Not seen any evidence lockdown support is related to right/left political leaning. Its one of the few issues with a spread of supporters and opponents on both sides
been reading left outlets, bbc or guardian?
been reading left outlets, bbc or guardian?
Talking to actual real people in daily life. Which is a lot more useful than spoon-feeding the self-selecting audience of the Guardian.
I think you are probably correct Swinchard that l am certainly not as left wing as previously so, and you are certainly correct to highlight that left learning MSM i.e. BBC, Guardian etc have been very pro-lockdown, and have not allowed any balanced debate on the issue at all.
I very much identify myself as a traditional leftie.
For example I believe that "natural monopolies" (telephones, energy, railways) should be in public ownership as the worst thing is to have a few fat cats controlling a monopoly.
The left has traditionally been the home of freedom and liberty. It fought for equality. It fought against colonialism. I am absolutely appalled at how the Labour party in the UK has swerved towards authoritarianism. I put it down to weakness by Starmer et al who are absolutely panicked by the polls showing early support for lockdowns and such extreme measures. He is weak. And unprincipled.
Trump is a main factor here. Early on he was sceptical about the virus and his opponents then became hollier-than-thou hysterics. I have a strong suspicion that had Trump came out in favour of lockdowns and masks, the entire political landscape would be very different today. Not a single member of the Democratic party would be wearing a mask. A lot of this, I believe, is opportunistic positioning and has nothing to do with public health or the long term interests of anyone. And that is shameful.
I think we need to be wary about turning this into a partisan issue. It's shooting our cause in the foot if we turn off potential left wing or Remainer recruits. I was heartened when I wrote a long anti-lockdown Facebook post that was 'liked' and commented on by friends from across the political spectrum.
I'd describe myself as a small 'c' conservative on most issues and it's probably this conservative wariness of doing more harm than good that has informed my scepticism. Nevertheless, if you're a proper lefty, you too should be appalled at how these measures disproprtionately punish the poor and the young, particularly in the developing world. It's astonishig how many appear to be blind to this suffering.
All that being said, you're probably right about some of the reasons why a greater proportion of lockdown enthusiasts are left wing. The fact that the media, education establishment, civil service etc. are increasingly dominated by left wingers, has perhaps sharpened the critical faculties of those of us who lean right. We'd also already 'had enough of experts', long before Ferguson started cranking up the Imperial College random number generator. Unfortunately for us, Michael Gove has had a Damascene conversion since he made that famous remark.
