posted April 06, 2012 06:48 PM            

To be clear:

"moderate to conservative" = moderate but conservative-leaning

"moderate to liberal" = moderate but liberal-leaning

"conservative to moderate" = conservative but more 'centrist': that is, generally conservative, but moderate on a few issues

"liberal to moderate" = liberal but more 'centrist': generally liberal, but moderate on some things

Also, to be clear, liberal = leftist, conservative = on the right.

posted April 06, 2012 09:21 PM            

Generally speaking, I don't fit in neatly with any political party in the USA, especially not the Democrats or Republicans.

For example, in some ways I'm very liberal regarding crime in that I think a great many crimes should be misdemeanors or legalized, I think once convicts are out of prison they should get all their rights back including the right to vote and--unless there's a history of violence or compelling reason to believe s/he's a menace--the right to bear arms (it may surprise you that many conservatives would disagree with me on this), and that prosecutors or cops who falsify evidence should be prosecuted to the max with much harsher penalties than currently exist, and also believe in strong constitutional protections that limit what cops can do. But in other ways I could be called conservative as I believe some crimes should be prosecuted much more severely than they are now, that defense attorneys should not be able to hide past convictions from juries or put the victims on trial (such as forcibly accessing psychological records), believe in the right to self-defense without duty to retreat, that victims of violent crimes should be notified when a convict is being reviewed for release or is released, that criminals who are shot or otherwise injured while committing a crime should never be allowed to sue their victims who defended themselves (unless it's a clearly criminal act, like reloading a gun and emptying it into a fallen attacker who is no longer a threat, in which case the defender turned attacker should be tried for manslaughter at least), etc.

And speaking of self-defense I'm pretty friendly to the 2A and would like all states to be "shall issue" (especially given the rampant racism and other abuses carried out by cops in "may issue" states) for carrying concealed weapons permits (and I'm ok with open carry as well), I believe "gun free zones" cause more harm than good (save in areas where there are plenty--not 1 or 2, but plenty--of armed guards), permit holders should not have their permits a matter of public record as most other permits tend to be (as too many people hiding from dangerous and sometimes obsessed people can easily be found that way), though OTOH I don't believe the 2A is absolute, I'm not opposed to waiting periods to buy a gun or mandatory safety courses, and I'm opposed to states that deny gun permits to people who are "immoral" or even "dishonorable discharge" (as opposed to say a violent crime that may have been involved in said discharge) as this has been used to deny guns to known homosexuals who need to carry more than the good ol' boys that take such a right for granted, and I also hold the bureaucratic NRA (that is, the central organization as opposed to members who perform valuable functions) in contempt for shaking down members for money with blatant fear mongering.

If it were up to me, the DEA and ATF would both be disbanded, many of the laws they enforce being downgraded to misdemeanors or legalized, and what was left taken up by other federal agencies and/or local police forces (which, again, would be more restricted in what they can do than they currently are).

I generally favor drug legalization (at the very least I'd like doctors to be the ones to decide what someone can take, not the government), though OTOH I'd want ads promoting drug use (including alcohol and tobacco) to be prohibited (that is, I'm against free expression there), and while I'm at it I'd like to see ads promoting even prescription meds (which are rampant in the USA today) prohibited for similar reasons.

I think it should be made much easier for foreigners to immigrate here and become full citizens, but OTOH those who come illegally should generally be dealt with severely.

I tend to support the right wing disdain of public education, but OTOH, I admire many school systems in Europe (which many right wingers automatically equate with dangerous socialism), such as the Belgian system that allows parents to choose which schools their kids go to (which is kinda similar to the right wing voucher idea here in the states and which I have mixed feelings on) and produce kids far more educated than our own. And speaking of schools, I favor full sex ed starting in middle school, one that fully explains birth control, homosexuality, and all the other things most conservatives despise, and I'm also against mixing religion with science (that is, I don't want mythology taught as science in biology class), but at the same time I wouldn't be against religious classes (openly presented as such) as electives (but not required by the school itself, not even for "disruptive students"), feel ok with gun safety courses and shooting sports in the schools, and I'd like to see public schools either make their resources available to homeschoolers & unschoolers or give up the taxes the parents of such kids pay to help cover the costs of a home education.

posted April 06, 2012 09:44 PM            

As for me: Moderate to Liberal

Overall, I want there to be a live and let live policy with equal fairness between all. I am fairly socially permissive, with a few conservative views (but not many). As long as what you do does not heavily infringe on someone else, I am good with it.

Economically I am in the middle.

I am VERY pro-science. I am a scientist after all.

I am also staunchly anti tea-party with the way it has become.

posted April 07, 2012 06:52 AM            

For me, I'm liberal, but not an extreme one. On some issues, I'm more moderate.

I want a balance between having a strong federal government and also having freedom to do what I like, within reason of course. I definitely feel like we need laws and a strong federal government, but, at the same time, the laws should be reasonable and fair. I do support strong regulations on things like food quality, pollution, environmental damage, things like that. However, I don't support things like SOPA.

