From Left To Right

An in-depth look at the political landscape of Saskatchewan from its leftist roots to its shift in recent years to the right of centre. One of the most underreported stories in Canadian politics has been the political and economic transformation of Saskatchewan. The province that was the birthplace of the CCF-NDP and democratic socialism in North America has, over the last fifty years, undergone fundamental change that has altered its identity. It is now seen as the bastion of the centre-right Saskatchewan Party, which has become one of the most dominant provincial political parties in Canada. The story of that transformation, in which the once powerful NDP has been relegated to the political margins, reaches far beyond the province itself and reflects national and global events that have shaped the province over the course of the last half century. Modern Saskatchewan politics have been less about ideology and more about the influence of issues and events since the late 1960s and the lure of populist leaders who speak to an identity rooted in the province's history. Consistent with Saskatchewan's history, From Left to Right presents a blend of populism, a deeply embedded spirit of independence and personal initiative, coupled with communitarian values and the constant search for a better future.

How left/right ideology has evolved in the postwar era and changed Canadian politics.

“In heavy seas, to stay on course it is indispensable to lean hard left at times, then hard right. The important thing is to have the courage to follow your intellect. Wherever the evidence leads. To the left or to the right.” –Michael Novak Engagingly, writing as if to old friends and foes, Michael Novak shows how Providence (not deliberate choice) placed him in the middle of many crucial events of his time: a month in wartime Vietnam, the student riots of the 1960s, the Reagan revolution, the collapse of the Berlin Wall, Bill Clinton's welfare reform, and the struggles for human rights in Iraq and Afghanistan. He also spent fascinating days, sometimes longer, with inspiring leaders like Sargent Shriver, Bobby Kennedy, George McGovern, Jack Kemp, Václav Havel, President Reagan, Lady Thatcher, and Pope John Paul II, who helped shape—and reshape—his political views. Yet through it all, as Novak’s sharply etched memoir shows, his focus on helping the poor and defending universal human rights remained constant; he gradually came to see building small businesses and envy-free democracies as the only realistic way to build free societies. Without economic growth from the bottom up, democracies are not stable. Without protections for liberties of conscience and economic creativity, democracies will fail. Free societies need three liberties in one: economic liberty, political liberty, and liberty of spirit. Novak’s writing throughout is warm, fast paced, and often very beautiful. His narrative power is memorable.

Following the collapse of communism and the decline of Marxism, some commentators have claimed that we have reached the 'end of history' and that the distinction between Left and Right can be forgotten. In this book - which was a tremendous success in Italy - Norberto Bobbio challenges these views, arguing that the fundamental political distinction between Left and Right, which has shaped the two centuries since the French Revolution, has continuing relevance today. Bobbio explores the grounds of this elusive distinction and argues that Left and Right are ultimately divided by different attitudes to equality. He carefully defines the nature of equality and inequality in relative rather than absolute terms. Left and Right is a timely and persuasively argued account of the basic parameters of political action and debate in the modern world - parameters which have remained constant despite the pace of social change. The book will be widely read and, as in Italy, it will have an impact far beyond the academic domain.

Left to Right: The cultural shift from words to pictures is an in-depth study of the influence digital technology has had on the way we communicate, and the increasingly visual nature of our culture.

"Ever since the film industry relocated to Hollywood early in the twentieth century, it has had an outsized influence on American politics. Almost immediately, the savviest stars and moguls learned that their ability to attract millions of fans also meant that they could sway public opinion. Through compelling larger-than-life figures in American cinema - Charlie Chaplin, Louis B. Mayer, Edward G. Robinson, George Murphy, Ronald Reagan, Harry Belafonte, Jane Fonda, Charlton Heston, Warren Beatty, and Arnold Schwarzenegger - Hollywood Left and Right reveals how Hollywood's engagement in politics has been longer, deeper, and more varied than most people would imagine. Alternating between stars from the right and the left, Steven J. Ross shows how each gained ascendancy in Tinseltown in different periods. From Chaplin, whose movies almost always displayed his leftist convictions, to Schwarzenegger's nearly seamless transition from action blockbusters to the California governor's mansion, Ross shows how both left and right activism in Hollywood reinforced the defining trends in American politics from the early 1900s to the present. Most significantly, Hollywood Left and Right challenges the commonly held belief that Hollywood has always been a bastion of liberalism. The real story, as Ross demonstrates in this passionate and entertaining work, is far more complicated. Most surprisingly, while the Hollywood left was usually more vocal and visible, the right had a greater impact on American political life, capturing a Senate seat (Murphy), a governorship (Schwarzenegger), and the ultimate achievement, the Presidency (Reagan)."--Jacket.

What does the future hold for the left? How does the left adapt to, and prepare for, the crises of our time? In moments of crisis it is always important to rethink longstanding assumptions, jettison wishful thinking and dated ideas, and recover wisdom from the past. In so doing, we have the opportunity to plot a new way forward. The authors of this edited collection do just this: putting forward a diversity of approaches and issues to strategize for the work that awaits us in the 2020s, particularly in the struggle against capitalism, climate change and the far right. Working within five major thematic areas, the contributors examine how to engage working class people in anti-capitalist struggles, undermine reactionary currents of ethno-nationalism while supporting anti-colonial movements, strategically build power inside and outside the state apparatus, demand new forms of resistance to address environmental crises, and effectively promote solidarity and ecological responsibility. This book provides suggestions for working with popular disaffection, taking the rich, fragmented, conflicted history of refusals and defeats as a starting point for next steps in the struggle against capitalism and the far right, rather than as the basis for more conflict or defeatism.

How should one understand the nature and possibilities of political radicalism today? The political radical is normally thought of as someone who stands on the left, opposing backward-looking conservatism. In the present day, however, the left has turned defensive, while the right has become radical, advocating the free play of market forces no matter what obstacles of tradition or custom stand in their way. What explains such a curious twist of perspective? In answering this question Giddens develops a new framework for radical politics, drawing freely on what he calls "philosophic conservatism", but applying this outlook in the service of values normally associated with the Left. The ecological crisis is at the core of this analysis, but is understood by Giddens in an unconventional way - as a response to a world in which modernity has run up against its limits as a social and moral order. The end of nature, as an entity existing independently of human intervention, and the end of tradition, combined with the impact of globalization, are the forces which now have to be confronted, made use of and coped with. This book provides a powerful interpretation of the rise of fundamentalism, of democracy, the persistence of gender divisions and the question of a normative political theory of violence. It will be essential reading for anyone seeking a novel approach to the political challenges which we face at the turn of the twenty-first century.