"The Right focuses so much these days on securing State power in order to violently impose their particular cultural vision because left to free choice by Americans—nobody really wants what they’re offering."
I agree with most of the points in this excellent piece. But ... isn't there a (perhaps pretty large) chance that the Right will SUCCEED at securing State power in order to violently impose their particular cultural vision? They have some pretty significant structural advantages thanks to the counter-majoritarian aspects of our system. Their hammerlock on the judiciary has already resulted in some pretty significant rollbacks of people's rights and it seems clear they are gunning for more. And we could debate details but this movement with sweeping authoritarian ambitions is pretty clearly nationally competitive...
So I agree with you about the direction American culture is pretty clearly moving. But I'm a lot less optimistic about our prognosis for keeping the authoritarian Right out of power.
Well I mean I wouldn't say I don't agree with you. I think that's really their only route to something like stopping their terminal decline as they're currently constituted though. Fundamentally much of the very obvious loss of cultural power, or broad appeal outside of their strictly gated ideological chambers is what's driving the ongoing impulse towards a conservative "counter-revolution."
"The Right focuses so much these days on securing State power in order to violently impose their particular cultural vision because left to free choice by Americans—nobody really wants what they’re offering."
I agree with most of the points in this excellent piece. But ... isn't there a (perhaps pretty large) chance that the Right will SUCCEED at securing State power in order to violently impose their particular cultural vision? They have some pretty significant structural advantages thanks to the counter-majoritarian aspects of our system. Their hammerlock on the judiciary has already resulted in some pretty significant rollbacks of people's rights and it seems clear they are gunning for more. And we could debate details but this movement with sweeping authoritarian ambitions is pretty clearly nationally competitive...
So I agree with you about the direction American culture is pretty clearly moving. But I'm a lot less optimistic about our prognosis for keeping the authoritarian Right out of power.
Well I mean I wouldn't say I don't agree with you. I think that's really their only route to something like stopping their terminal decline as they're currently constituted though. Fundamentally much of the very obvious loss of cultural power, or broad appeal outside of their strictly gated ideological chambers is what's driving the ongoing impulse towards a conservative "counter-revolution."
have you read taneer greer's Culture Wars are Long Wars? touches on similar stuff
Can't say I have tbh. Might get around to it at some point, but I've never been a huge fan of his culture/literature related stuff.