The Politically Neutral Post Challenge

Since most of us are fully engaged in the election and politics I thought it would be a nice break from the norm to ask this question:

Is it possible to make a most and provide nothing but politically neutral information? If you can, is it possible to state any sort of preference, opinion, or take a position that is not controversial to someone? Assuming you could get past that premise, would your post have any meaning at all?

Yes, especially since most of us here aren't 100% Republicans or vice versa. There are as many different political philosophies as there are people.

I think it is possible to write a politically neutral post....but it would never be perceived as such because every one here has been labeled right ir left and many don't even bother to read the whole post before judging it based upon who wrote it.

FredHayek wrote: Yes, especially since most of us here aren't 100% Republicans or vice versa. There are as many different political philosophies as there are people.

Strictly for the sake of argument, I maintain that your post shows obvious bias because you mention that not everyone participating in this blog is a Republican and that inference has negative connotations. Many non-Republicans would call your second sentence a failed attempt at inclusiveness and point out that the appearance of those words at the end of your statement is further evidence of your bias.

archer wrote: I think it is possible to write a politically neutral post....but it would never be perceived as such because every one here has been labeled right ir left and many don't even bother to read the whole post before judging it based upon who wrote it.

Care to take a stab at it? I don't think it is possible to post anything that doesn't carry some sort of bias.

That wouldn't be any fun.

Thomas Jefferson helped to write the Declaration of Independence. Pretty vague and politically neutral.

I am sure someone here can attack this post as not politically neutral, but you will find cranks everywhere.

Side note: is Jefferson closer to a modern Republican or a Democrat? As President, he agonized over expanding the power of the federal goverment, but then went on to buy the Lousiana Purchase doing exactly that. I think he would lean more to Democrat in his views on religion and seperation of church and state.

Thomas Jefferson helped to write the Declaration of Independence.

Not meant as an assualt on you Fred, strictly for the sake of argument;Thomas Jefferson kept as many as 600 slaves and believed that the practice of slavery was morally sound. In fact "TJ" was known to have produced more than one love child with slave women that lived (or were imprisoned and enslaved) at Monticello. Not only does this make you biased as a Republican, you are also a racist and you promote and approve of the practice of slavery.

I think it's possible. If one justs posts an issue and their stance, it's easy. It's when the demeaning of each other, the snarkiness that follows one's opinion in the same post, the dismissive nicknames, like Dubya or Odumbo or Knuckledraggers or SFB are added that everything goes off the rails. Civility disappears and everyone is firing and no one is listening. The game now has become investigate everything someone from the "other" side posts in order to try to catch them being wrong and then nuke them with it. No one ever admits they were wrong and everyone ends up yelling at each other through the fence and no one is listening. WIth the severe positions that posters take, they have made it impossible to cede any point without being held as weak and an idiot for everything they have offered an opinion on. That's what going on in our government as well. Polarization has really taken hold in America and this message board is a mirror of this. When compromise has become a dirty word, we are screwed. All of us.

Instead of demonizing personalities, if posting strictly stayed on the issues, then I think it's possible.

Do I think it's probable? Not a snowball's chance in hell. Too many posters are invested in the pleasure of stirring up the emotions of posters who's buttons they know how to push all too well. That is the sole purpose of some of the posters on here, to raise the hackles of someone they know will bite. I wonder when the last thread without a torpedo ruining it was. If someone was really interested in discussing the issues instead of arguing, they would ignore the flak and stay with the issues. But everyone knows, as soon as the names, the snark and the intended disrespect comes out, it's not about the issues anymore, it's about the mud and no one stays with the issue. There might have been people like that posting here, but the mob has run them off. Read some of these threads, this place is a mean, brutal message board and it's nothing more that us.

Soulshiner wrote: I think it's possible. If one justs posts an issue and their stance, it's easy. It's when the demeaning of each other, the snarkiness that follows one's opinion in the same post, the dismissive nicknames, like Dubya or Odumbo or Knuckledraggers or SFB are added that everything goes off the rails. Civility disappears and everyone is firing and no one is listening. The game now has become investigate everything someone from the "other" side posts in order to try to catch them being wrong and then nuke them with it. No one ever admits they were wrong and everyone ends up yelling at each other through the fence and no one is listening. WIth the severe positions that posters take, they have made it impossible to cede any point without being held as weak and an idiot for everything they have offered an opinion on. That's what going on in our government as well. Polarization has really taken hold in America and this message board is a mirror of this. When compromise has become a dirty word, we are screwed. All of us.

Instead of demonizing personalities, if posting strictly stayed on the issues, then I think it's possible.

Do I think it's probable? Not a snowball's chance in hell. Too many posters are invested in the pleasure of stirring up the emotions of posters who's buttons they know how to push all too well. That is the sole purpose of some of the posters on here, to raise the hackles of someone they know will bite. I wonder when the last thread without a torpedo ruining it was. If someone was really interested in discussing the issues instead of arguing, they would ignore the flak and stay with the issues. But everyone knows, as soon as the names, the snark and the intended disrespect comes out, it's not about the issues anymore, it's about the mud and no one stays with the issue. There might have been people like that posting here, but the mob has run them off. Read some of these threads, this place is a mean, brutal message board and it's nothing more that us.