The History of the Left

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I despair about the state of parts of the left today. I actually find it simultaneously scary but also comforting to look back at the history of the left. The authoritarian tendency, the belief that I am ideologically correct and you aren't is a permanent tendency. It goes along with individual examples of self-righteousness and a certain kind of collective narcissism. But you just have to be against it.

Michael Walzer is an eminent political philosopher and the author of numerous books, including Just and Unjust Wars and Spheres of Justice. He is professor emeritus at the Institute of Advanced Study, has taught at Harvard University, and is editor emeritus of the magazine Dissent.

In this week’s conversation, Yascha Mounk and Michael Walzer discuss why, though he is a democratic socialist, he believes that there are certain acceptable forms of inequality; what forms of injustice true egalitarians should focus on fighting; and the threats to liberalism from the post-liberal right and the illiberal left.

This transcript has been condensed and lightly edited for clarity.

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