Can Bernie Sanders be Labeled?

http://www.nationofchange.org/2015/10/01/can-bernie-sanders-be-labeled/

Whatever the fate of Bernie Sanders’ presidential bid, his current popularity provides an opportunity to clarify the various political labels attached to him: liberal, progressive, socialist, democratic socialist, social democratic, leftist, radical.

Each term means something quite different, and each one can mean different things to different people at different times in different places. If it’s this complicated, should we fuss about labels? Should Sanders — and all of us — reject being pinned down by a word or phrase? Aren’t our positions on specific issues more important?

Perhaps, but whether we like it or not, in everyday life we use labels and defining those labels can deepen our understanding of political philosophies.

Before evaluating what Sanders really “is,” I can say with some certainty what I am: a leftist with a radical analysis of contemporary America. What does that mean?

While there’s no required list of political positions one checks off to become a leftist, two ideas traditionally have central to left politics: a rejection of capitalism and imperialism. Leftists are anti-capitalist and anti-empire.

“Anti-capitalist” sounds old-fashioned, given that virtually the entire globe practices some type of capitalism and there seems to be no alternative. But that economic system is inconsistent with my moral principles (rooted in the inherent dignity of all people) and incompatible with the bio-physical limits of the ecosphere (on which we are dependent for life). So, I’m anti-capitalist.

In the short term, leftists often support reforms of capitalism to produce a slightly more just distribution of wealth (such as raising the minimum wage or increasing taxes on the wealthy) and to slow down the assault on the living systems of the planet (such as stricter environmental regulations). But we leftists also offer a critique of the immoral and unsustainable nature of capitalism; support for reformist policies can come with a radical analysis that argues for more fundamental change down the road.