Left or Right wing? Its all biology- not politics

[Moontanman]

Originally Posted by questor

Actually, it's quite easy to determine who is liberal or conservative. Just a few questions about important issues. Age, height, gender doesn't matter.
You can tell by reading posts on this site. This is a philosophical difference and does not always change with age, although the young are usually more liberal and the older are more conservative. Hooray for maturity and experience!
Is it possible that all thought is generated from the initial neural mass one inherits and even though influenced by the environment is still filtered through those genetically contolled neurons?

I agree it is quite easy to tell who is conservative and who is liberal, a conservative is some who longs to be told what to think, told how to think, told how to behave, and told what is right and what is wrong. A liberal is someone who can not only think for himself and decide his own behavior he can also allow others to think and behave differently without fearing them and without wanting to make them conform to the "correct" way of thinking and behaving. Sadly, it's more difficult to be a liberal because the conservatives are always trying to make you think and behave as they do.

[questor]

I doubt that the movers and shakers of the world are mostly liberal. Since
conservatives don't engage in activist demonstrations and constantly trying to redress imagined wrongs, they have more time to devote to taking care of business. I don't think conservatives are trying to get you to behave in a certain way, they are just shocked and perplexed at the way liberals sometime behave. That behavior frequently causes underachievement. We all have life choices to make. The things one chooses to do will determine their
success in life. Conservatives do not make these choices for you or against you.

[Moontanman]

Originally Posted by questor

I doubt that the movers and shakers of the world are mostly liberal. Since
conservatives don't engage in activist demonstrations and constantly trying to redress imagined wrongs, they have more time to devote to taking care of business. I don't think conservatives are trying to get you to behave in a certain way, they are just shocked and perplexed at the way liberals sometime behave. That behavior frequently causes underachievement. We all have life choices to make. The things one chooses to do will determine their
success in life. Conservatives do not make these choices for you or against you.

BS! Conservatives are all about restricting what a person can or cannot do. They are shocked and perplexed so much by people who have a mind of their own they want to makes laws that keep anyone from doing anything they disapprove of. You keep talking about how conservatives take responsibility for their actions and liberals want the government to take care of them. This is just more tired old BS. The conservative power base is made up of ignorant people who cannot think for themselves and want the powerful few to tell them what to do from cradle to grave. So called poor white trash is the conservatives dream come true. A ready made bottom class they can rule over. Anyone who can be manipulated by fear mongering and will believe any lie as long as it is wrapped in the flag. The entire neocon movement is a lie wrapped in fear, and coated in BS. I come from those poor people who have been snowed by the conservatives into thinking their lot in life is the result of liberal politics. Conservatives love them as long as they stay in their place. As long as only occasionally does one of them make it they can sit back and say the rest is where they are due to liberal polices that have failed them while the conservatives move the real jobs over seas and only leave minimum wage dead end jobs for the people here. Conservatives claim economic responsibility and turn around and spend like drunken sailors. They blame liberals for big government and make the government bigger when they are in charge. Conservatives are all about special interests, good ol boys, and back room deals. They cannot prosper in the sun, they must hide behind you to stab you in the back. Sadly the conservatives are very good at convincing people they are the right ones for the job and they are as long as the job is getting richer and holding down the competition.

[REASON]

Originally Posted by questor

Actually, it's quite easy to determine who is liberal or conservative. Just a few questions about important issues. Age, height, gender doesn't matter.
You can tell by reading posts on this site. This is a philosophical difference and does not always change with age, although the young are usually more liberal and the older are more conservative. Hooray for maturity and experience!
Is it possible that all thought is generated from the initial neural mass one inherits and even though influenced by the environment is still filtered through those genetically contolled neurons?

You know, reading this post inspired me to put your theory to the test, questor. Below are 11 simple agree or disagree statements (I like the number 11 because it is one louder) that I came up with that cover a good range of important social, economic, foreign, and domestic issues. These statements are simple and easy to answer with just a yes or a no, and I expect that won't be a problem for you because qualifying simple questions is something a liberal, right-brained thinker would do, right?

Please answer whether you agree or disagree with each of these statements, and we'll see how easy it is to determine from this quiz whether you are liberal or conservative.

1. The government should be obligated to maintain a balanced budget and avoid deficit spending of taxpayer dollars.

2. Offshoring is generally a good idea and should receive tax incentives because a company's ability to generate large profits from cheap foreign labor is more important than providing employment to American workers.

3. The government should give taxpayer subsidies to large, private, highly profitable corporations, particularly those who contribute the greatest campaign contributions to law makers.

4. It is a bad idea to help people in need because it just makes them lazy and dependent.

5. Access to healthcare should only be for those who can afford it.

6. Since sexual orientation is not included as part of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the government and private institutions should be allowed to discriminate against those who are recognized as homosexual.

