Yea, but this was back in the times when the left was considered anti-west. Left nowadays just means socialistic policies and is where most of the EU stands. Though far-left is still pretty taboo since it's equating to communism, far right is lately considered more neo-Nazism rather than unregulated capitalism (though to be fair both are still considered far-right depending on who you ask).

Founding ideals get pretty obsolete and often don't reflect reality after a few generations. Just look at how much the US talks about their founding ideals and how the country looks nothing like it despite talking about their supposed ideals constantly (like how one of the original ideals was that only rich land owners should be allowed to vote).