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This is part two of a three part post. Follow the link to Part I: Illogic of the term “pro-choice”.
Last time I discussed the illogic of the term choice as applied to one of the favorite “progressive” causes - abortion. The combination of this cause with the very concept of progress is itself an oxymoron. What exactly does the left mean by “progress” and “progressive”?
The term “progressive” is a loaded term used to evoke an automatic positive response. After all, who is against progress? Remember the Back to the Future film, where in both 1955 and 1985 the mayors both promised “progress?” Progress is one of those things that seems good when we encounter it in everyday life. I want progress in my career. I want my team to progress to the play-offs. I want to see progress on the goals I have set. I would like progress in the fight against cancer. Progress in these instances means improvement. I think I would be less thrilled if we said that the Iranians had made progress in developing nuclear weapons; or if a person’s cancer had progressed to the next stage. Progress in these latter cases is, as the Germans might say, nicht so gut. We can see from this that the idea of “progress” depends entirely upon your reference points - where you start and what is the expected end.
When someone says they are progressive, a thinking person should ask from where and to where are they progressing? If they are moving somewhere objectively worse than where they started, then the term progressive is used as a deception. This seems to be the case of left wing activists who label themselves progressive. They want change, but it is not clear that the change is at all positive. In fact, their moves are more akin to spreading cancer than to improving society. Consider the end state to which they want to move: gay marriage, abortion on demand, socialized medicine, faith excluded from public, restriction of speech rights, increased taxation, bigger government, less freedom.
So when someone tells you they are progressive, ask yourself what they mean. Find out where they are headed. Chances are, it isn’t progress their peddling but something much more nefarious.
