crusaders than populists. I can't think of any others.
I think in this post you are nearer the truth. I think you could say Warren and AOC are populists, because they appeal to the people to take back their power. That's the real definition of populist. The real definition stems from the party that invented it, back in the birthtime of our own era. But Sanders is the best match and AOC does have the SJW aspect and Warren does have traditional political links too.