Ultra-right is no better than ultra-left

Now it has become very trendy to oppress people who promote socialist narratives in discussions.

The problem is that people do not always clearly understand what left-wing ideas and socialism are, and for the convenience of oppression they illustrate it to themselves with the ultra-left Russian state association — the Soviet Union. Bolshevism, Stalin, communism, gulags, NKVD (The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs - ed.) But purely for the sake of justice, it should be noted that any form of state government is equally bad in Russia. They had an ugly monarchy, then a terrible socialist state and now a shameful democracy. Russia is a bad example. Cambodia and even China too.

But, for example, the countries of Scandinavia are a normal example. Scandinavian socialism has narrowed the gap between rich and poor, and in some Scandinavian countries the middle class reaches almost 90%. And the state pension fund of Norway owns shares of GAFAM (that's the abbreviation of the top 5 most expensive companies in the world - Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft) and is the largest in the world. So, it turns out, it's more about who builds, and not what exactly?

“But purely for the sake of justice, it should be noted that any form of state government is equally bad in Russia. They had an ugly monarchy, then a terrible socialist state and now a shameful democracy. Russia is a bad example. Cambodia and even China too”

The problem is that the ultra-right is not much better than ultra-left. Trump is ultra-right and we are all very afraid that he won't win the elections in the USA again for obvious reasons.  Those painted berserkers with automatic rifles attacking the Capitol are ultra-right.

Yes, within the boundaries of the state, capitalism is not an ideal form of functioning, but the best of those that humanity has been able to come up with. But this does not mean that capitalism has no flaws. The war in Ukraine is a vivid example of the side effects of capitalism, profit orientation and the gap between the rich and the poor. Because if the rich can be forced to pay taxes and bear social responsibility for the poor within the borders of the state, it is not so easy on a global scale.

We all complain a lot about Germany and Merkel that they bought cheap gas and looked after the economic interests of their country and the well-being of the Germans. We are floating in the world of right ideas. And what criminal did Merkel actually do? Did she put the Germans and Germany in a dangerous position? Not at all, the economy of Europe went up thanks to cheap Russian energy carriers. Should rich Germans, within the limits of capitalist right-wing ideas, feel guilty and responsible for Ukraine? Not at all. But within the limits of socialism, morality and responsibility for humanism — yes, they should. And then we were flattered that we are really located between Europe and Russia and are a security hub. If Ukraine were somewhere near Mongolia, there would be no talk of Lend Lease. A vivid and huge example of the bad side of capitalism is Africa and almost all its countries. Nobody cares about their economies, their endless wars and massive crimes, their dictators and people's rights. The maximum that will be sent to them as aid is some water, food and clothes. And primary school teachers in humanitarian missions. The rest of the world simply does not care about the huge continent, the cradle of humanity.

“Jordan Peterson, a right-wing conservative who until recently was in awe of how he masterfully single-handedly smashed left-wing feminists in public debates, is now calling on the West to "understand" Putin and that Putin's control over Ukraine belongs "by historical right.”

Ben Shapiro's calls to stop giving money to Ukraine and focus on the problems of his own country are a rebuke of the far-right. Jordan Peterson, a right-wing conservative who until recently was in awe of how he masterfully single-handedly smashed left-wing feminists in public debates, is now calling on the West to "understand" Putin and that Putin's control over Ukraine belongs "by historical right". How do you feel, Elon Musk? And, I won't even say anything about Musk, we've seen everything ourselves.

Putin is counting not on the European left, of which there is actually a small number, but on the European right-wing, which will begin to pressure their governments to solve the energy problems of the French, British, Italians and Germans. Take care of your states. How do you like this "correction"? Not so cool anymore?

“The pre-war libertarians from the Zelenskyy government, who preached a minimum of state intervention in the life of the country and the economy, look especially funny, and now they have usurped all TV channels and harshly interfere with state institutions in any security and smear all processes, with pathetic faces inspect the Points of Invincibility.”

The pre-war libertarians from the Zelenskyy government, who preached a minimum of state intervention in the life of the country and the economy, look especially funny, and now they have usurped all TV channels and harshly interfere with state institutions in any security and smear all processes, with pathetic faces inspect the Points of Invincibility. Because strong state institutions are mega-important and necessary now, no matter how developed the volunteer movement and self-organization of Ukrainians are. They will be especially important after the end of the war, because volunteers will not build the state, everyone will have to. 

Everything in the world is in a shaky balance, complementing and balancing each other.  Left-wing China, enchanted by capitalism, has one of the leading economies, trades and produces for the whole world, and Ali-Express, for example, was created there. Instead, its creator, Jack Ma, is forced to flee China because he said something wrong about the government there, which is still an autocracy, not a democracy. And capitalist Norway, Denmark and Sweden, adjusted by a local form of socialism, have created living spaces for their citizens and every year occupy prominent places in the top of the world's best countries to live in.

About the author: Volodymyr Hevko, marketer, blogger. 

The editors do not always share the opinions expressed by the authors of the blogs.