The intellectual left

Update: Here's a far superior analysis of the issue - courtesy of Deepak's link. I agree with this on almost all counts, though not with the entire philosophy of libertarianism. (I think the government has a legitimate and completely necessary role to play in society, as opposed to the libertarian ideal of moving towards things like privately run armed forces, judiciary and police.)

Ever wondered why most writers and scholars and philosophers are rather leftist? The article gives perhaps one way of looking at the matter. I've only just read it, and though it's quite simplistic at first glace, if you think about it, it does explain a lot. Interesting enough to warrant a read anyway. I don't know what I think of it yet. Boiling the root causes of any problem down to just one thing is never satisfying. Human beings are more complex... or is the institution that the author talks about influential enough to be the major reason for the phenomenon?

Comments, please.

Well, I've thought about it, and while it's not total hogwash, it's close. Why?
(a) Intellectuals, as crazy as that may sound, grow up. Which automatically means they learn the way life works, the way society works. And the way it works is close enough to reward these people even in the capitalist system, as the essay itself says in the beginning (greater than avg income earners, respected, etc).
(b) I think Ayn Rand was right about this one: the reason for the popularity of the leftist sentiments among intellectuals is the widespread acceptance of a whole string of flawed philosophers and their philosophies through the ages, which include timeless classics such as: Selfishness is bad, altruism and self-sacrifice is good, profits are evil, the meek shall inherit the earth, etc. All thanks to Messrs. Hegel, Marx, Kant, Hobbes et al. I quote, from Rand's Philosophy: Who needs it?":


"You might claim-as most people do--that you have never been influenced by philosophy. I will ask you to check that claim. Have you ever thought or said the following?
"Don't be so sure--nobody can be certain of anything." You got that notion from David Hume (and many, many others), even though you might never have heard of him. Or: "This may be good in theory, but it doesn't work in practice. You got that from Plato. Or: "That was a rotten thing to do, but it's only human, nobody is perfect in this world." You got that from Augustine. Or: "It may be true for you, but it's not true for me." You got it from William James. Or: "I couldn't help it! Nobody can help anything he does. It's in my nature." You got it from Hegel. Or: "I can't prove it, but I feel that it's true." You got it from Kant. Or: "It's logical, but logic has nothing to do with reality." You got it from Kant. Or: "It's evil, because it's selfish." You got it from Kant. Have you heard the modern activists say: "Act first, think afterward"? They got it from John Dewey. "