Do you ever take those CNN Polls they have down on the bottom right corner of the page? I take them every day. Some days they are pretty superficial: "Who do you think will win the Super Bowl?" or "Will you watch the Golden Globes?" Most days the poll asks for opinions on top stories, or political goings-on. "Do you think the government did all it could to respond to Hurricane Katrina?" "How much of an economic affect will the gas price increase have on your household?" "Do you think Alito can give fair rulings on controversial issues like abortion?"
I take the polls every day and am always enforced by them because the vote I cast is usually the majority vote. The results pop up and I think, Wow, there are a lot of people out there who feel like me. Then I wonder why things are the way they are if most people think there should not be wire taps, the president is wrong most of the time, Alito should not be confirmed, etc. Then I try to remind myself that this poll is not a reflection of our nation. Anyone who is going to take the time to peruse CNN online and to answer the poll question is probably not an uninformed yokel, the type that we Massachusetts liberals look down our noses at. I know that's extremely partisan of me, but is there another explanation why the poll responses are always weighted towards a more liberal outlook?
2 comments:
I really do believe that education and world-view breed a certain degree of [social] liberalism. Massachusetts and Connecticut are the most educated states in the country and are also the bluest.
There's a reason why cities are always more liberal than towns, too--when you encounter, for instance, Latino people on the subway everyday and see they're just people, you're less likely to fear the faceless mob of Latin Americans trying to take over your country. And there's a reason too why journalists probably lean liberal: because it's their job to know what's going on. Extreme conservatism is based on fear of change, fear of other people, fear that "your way of doing things" is being swept out from under you. That's easy to feel when you're in a town where all your neighbors could be your clones. But in a city there are lots of people who aren't like you, and you know that doesn't hurt you. Also, in general, see how coastal states are significantly bluer, and the further inland you go, the redder it gets. The ocean, and ports, mean there's a world out there beyond your little town. Bigger worldview = more liberal. Awareness breeds tolerance, removes "us & them" mentality, increases compassion.
Anyway, what was I saying? Yes, I think you're right.
http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/page.asp?RelNum=6664
I tend to find The Loony Left as well as the Radical Right are closer than they would like to belive. In truth there is never a straight line, with left and right at each end. Rather, the political spectrum is more like an elongated horseshoe, with left and right at the tips - and not so far apart.
I also find there to be a very serious confusion with social conservatism(close-mindedness) and economic conservatism. I as you know have friends from many countries, are many colors, and are many creeds yet I tend to be conservative on the Money and taxes side of things. There is not a clear seperation of this enough and I tend not to like that.
The political system is broken, and I don't know how to fix it.
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