Where does the prhase "leftist" come from?

[Grizzly]

Is the phrase "leftist" relatively new or has it been around for awhile? It seems vaguely derogatory. I don't think I have ever seen it used in a positive way.

 

[kranich]

Goes back to France before the Revolution. The First Estate sat on the right side of the assembly and the Third Estate sat on the left.

 

[starchild]

Agree with the origins of 'the left' and 'the right'...

Leftist, I assume, was created by the user here who unloads it constantly on these boards... and is meant to sound like rapist.

At least, that's how it's used.

 

[lucid42day]

Is the phrase "leftist" relatively new or has it been around for awhile? It seems vaguely derogatory. I don't think I have ever seen it used in a positive way.

It comes from the mouth of whomever disagrees with you over an issue you're both in agreement upon.

 

[enlightenment]

"Leftist" is indeed derogatory. I call righties righties, not rightists. That wouldn't sound right anyway...

 

[Lorena]

Whenever I hear the word "leftist," I always think of a cabal of Cuban guerrillas. LoL

But right-wing sounds pretty bad too. I get a totally different mental picture from that, although equally bad. It's like calling someone an extremist nut-job.

 

[angela 2]

Is the phrase "leftist" relatively new or has it been around for awhile? It seems vaguely derogatory. I don't think I have ever seen it used in a positive way.

"Left" in Latin is something like "sinistra" the word we get sinister from.

 

[kranich]

I am not into labels. If someone wants to call be leftist or liberal or progressive or socialist ir utopian or whatever what do I care? Labels are for people who need identification. I have a system of thought that cannot be contained in a single label and I am happy with that. I do not need to "identify" with a group to feel good about myself and neither should anyone.

 

[gnine]

It comes from the book of Ecclesiastes...

Ecclesiastes 10:2
The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left.



Only kiddin...

 

[TheNewman]

Strictly speaking in political terms, "leftist" is not derogatory at all. It just refers to the side of the spectrum that ideals come from. The opposite of "leftist" is "rightist" and someone whose ideals are in the middle are "centrist." However, it is interesting to note that many people feel that "leftist" and "rightist" are derogatory because they think that it refers to the extremes of the political spectrum.

The origin of "leftist" and "rightist" is the seating arrangement of the French Parliament during the French Revolution. The revolutionaries who favored democracy and republicanism sat on the left and the monarchists who favored a one-party state ruled by the king sat on the right.

paz

 

[Verv]

I am not into labels. If someone wants to call be leftist or liberal or progressive or socialist ir utopian or whatever what do I care? Labels are for people who need identification. I have a system of thought that cannot be contained in a single label and I am happy with that. I do not need to "identify" with a group to feel good about myself and neither should anyone.

I do not, either, but I have something called 'consistency,' meaning, that the majority of my thoughts tend to fall in on one line of logic, and thi sline of logic happens to be Right wing line of logic, and Right wing thought.

I have always been surprised when people act as if their essence is so amazing that it cannot be labled -- cut the charade, you and I both know that you have opinions, and they are classifiable.

As I enjoy classifying music and categorizing, I also feel ti is important to classify and categorize thought, because if there is inconsistencies it shoudl eb pointed out and understood.

 

[TheNewman]

I have always been surprised when people act as if their essence is so amazing that it cannot be labled -- cut the charade, you and I both know that you have opinions, and they are classifiable.

It's not that he thinks his opinions are so amazing, it's that the whole of his opinions are not 100% classifiable based on labels. I agree with him. I may agree with Democrats on more issues than I do with Republicans, but I'm not a Democrat. I also disagree with a lot of their opinions. I have views that are far more left than what the Democrats put forward, and I have views that Republicans would smile upon. It has nothing to do with arrogance, but rather uniqueness. Not all worldviews fit into a specific mold; thought is just not that simple.

paz

 

[Verv]

It's not that he thinks his opinions are so amazing, it's that the whole of his opinions are not 100% classifiable based on labels. I agree with him. I may agree with Democrats on more issues than I do with Republicans, but I'm not a Democrat. I also disagree with a lot of their opinions. I have views that are far more left than what the Democrats put forward, and I have views that Republicans would smile upon. It has nothing to do with arrogance, but rather uniqueness. Not all worldviews fit into a specific mold; thought is just not that simple.

paz

All stances are classifiable, period. Are you fiscally liberal, socially liberal? I mean, it can be classified. It is not as if one's ideas are unique -- as King Solomon said so long, long, lon ago (so long before Christ), "There is nothing new under the sun."

The first call for Communist rebellion was in ancient Greece, and before then I am sure that as much also existed.

One can classify anything.

Are there exceptions? Yes. I do not agree with the Republicans on the issue of marijuana.

However, overall, I am a Republican and I belong under the Elephant; to do otherwise would be lying to myself.

I admire the Saints a lot and really enjoy a lot of the Catholic traditiona nd views, but that does not change the fact that I am any less Pentecostal because of it.

 

[praying]

All stances are classifiable, period.
.

I agree.

 

[neverforsaken]

i think its about sound. leftist just sounds better than lefter or leftian or whatever. but i think it is kinda like an ideal. commun-ist, capital-ist, conform-ist, etc. i think even baptist is like that too.

 

[praying]

i think its about sound. leftist just sounds better than lefter or leftian or whatever. but i think it is kinda like an ideal. commun-ist, capital-ist, conform-ist, etc. i think even baptist is like that too.

How it sounds and how it is used are two different animals. In most instances it ihas a negarive conotation.

 

[neverforsaken]

ok...so what is the point of this thread anyway.

 

[Redneck]

ok...so what is the point of this thread anyway.

Leftist sounds better than sozialistische.

 

[sadams03]

I don't think I would mind if someone called me a leftist (although no one outside of Kansas probably would). Political idealogies, as long as they are not set in stone, are not as bad as some people make them out to be. I don't agree with every liberal viewpoint, but if someone asked me about my politics it's a lot easier to say I'm a liberal than to give them my personal opinion on every political topic under the sun. But that's just me, maybe some people really would rather weigh in on every issue.

 

[tollytee]

Leftist sounds better than sozialistische.

....

...but not as good as 'driberal'