How could the left-right paradigm, the framework within which we describe our ideas concerning political values and ideology, by a detriment to society? Consider the polarization that's taken place in the United States. I'm sure that healthy, positive, even constructive debate still takes place south of our border. However, it does seem that with two parties ostensibly at opposite sides of the left-right spectrum both people and parties tend to simply yell at one another and resolve themselves to the notion that, since they'll never agree on anything, all of their efforts should go towards convincing others that their notion of 'the good' is the right one, rather than engage in constructive dialogue. This polarization in the US is often times reinforced and seemingly encouraged in the media, forcing conflict on issues for which some kind of compromise should be possible.
On the other hand, perhaps the spectrum is useful for helping to frame our dialogue. One advantage I can see is that left-right politics is not necessarily specific to any specific place; theoretically these are ideas about politics and society that are applicable anywhere, and this helps to rally people who share ideologies together across space. It also provides a starting point for dialogue concerning politics to take place, and is, for the most part, easily understandable for a wide portion of the population/citizenry.
What do you think?
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