7. It is better to have orphanages and/or the streets filled with unwanted children than to allow Roe vs. Wade to continue to be the law of the land.

8. The government should allow teacher led prayer in public schools to include all faiths such as Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Scientology, Wicken, etc.

9. Since the United States is exceptional and the only remaining superpower in the world, if another nation opposes the foreign policy of the US Government, we should deem them a hostile threat, and use our superior military to preemptively effect regime change, and prop up a new government that is favorable to our interests.

10. It is okay for government officials to break the law as long as they claim it is in the interests of national security.

11. War is good because it stimulates the ecomomy.

I believe it should be very easy to tell whether someone is liberal or conservative simply by whether or not they agree with these statements.

They seem very simple to respond to in my opinion. Would you agree, questor? Do your answers confirm that you are a conservative? You didn't find yourself wanting to qualify any of them, did you?

[Michaelangelica]

Yep well
We are using some "fuzzy' terms
i prefer Left wing Right wing
Some Liberals in Australia are actually caring, intelligent,perceptive human beings
Some labor politicians are feral, self serving A**e holes
And mostly I vote left (labor)
Most County Party don't know what day it is (right)
R/Wing Christians/Islamics/Jews/ -don't get me started.

Could we please use terms that are more universal and not US-centric?

[questor]

Michael, you are correct, the terms are not totally descriptive of a person's thoughts and actions.
I will now play the game as proposed by Reason. Let it be known that when
I proposed a similar game, only 3 or 4 played. I am a conservative in that I believe in personal responsibility, self reliance, social morality, freedom of religion and speech. I have no problem expressing my views, because I think they are beneficial to society.
Questions by Reason:
1. The government should be obligated to maintain a balanced budget and avoid deficit spending of taxpayer dollars.
I agree. this is the responsibility of the President AND the Congress
2. Offshoring is generally a good idea and should receive tax incentives because a company's ability to generate large profits from cheap foreign labor is more important than providing employment to American workers.
As a free enterprise, a company is entitled to seek the best profit. If the host country provides the best environment, the company would not offshore
its product.
3. The government should give taxpayer subsidies to large, private, highly profitable corporations, particularly those who contribute the greatest campaign contributions to law makers.
As stated ( improperly) subsidies should not be given to companies. Tax
reductions can be offered to companies as incentives for different reasons.
As stated, this question shows a lack of understanding of ''corporate welfare''.
4. It is a bad idea to help people in need because it just makes them lazy and dependent.
It is a bad idea to help people who are ''needy'' because of their own lack of ambition. It's different for the needy through no fault of their own.
5. Access to healthcare should only be for those who can afford it.
This is one of our most expensive and difficult problems. Illegal aliens should not have access to healthcare paid for by American taxpayers
6. Since sexual orientation is not included as part of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the government and private institutions should be allowed to discriminate against those who are recognized as homosexual.
No
7. It is better to have orphanages and/or the streets filled with unwanted children than to allow Roe vs. Wade to continue to be the law of the land.
No, this is one of my biggest arguments with the cons
8. The government should allow teacher led prayer in public schools to include all faiths such as Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Scientology, Wicken, etc.
No, but children should have a minute or two to pray if they choose to do so.. the teacher should also have this right.
9. Since the United States is exceptional and the only remaining superpower in the world, if another nation opposes the foreign policy of the US Government, we should deem them a hostile threat, and use our superior military to preemptively effect regime change, and prop up a new government that is favorable to our interests.
This is a stupid question, I assume you're looking for a stupid answer?
10. It is okay for government officials to break the law as long as they claim it is in the interests of national security.
Are there laws existing that prevent us from exercising proper diligence when confronting a threat? Could you give an example?
11. War is good because it stimulates the ecomomy.
War is bad. War stimulates the economy.
These questions are the work of a right brained person with a lot of pre-conceived notions about conservatives. The attempt here, of course, is to demonstrate that Repubs are heartless, selfish, war-mongers, not interested in the plight of the common man. That being said, at least Reason spent some time thinking and composing. So, Reason, give me your learned diagnosis.

[Michaelangelica]

Last week, I jokingly asked a health club acquaintance whether he would change his mind about his choice for president if presented with sufficient facts that contradicted his present beliefs. He responded with utter confidence. "Absolutely not," he said. "No new facts will change my mind because I know that these facts are correct."

I was floored. In his brief rebuttal, he blindly demonstrated overconfidence in his own ideas and the inability to consider how new facts might alter a presently cherished opinion. Worse, he seemed unaware of how irrational his response might appear to others. It's clear, I thought, that carefully constructed arguments and presentation of irrefutable evidence will not change this man's mind.

Psychology voting | Salon