Why I Left the Left and the Right #5: Who is a Progressive | TaraElla Report Reset

Last time, I talked about the origins of this project, what I want to get out of doing this, and where I'm going to go next. For context, you should watch that episode if you haven't already done so, link is in the description. Today, I want to talk about one particular idea I raised at the end of the last episode: 'a politics that is progressive, in the sense of forward looking, but also not tied to the dogma of the so-called theories'.

You know, the word 'progressive' literally means forward looking. So any forward looking idea can be considered 'progressive', and anybody who is generally committed to a forward looking, positive and constructive attitude to things can be considered a 'progressive'. I think this was actually how it worked historically, for example with the 'progressive era' in American history. But nowadays, the meaning of 'progressive' has been distorted by some people. Apparently, for them, 'progressive' means adhering to particular left-wing theories, particularly the various critical theories and postmodern theories. The problem is, these theories are generally developed in academia rather than from practical situations, and they are heavily rooted in 19th and 20th century thinking. I don't see them as forward looking or open minded, and I certainly don't think this is the way to progress the 21st century West. Which is why, I think, it's time to differentiate what I call practical progressivism from theoretical progressivism. More on this later.

Anyway, as I said last time, the popularization of a sort of 'New Left' dominated by critical theory and postmodern thinking has led to the deterioration of long standing liberal norms like free speech and freedom of conscience, which has made many of us quite uncomfortable in recent years. So far, it is mainly people on the Right, the conservative side of the political spectrum, who have been the most outspoken about this problem. As a result, more and more people have been attracted to the Right. The Right certainly makes very valid points about the problems with theoretical progressivism. However, I do have another problem with the Right: they are generally not forward looking or open minded. In fact, they tend to be overly nostalgic about a romanticized past, and also reactionary towards all sorts of new and unfamiliar ideas. It is one thing to oppose problematic ideas like criticalism and postmodernism, but it is another thing to reject almost all unfamiliar ideas by default. This is why, while I do appreciate very much the critiques of criticalism and postmodernism coming from the Right, I don't think I can ever find myself a political home on the Right. I'm way too progressive, in the original sense of the word, for that.

That's why I think we need to bring back progressivism, in the original sense. We may call this 'practical progressivism', in contrast to the theory-based so-called progressivism promoted by some in the 'New Left'. To practice a truly 'practical progressivism', I think the key is to engage with all sorts of interesting ideas, without theory-based preconception. That means being open-minded about ideas and solutions from all across the political spectrum, finding common ground where we can, and always keeping our focus on what is the best, most likely to be effective, way to solve the problems in front of us. This is why, going forward, I will be engaging with ideas, problems and solutions as they come, and join the conversations around these things as they are happening, without discrimination or preconception as to things like people's political affiliation or background, or their other opinions. I will try to look at everything, from an open-minded, forward looking and constructive perspective.