Is Vonnegut left or right Wing? (Gynter)

As I read through Vonnegut’s work, I often wonder on what side of the political spectrum he stands on, and if he may have a political agenda as he writes this book. Judging that this in an anti-war book, I believe that Vonnegut is a left-wing thinker. As I have discussed in my earlier posts, Vonnegut despises the any glorification of war whatsoever. This is a typical view of a 1960’s peace-loving “hippie.” However, Vonnegut is no hippie. He is a World War II veteran, whose views have been shaped by firsthand accounts of war. He has seen one of the greatest atrocities in European history.
Another clue in the book that hints at his left-wing leanings is the fact that he criticizes the American psyche that hates everything that has to do with poor people. His ability to sympathize with the poor man is a socialist ideal. He believes that poor people should be helped out by the greedy upper classes, that they should not be forgotten about, neglected and given false notions that they too have a chance at being millionaires. Through his novel, Vonnegut shows poverty should not be loathed, but instead celebrated. This criticism of wealthy Americans is perhaps why his book may have been so controversial at the time. During the 1960’s The United States and the Soviet Union competed over which ideology was supreme: capitalism or socialism. Vonnegut’s socialist ideas may have been seen as dangerous to introduce to the American public and therefore strongly opposed.