Why Are Many Leftists So Mean About Kindness?
It’s not what you think: a Patreon exclusive
A lot of leftists have a particular disdain for those “kindness is everything” signs that many people put on their front lawns. “In this house, we believe that simplistic platitudes, trite tautologies, and semantically overloaded aphorisms are poor substitutes for respectful and rational discussions about complex issues,” jokes one seller on their Zazzle site.
It’s a sentiment that is probably confusing to some. What could someone possibly hate about kindness? Shouldn’t we all want to be nice to each other?
This disconnect has caused a lot of liberals to throw their hands in the air and stop listening to those positioning themselves as against the side of kindness. Why the Left Is Consumed With Hate bemoans the title of an article by center-right writer Shelby Steele in the Wall Street Journal.
Leftists need to be nicer has been the de facto advice by those closer to the center for, well, forever.
Yet the leftist position is not as crazy as it first appears. I want to explain why this disdain exists and how this misunderstanding continues to occur.
