Why Unhappy People Become Liberals

Residenttroll wrote:

daisypusher wrote: It may not be that SC is the liberal exception - it may be that she is conservative and does not know it yet...

SC knows. She's just having difficulty coming to the RIGHT side.

:VeryScared: :faint:
I've said before that I can't be labeled/boxed/stereotyped. I am a proponent of both liberal and conservative ideologies, depending on which topic we are discussing.

travelingirl said this earlier:

Conservatives believe in personal responsibility, limited government, free markets, individual liberty, traditional American values and a strong national defense

As a moderate liberal, I strongly believe in personal responsibility (and have surprised more than a few conservatives here and on PC on this topic). I think I even made PrintSmith's jaw drop once!

Limited gov't: I believe in efficient, effective government. It shouldn't be too big and it shouldn't be too small, it should be just right. Programs should be available that benefit the population without being abused. Cuts must be made rationally. Requirements should be modified as need be - like SS. When it was instituted, the life span was much shorter than it is today and life expectancy should be taken into account for the starting age. Science policy should be a much more integral part of government.

Free markets: how many of them are truly free these days? Supply and demand is all well and good, but when corporations can unduly influence legislation their way, or get unfair tax breaks, or special treatment, then it's not free any longer. Look at the airport scanners - most other countries don't even bother cuz they know they are useless, yet the companies that make them have bought off our government officials and begun a PR campaign touting their safety and effectiveness that's all BS. Oil vs renewable energy, don't even get me started. Wall St., ugh.

Individual liberty: absolutely! I want the freedom, and lack of condemnation, to choose my birth control, partner, whether I own a gun or not, and how to raise my kids. But I also want stronger public education campaigns to reduce the rate of abortions, I want gays in committed relationships to have the same legal rights as married heterosexuals without having to go through extra cumbersome hoops that we receive automatically with that marriage certificate. I don't want rapists, murderers, drug dealers, or felons to be able to own a gun - they lost that right when they committed a crime, nor do ordinary people need machine guns to hunt with. How I raise my kids is my business, and how you raise yours is your business, but all childhood vaccinations should be mandatory. No if, ands, buts, or religious exemptions. Period.

Traditional American values: too vague, changes with each generation. It used to be tradition to own a slave, it used to be tradition that the wife stayed home, cooked, and raised the kids without exception; these values change and must be defined better. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, yes. Hard work translated to success, yes. The rich gaining favors with tax breaks and business loopholes that allow them to get richer without working as hard, no. The gap is widening and it's not because the all the poor are lazy; and it's not a good path for a healthy civilization.

Strong national defense: yes, and we've always had that and thank god. We have the most heavily armed citizens in the world and I think that's a good thing. But our defense budget is so bloated that it's eating us alive - we are spending way too much, and losing way too much due to lack of oversight and outright stealing - it needs to be tightened up and run not like it's on unlimited funds.

This blog post hits the nail on the head for why I'm Proud To Be A Liberal:
http://www.elroy.net/politics/liberal.html
Proud To Be Liberal
Why Liberal values are American values
By Brian Elroy McKinley

Just as Liberals get their label by standing for Liberty, Conservatives get their label from the desire to "conserve" a style of living.
If you don't want to be forced to live under a foreign set of values, don't force others to live under yours. Instead, fight for the freedom to believe as you want while others believe as they want. Freedom of choice, as long as it does not infringe on another's rights, is the foundation upon which this nation was built. Liberalism is the ideology that strives to defend that freedom for everyone. And for that reason it pleases me to no end to state that I am proud to be Liberal.

http://www.nytimes.com/books/00/11/26/s ... ebate.html
Conservative vs Liberal - A Debate
March 4, 1956
I don't agree with everything either in the liberal argument or the conservative argument in this post, but like some of the points brought up (fun quiz: see how well you know me by guessing what I wouldn't agree with in the liberal argument!)

Alright, football's started so I've gotta go. Felt I had to defend myself from such spurious, wild accusations, impugning my good character! Have a bountiful, wonderful Thanksgiving!

Scruffy - thanks Sweetie! Yes, I am married, but love to make new friends! You should come to a 285Bound lunch sometime!

dp - A sincere question, to what differences do you refer? When I say I'm a liberal, my intention is that I am a social liberal and classical liberal, basically just a liberal. No liberals I know desire to overspend outside of the budget on wasteful, inefficient, ineffective programs. I realize that they've been painted that way, but no one I know who is a lib believes in that. If there are other areas where there are differences between social vs classical liberal, please enlighten me as I may very well have missed it! Thanks!