Liberal Snobs Through History

This article articulates why I dislike the so-called "liberal elite" that seems to always know how to spend my money better than I do.

The novels of Sinclair Lewis, the journalism of H.L. Mencken and the literary criticism of Van Wyck Brooks heaped scorn on the vast and supposedly mindless Americans who worked hard at their jobs and joined civic groups -- Mencken's "booboisie."

These 1920s liberals idealized the "noble aspiration" and "fine aristocratic pride" in an imaginary Europe, and considered Americans, in the words of a Lewis character, "a savorless people, gulping tasteless food," and "listening to mechanical music, saying mechanical things about the excellence of Ford automobiles and viewing themselves as the greatest race in the world."

Liberals are always looking to Europe as a bastion of enlightened thinking but seem to ignore the fact that Americans do not want to be taxed at 70% - 90% so that some other person can get freebies. We are a lot more German in our attitude that we don't want to work our asses off so some Greek guy can sleep in the sun. Liberals of course also ignore the racism and rampant classism in parts of the continent.

 

Also Lewis' ideas about Americans seem to be the seedling for the idea of "flyover states." Like the vast majority of Americans are simply filling the space between the enlightened bastions of liberalism like Seattle, Berkley, San Francisco, New York etc. Most middle class Americans are "savorless people" clinging to our guns and God and need to be led by the hand by an intelligent liberal technocracy that knows what is best for them. How do you expect to lead people you have such contempt for?

This is also why liberals have a hard time with the idea of American exceptionalism. Deep down they think America is a hateful, racist place where the rich and corporations smash the common man. They see us as warmongers that slime the world with our pop culture. Everything that some other country has is great even though they ignore the deep problems in those countries. Liberals deep down don't like Americans as they are now and want to change them into something they will never willingly become.