American Ignorance

in america, especially during election years two words are thrown around like crazy.

liberal and conservative.

what i have noticed is a majority of people dont even have a clue what the meaning of these labels are.

i am going to write no more . im keeping it simple to see if it starts a discussion, i mean argument.

do any other americans notice and understand what i mean?

I don't have an actual "definition" of "liberal". I have noticed that most "liberals", generally of democratic party affiliation if they have a party affiliation, believe that society owes them everything needed to live with no effort put forth on their part. "Conservatives" seem to go to work every day and attempt to earn their own way.

reply to post by DarthMuerte


ive been working the last 19 years of my life, since i was 16. im one of the most liberal people you will ever run across.

a liberal isnt a person on wellfare. a conservative isnt a person with a job.

Anyone who doesn't like Shawn Hannity is a "liberal".
Anyone who doesn't like Ed Schultz is a "conservative".
I don't like either.

Originally posted by DarthMuerte
"Conservatives" seem to go to work every day and attempt to earn their own way.

I know plenty of Conservatives sitting on unemployment whining right now. Spare us your generalizations.

As for the OP, people say these things because they hear it in the media. Socialism has suffered the same fate in that most people using it have no idea what it really means. Everyone must be labeled to make sure you can properly hate them for not being like yourself.

I got so much "Ur a liberal" hate mail I just went with it. If I'm pissing people off that much I might as well have a giggle about it.

reply to post by antonia


id say about half the people on wellfare in america consider themselves republicans/conservatives.

dont get me wrong i am a conservative as well as a liberal.

i see our government as being bloated and plenty of baggage can be trimmed.

lets start with the military budget.

When I hear the term "liberal" I tend to think of people who's political leanings tend more towards social issues and entitlement programs. The term"conservative" brings to mind political leanings toward more economic policy issues and corporatism. Most people think Democratic party when they hear "liberal" and Republican party when they hear "conservative".

Personally, I believe that most people are neither liberal nor conservative- but exist somewhere in the middle. But since there does not currently exist a "middle of the road" party most people side with which ever political party they believe has more in common with their own self interest. That's my opinion on it anyway.

Originally posted by DarthMuerte
I don't have an actual "definition" of "liberal". I have noticed that most "liberals", generally of democratic party affiliation if they have a party affiliation, believe that society owes them everything needed to live with no effort put forth on their part. "Conservatives" seem to go to work every day and attempt to earn their own way.

That's EXACTLY the type of stereotypical BS that causes the problems mentioned in the original post. Paint democrat negatively, republicans positively (or reverse that depending on your party affiliation) based on misguided MSM propaganda.

Liberal or conservative. Republican or Democrat. THEY'RE ALL THE SAME. The labels are just used to divide the masses. Until people learn to put aside these labels and unite we will never be able to stand up to the real problem of corrupt politicians.

Originally posted by XcytaBill
Anyone who doesn't like Shawn Hannity is a "liberal".
Anyone who doesn't like Ed Schultz is a "conservative".
I don't like either.

that is really close to what people think liberals and conservatives are.

i think most people, if they knew the meanings, would consider themselves social liberals while being fiscal conservatives.

Originally posted by elitegamer23
reply to post by antonia

 

id say about half the people on wellfare in america consider themselves republicans/conservatives.

dont get me wrong i am a conservative as well as a liberal.

i see our government as being bloated and plenty of baggage can be trimmed.

lets start with the military budget.

I tend to see it as being bloated in the wrong places. The U.S. government's spending as a percentage of GDP is only 39%. In most developed nations it hovers a bit over 50%. Compared to most developed nations the U.S. doesn't offer much in the way of service for the taxes it takes.

Originally posted by ~Vixen~

Liberal or conservative. Republican or Democrat. THEY'RE ALL THE SAME.

It's true, they are all people. I don't know why we continue to think their are 2 sides.

So one side is sprinting to control you and your life while the other is merely jogging, so what. They both don't want you to be a free and independent person. If they can get people to hate on each other then so be it. I bet they all party in the white house and don't care who's who.

reply to post by elitegamer23


The problem in American politics is not ignorance, it is ego-centrism.

A poster mentioned they "do not have a definition of 'liberal'," and then goes on to set up a stereotypical definition for their perception of what Democrats, pejoratively, stand for.

Another poster mentions Sean Hannity and Ed Schultz in defining political stances...again defining terms in an opinionated manner.

And therein lies our ignorance in politics...the subjective definition.

"Liberal" and "Conservative" do have objective definitions in Political Science, but most people tend to ignore those and simply go for the individualised pejorative attack, having words mean whatever they want them to mean...

...and thus "meaning" nothing.

im not american but i felt the need to chime in on this. im from the uk and i enjoy watching the u.s election race its far mor exciting and vibrant than the uk equivelant however what strikes me is the usa politicians to me dont seem to have any sincerity it appears to be a complete circus with the politician assuming the role he thinks will rally most supporters over here our elections are dull and focus more on issues than personal circumstances

Anybody who doesn't like Ru Paul is a conservative.

Anybody who doesn't like Fox News or Rush Limbaugh is a liberal.

Liberals are for controlling how people express themselves.
Conservatives are for controlling how people express themselves.

Liberals are for big government.
Conservatives are for big government.

I sense a trend going on here....

Originally posted by elitegamer23
reply to post by DarthMuerte

 

ive been working the last 19 years of my life, since i was 16. im one of the most liberal people you will ever run across.

a liberal isnt a person on wellfare. a conservative isnt a person with a job.

Do you believe you have a right to "free" health care? Do you believe you have a right to have others support you when you choose to retire? Do you believe that others should bail you out if you forgot to buy insurance and disaster strikes? Do you believe that the federal government knows what is best in every other part of the country when it comes to educating our children? Do you believe it is ok to put a gun in your neighbor's face when you need money? If not, then how about hiring someone else to put the gun in your neighbor's face? Is that ok? Is it ok to steal from others just because they have more than you do? Is it ok to hire someone else to steal for you?

Honestly, I shy away from those labels, and don't have a clue what they truly mean. I'm of the understanding that most people haven't a clue either, yet they fling it around so carelessly.

I tend to not incorporate words into my vocabulary that seem to have a myriad of meanings, and are seemingly dependent on the individual's understanding of the term. Basically, I see no consensus on either one. It seems these terms may have had true meaning at one point, but over the years they have been bastardized to the point of non-existence, or at least, incomprehension.

I just see people barking at each other, while a few thugs in suits are robbing them blind.

reply to post by madhatr137


This supposed objective meaning is non-existent.

There are no words which are objects. Words can be intersubjective. They can be mutually agreed upon the majority. Those two terms simply aren't.

reply to post by DarthMuerte


How's it feel to be the only political troll in an otherwise thought-provoking thread?

Originally posted by captaintyinknots
reply to post by DarthMuerte

 

How's it feel to be the only political troll in an otherwise thought-provoking thread?

Since when is asking honest questions "trolling"?

reply to post by DarthMuerte


I don't think there's any benefit to be had from thinking like this.

I'm a liberal and I've worked hard to get most of what I have in my life.

You can't just label people like that.

Originally posted by DarthMuerte

Originally posted by captaintyinknots
reply to post by DarthMuerte

 

How's it feel to be the only political troll in an otherwise thought-provoking thread?

Since when is asking honest questions "trolling"?

since you stated your position as 'anti-liberal' and then proceeded to ask baited questions.