Do you know the difference between a conservative and a liberal?
If you ever wondered what side of the fence you sit on, this is a great test!
Lot of truth here!
If a conservative doesn't like guns, he doesn't buy one. If a liberal
doesn't like guns, he wants all guns outlawed.
If a conservative is a vegetarian, he doesn't eat meat.. If a liberal
is a vegetarian, he wants all meat products banned for everyone.
If a conservative is homosexual, he quietly leads his life. If a
liberal is homosexual, he demands legislated respect.
If a conservative is down-and-out, he thinks about how to better his
situation. A liberal wonders who is going to take care of him.
If a conservative doesn't like a talk show host, he switches channels.
Liberals demand that those they don't like be shut down.
If a conservative is a non-believer, he doesn't go to church. A
liberal non-believer wants any mention of God and religion silenced.
(Unless it's a foreign religion, of course!)
If a conservative decides he needs health care, he goes about shopping
for it, or may choose a job that provides it. A liberal demands that
the rest of us pay for his.
What happens if you are a liberal who likes guns, meat, equal treatment, working hard, reading, freedom of (all) religion, and (despite selling the stuff) purchasing his own insurance?
This whole liberal/conservative thing is archaic and leads to mistrust and hatred amongst countrymen. Do away with the two party system!
Even in England they have multiple parties and it still ends up two types of people in charge. Getting rid of the system is myopic. Interesting. Almost every catholic I have ever met is pretty liberal and the church is against homosexuality and of course they get caught with their pants down all the time. Nice try to paint it as conservative. Hypocrisy is not reserved for one side of the isle. Remember Dane. Most conservatives don't really bother themselves with many social issues until someone is rallying against their way of life.
Big Heavy, the person you described sounds like all the republicans I know. If they are calling themselves a liberal then I call that person a hypocrite.
"What happens if you are a liberal who likes guns, meat, equal treatment, working hard, reading, freedom of (all) religion, and (despite selling the stuff) purchasing his own insurance? "
This is where the term "far" comes into play. In political science they have out this on a scale and you can see where you sit. Just because you don't agree with the extreme conservatives doesn't mean you aren't conservative. Our media networks has done a great job brainwashing everyone that there is only the far left and far right with no in between which isn't true. We have had the two party system forever and personally I think it is a good thing. Most of my generation doesn't pay attention to government but when you see a guy that is republican or democratic running for office the vote isn't as much of a gamble because they will usually pick the party their parents have placed his morals around.
Big D, the richest guys in the world are democrats. Many baggage handlers are conservative. Just because you work a job that some may not consider a prime job does not mean you have to be a liberal. Of who has gotten the biggest handout over the last 3 years? Who can decide what their political isle is. Like I said two of the richest people in the world punch their ticket with a D. New York, where are financial markets are, tends to be very liberal elitist.
To me, liberals tend to be the ultra rich and the ultra poor. The rich are too far removed from reality and want to treat everyone like they could not possible take care of themselves or the ultra poor who seem to not want or can't break out of their own choices or circumstances and want to mandate others pay for them.
Most of the people here are clueless about what conservatives and liberals really stand for, but think they do because of the way the certain media personalities have hijacked the language to further their entertainment agenda.
Conservatives want policy that preserves tradition(religion). Borders, language, and culture.
Liberals believe in liberty (freedom) and strong limits to the roles of government.
Find some reference materials outside popular american media and educate yourself on political and philosophical paradigms. How have these words come to have almost opposite meanings in modern day popular media? If the people can't communicate ideas, it's easy for politicians to do whatever keeps them fat.
Nate you really don't have a clue of what you are talking about. We are not talking about the definition of a word, we are talking about the philosophies of a political stance. We are not talking about the 1900's, we are talking about current political philosophies. Liberal by its political definition in today's society stands for Liberal use of government, not "strong limits to the roles of government.". You my friend are the one who needs to open your eyes to what is being fed to you. This is the new spin, along with the word "progressive".
Conservative for me, has nothing to do with tradition, culture or language. Conservative in today's political climate means a conservative use of government. It has been painted by the media as religious and bigotry, which is total BS. What does my desire for the limited power of the federal government have to do with religion? Go back and read up on history and you will see that most of the men who were apart of what started this nation were against more power being given to the federal government.
Can we agree that under what you call 'current political philosophies', that conservatives are generally represented by republicans? If so, how can we say that conservatives want to limit the power of government considering the Republican (conservative) position on issues like abortion, gay marriage, and drug policy? On the other side we have democrats who want to take away our guns, and tell us who to hire.
You and I probably have the same opinion when it comes to a desire to limit the power of the federal government. I just don't see how people can identify with an ideology or party that wants to use policy to promote a moral agenda.
It's a shame that people have been hoodwinked into thinking that EITHER party is fighting to limit the role of government.
Republicans (conservatives?):
Love Ronald Reagan
Believe in smaller Government
Ronald Regan:
Doubled the National Debt
Expanded Government by the most since any President since WWII when he created the Department of Veterans Affairs - called by most then and now as not need.
George H.W. Bush:
Doubled the National Debt
George W. Bush:
Doubled the National Debt
Massively expanded Government by creating the Department of Homeland Defense, and the Transportation Safety Administration. Both - arguably - not need.
So the next time you call yourself a "conservative" or "fiscal conservative" take a look at your leaders and ask yourself "have I been lied to for the past 25 years?".
Nate, no I don't see the republican party representing conservative positions, at least not to the extent I would want to see. I do think the Federal Government should protect it's citizens, so putting money towards the military in my opinion is in line with those philosphies. Abortion, again, to me that is protecting its citizens and upholding the constitution (right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness).
Drug policies and gay marriage, I agree with you, these are state issues, not federal issues.
'Go back and read up' is a common response around here, but we all know that nobody ever really does. On this subject, I actually have studied a bit.
If anyone is interested in more about philosophical and political paradigms, I recomment the book in the link below. Very objective and thorough, but also pretty easy and interesting to read. It's a real eye opener to understand the philosophies better (those you agree with and those you don't), then to see how badly these concepts are mangled by the media.
INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana Rep. Mark Souder, an eight-term Republican who promoted abstinence education, said Tuesday he'll resign from Congress after admitting an extramarital affair with a part-time staff member.
"The front page of the New York Times Tuesday featured an explosive piece on presumptive Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Richard Blumenthal, Connecticut's attorney general. The Times reported that Blumenthal has misled voters into believing that he served in Vietnam when, in fact, he received five deferments and joined the Marine Corps Reserve to avoid fighting."
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