Slide from my government class where Bernie Sanders is more left wing than China, Pinochet is extreme right wing authoritarian and Milton Friedman is a sweet right wing libertarian despite advising and defending Pinochet. Obama is more authoritarian and right wing than Washington as well.
Also four (five? which fucking "Johnson" are they referring to, there's two of them in the list of presidents alone) US presidents just as or further to the right of Hitler. Not defending US presidents by any means but I don't think Obama is quite as right-wing as Adolf himself.
And Stalin equally as "authoritarian" as Hitler, whatever the fuck that means, because they gotta stick that Horseshoe theory in there somehow.
edit: Also "Marxism." Not Marx himself but the entire ideology I guess.
LBJ was obviously a reactionary, but the sheer right-ness of the placement on the chart suggests to me that they mean Andrew Johnson, who I'd argue represented one of the most distinct rightward (attempted) policy shifts in US history, since he immediately undertook trying to kill Reconstruction.
looking into it
Pulling some examples from an arbitrary list:
Johnson vetoes a bill calling for the extension of the Freedmen's Bureau. The bill, a response to the repressive Black Codes of the South, would expand the power of the Bureau, the organization formed for the freedmen's protection.
Johnson vetoes the Civil Rights Act, a second attempt by Congress to provide freedmen with federal citizenship after the failed Freedmen's Bureau bill. The act sanctions the employment of federal troops for enforcement. The Senate overrides Johnson's veto on April 6. Three days later, the House of Representatives also overrides the veto.
With the mandate of the 1866 election, Congress (despite Johnson's veto) passes the First Reconstruction Act, setting up five military districts in the South, each under the direction of a presidentially-appointed military commander. The legislative body also passed the Army Appropriations Act, which lessens Johnson's control of the Army. Finally, Congress passes -- again over Johnson's veto -- the Tenure of Office Act, prohibiting Johnson from removing cabinet officers without the Senate's consent. In this final piece of legislation, Congress hopes to protect Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, the sole Radical Republican in Johnson's cabinet.
Johnson vetoes the Second Reconstruction Act, which orders military commanders to call elections in the South. Congress overrides Johnson's veto that very day.
Johnson vetoes the Third Reconstruction Act, which spells out election procedures in the South and reasserts congressional control over Reconstruction. Congress again overrides Johnson's veto on the same day the President delivers it.
A couple years later:
President Johnson delivers his final annual message to Congress, again requesting the repeal of the Reconstruction Acts.
He also campaigned against the "Radical Republicans" who wanted to, you know, oppose the reinstitution of slavery in the South and the reinstating of Confederates in seats of power, and fought with the more progressive cabinet members he inherited from Lincoln.
People talk about Lincoln being such a good President, but I really think all of Johnson's shit should be held fully against him, since Lincoln knew there was going to be a Civil War if he was elected (and likely if he wasn't) and the head of state being assassinated in [or after, as it was] a Civil War is just about the most unsurprising turn of events possible. He essentially appointed Johnson to the Presidency.
Actually there's a few other 2016 era candidates, so I think it might be Gary Johnson. This was probably made during the 2016 election cycle.
Still remember the one professor who tried to argue with me about horseshoe theory
Tried to say that the gulags were just as bad as the concentration camps
When I pointed out that the gulags were prisons and not death camps, he said the result was the same
Suffice to say, I didn't get A's that semester
It is funny how the occupancy and the death rate of the gulags declined after the US-supported (US literally invaded Russia to help him out) Tsar was defeated. It only went back up when it started filling up with literal Nazis.
I love how the definition of a moderate is always so funny. The ideology is "negotiating on immigration policy". Biden is negotiating on immigration policy right now, that makes him a moderate by definition on that issue! Does he want that immigration policy more left-wing or right-wing than the status quo? Doesn't matter! All that matters is the process of negotiation and the outcome is moderation!
I can negotiate between death squads, concentration camps and extermination camps - I'm a moderate!
Haha man, whatever 14 year old made this is going to feel as silly about it in the future as he is proud in the present
Slide from my government class
I like how far this thing has to stretch to make libertarians (the bottom right quandrant) into something that actually exists instead of bow-tie nerds fantasizing about utopia. Over on the right you've got Gary Johnson, Ron Paul, Ayn Rand, and Murray Rothbard. A bunch of electoral failures, a lady whose books are drivel, and a contrarian academic who said child slavery should exist. Ok cool.
And they're equated on this chart with Stalin, Mao, Castro, and Nelson Mandela, people who actually did things and governed countries. Libertarians are such a joke. Their only success is Javier Milei in Argentina and he instantly because a standard right-winger upon taking office, whoops.
Actually no, I think he's a fucking Nazi. I just noticed that, and it puts Hitler as a centrist. That's actually half the reason people post political compass bullshit. So they can say Hitler is not on the right. The fact that he put Hitler here himself means he's a fucking freak.
OP please Google your teacher's name real hard
I can't imagine why Americans have political beliefs that are equivalent to "just give me the sampler pack"
I like how some of those listed are people, some are entire countries.
I'm always surprised that Mao is out at less "authoritarian" than Stalin. On what basis do libs make that distinction?? Is the Leap Forward seen as libertarian or something? Just nonsense lol
All vibes based, one's Y position in the chart seems to be mostly a function of how many times the liberals making it have heard you called an authoritarian in the news
I think this is the correct response lol. There might be some reasons that it's used more for Stalin than Mao (likely because Stalin was a much more widely adored figure around the Imperial core than Mao ever was). But libs don't know that
They think Stalin killed everyone and sent them to Siberia
It is not a crazy thing to say. Mao had fundamental disagreements with Stalin and was frequently worried that the party would become dogmatic and lose revolutionary fervor. That was the point behind the Cultural Revolution after all. Mao experimented with new forms of governance and codified New Democracy. He ended up often cracking down on the movements he allowed when things got messy, but he was always trying to encourage radicalism within the PRC.
It's hard to say, but I think that you can make an argument with Mass Line and his tendency for Campaigns where he just kind of nebulously encouraged people to do this and that. I don't think they are talking about re-education during the Cultural Revolution or anything like that.
Yeah if you can convince yourself that Stalin is uniquely authoritarian compared to capitalist leaders, Mao would likewise be targeted by every criticism one could make from that angle. Really strange
Nothing says political literacy like Great Man of History splaining along with just slapping countries on the board.
this is one of those outrageously bad cooking videos designed for hate watchers to engage, but at least those videos make money for the people who make them
