Hey y’all, it’s Nick, and I’m Sick of this Shit. Yeah you read that subtitle right, the Left embraced its own purity test (albeit quietly) that turned it into the most exclusively inclusive club…so let’s get into it.
We like you, but over there
I was having a discussion with my therapist yesterday. He and I often discuss politics …because ya know, it’s not like our government hates us and is stripping away our rights or anything…and the great thing about my therapist is we don’t see eye-to-eye on actual politics, but we do both vehemently support everyone’s rights to freedom and existence. So we got into an interesting conversation where he asked a truly earnest question to understand better. He mused,
Listening to “Liberal” or “Progressive” folks talk it sounds like a “purity test” on the Left happened. What is it? What was the test? I saw the test on the Right, but what did the Left do?
So my response to it was, and is, the paradox of tolerance.
Which is really just a fancy way of saying, we got so accepting of the idea that all ideas have to be given equal weight in a discussion, so being 1% offensive gets you 100% excommunicated.
As my therapist framed his thoughts on it, It’s like there are two huge party tents on the road.
One tent you know you would be welcome at and accepted. Inside it sounds like a blast and people having tons of fun, but the door is closed, gate is roped off, and a bouncer is outside politely telling you to get fucked.
On the other side of the road is a tent where you know you’d be welcome if you’re even 1% similar, as long as you drink the kool-aid on the way in. Inside it doesn’t look like fun, but the doors are wide open, you just need to be willing to take that drink…
He’s right about it, and something is changing that he wasn’t expecting. This is where we get the idea—“we like you, just over there”—and the Left made this huge tent, invited as many people as they could in, closed the doors, and started bucketing people into group. The thing is though, a lot of us aren’t happy having to be so right all the time. To err is to be human, isn’t it?
Pushing back on the purity
Here is my favorite part of our discussion—a huge group of us decided, like the rebels we are, to cut a giant ass whole in the tent wall, just out of sight from the bouncers to start inviting people in. Networks, podcasts, and people—like MeidasTouch Network, Fred Wellman, Find Out Podcast, Kristofer Goldsmith, Brian Tyler Cohen, David Pakman, Democracy Docket, Joe Walsh, and so many others—did something rather unexpected, they spoke to us like real people. They didn’t lie, propagandize, hide the truth, or speak down to us. They spoke, and continue to speak, like real people. They are willing to make mistakes. They are willing to grow and learn and fail. They are willing to take criticism and critique.
What that whole has done is something I’m so happy to see. They started inviting people in, then they started moving those ropes inside the tent and started inching forwards. They opened up more and more space behind them with each step, creating a larger area where more people could freely and openly congregate. No more internal walls and division. It hasn’t been easy by any means, look where we’re at right now in the world.
It’s taken awhile, but the shift happened. Politicians from inside finally started noticing this big open space. Some got really defensive, others joined in right away, others more waited on the edges.
The dam broke. That tiny whole we opened is now a new causeway into the party. The rope inside is being forced, by the weight of our collective voices, to every corner and now aimed directly at the old entrance.
Unfortunately there are a few still resisting, a few who need to pass the torch, and a few who need the boot. But the floodgates are wide open and there’s a new group in town. One that is recapturing the idea of Patriotism. Dropping so many of the exclusionary labels in favor of something greater. The idea that America has always had the potential to be the greatest—not because we’re always right, but because we accept, learn, and excel. The idea that America is freedom, liberty, and justice for all. The truth that America is greatest when we are united in that cause.
My therapist wasn’t expecting that, but he understood it, accepted it, and is feeling welcomed by it.
Author’s Note: Thanks as always y’all. Thank you especially to my paid and free subscribers, y’all make this publication possible. I’ve recently opened the chat and will begin using it more frequently in the future. I’ve also opened it up for paid subscribers to start new conversations, please consider upgrading to help this space grow. I’m Nick, I’m Sick of this Shit. I’m ready for a better future—we can get there together.