I actually was surprised to see so many conservatives on the board, as I don't really put astrology + conservatism together, typically. Interesting.

posted April 07, 2012 02:00 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by RegardesPlatero:

I actually was surprised to see so many conservatives on the board, as I don't really put astrology + conservatism together, typically. Interesting.

I hesitate to say more because I worry that things will get really nasty on LindaLand once the election really gets underway. I'm worried that people are going to start hating each other and bickering and that it'll get ugly here. I really hope that we can all remember that we like each other, even if the election gets very heated.

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Ditto to this, in particular the bold part.

The key is to remain as objective as possible. Remember to always consider both sides of an argument and things should remain relatively calm. Easier said then done, but it can be done .

posted April 07, 2012 02:21 PM            

It's funny that you both mention that. And I know that both of you have Libra energy which means that you're very fair-minded. There are those who aren't as fair-minded and don't attempt to see things objectively, however choose to see things purposely subjectively which suits their own inclinations and intentions. That might become more abundantly clear as you post more often on GU.

LL actually isn't as conservative as it seems, it's predominately on this forum, IMO. There are actually many fair-minded thinkers on this board. Maybe too fair to engage in heated heavily biased discourse. Because frankly how exhausting. But I have to say it's always nice to see new energy on GU, especially those who are working towards objective resolutions.

posted April 07, 2012 03:18 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by Randall:
No one ever said LL is conservative. Quite the opposite. We are pushing 70,000 members, and probably only a handful are conservative.

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No, but that's the impression I have from looking around in this section of the board, hence I have come to that conclusion.

posted April 07, 2012 03:25 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by NativelyJoan:
Tautomer4314 & RegardesPlatero,

It's funny that you both mention that. And I know that both of you have Libra energy which means that you're very fair-minded. There are those who aren't as fair-minded and don't attempt to see things objectively, however choose to see things purposely subjectively which suits their own inclinations and intentions. That might become more abundantly clear as you post more often on GU.

LL actually isn't as conservative as it seems, it's predominately on this forum, IMO. There are actually many fair-minded thinkers on this board. Maybe too fair to engage in heated heavily biased discourse. Because frankly how exhausting. But I have to say it's always nice to see new energy on GU, especially those who are working towards objective resolutions.

I've also got Venusian energy, however I've got a strong Mars and don't like to walk away from a dispute especially if that argument isn't heading in the direction of an objective resolution. I admit I can also be biased, I mean I'm human but like you both I'd rather incisively break apart each perspective before coming to a conclusion.

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Yup, I'm a libra rising, and that is where a lot of my sense of fairness and objectivity comes from. I must present that to the world in order to function well. My internal world is highly judgemental and harsh when it comes to sorting information and figuring out how it works, but that's "impure" and can not be expressed to others until it is properly filtered and output with the judgement factors removed. That internal world comes from my scorpio moon which is quite the judgemental black-white thinking little beast. He's not allowed to come out to play in the daylight (not that he'd want to play in sunshine anyway, :P).

I generally do not like to argue at all and will seek to mediate and quell any debate I find myself involved in. The only time I will actually take a solid stance and not budge an inch is when I know I am 100% right and can back up my opinion 100% with no error. Obviously, that is extremely rare so I seldom do that. In the world of politics, there is only one, perhaps two subjects where I can and will do this. In this day and age though I rarely come across it.

I've also learned that you are far less likely to influence and sway someone if you come from a clearly judgemental standpoint. It will cause others to have a knee jerk reaction and it will lead to nowhere.

I agree there are plently of fair minded individuals on this board, and I have only seen a few people who aren't so fair minded. There are also a few others who I find myself emphatically disagreeing with all the time. However, my opinion on them is judgemental, unfair, and I can not back myself up so I choose not to interact with them.

posted April 07, 2012 04:18 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by tautomer4314:
No, but that's the impression I have from looking around in this section of the board, hence I have come to that conclusion.

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Nope, we conservatives are a handful

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Passion, Lust, Desire. Check out my journal

posted April 08, 2012 12:48 AM            

quote:

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Originally posted by RegardesPlatero:
I actually was surprised to see so many conservatives on the board, as I don't really put astrology + conservatism together, typically. Interesting.

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quote:

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I hesitate to say more because I worry that things will get really nasty on LindaLand once the election really gets underway. I'm worried that people are going to start hating each other and bickering and that it'll get ugly here. I really hope that we can all remember that we like each other, even if the election gets very heated.

---

posted April 08, 2012 01:28 AM            

quote:

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Originally posted by Lonake:
I hesitate to say more because I worry that things will get really nasty on LindaLand once the election really gets underway. I'm worried that people are going to start hating each other and bickering and that it'll get ugly here. I really hope that we can all remember that we like each other, even if the election gets very heated.

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I do agree. There are one, possibly two views I have that if I were to directly and outwardly express I feel I would receive quite a bit of vitrol for it so I keep it to myself unless someone were to explicitly ask me to state it. That said though, it is possible for someone to have political views that it will cause me to lose all respect for them, and even possibly hate them. At the very least, no longer interact with them. They're very explicit views, but they do exist. The reason I say this is these views would infringe on others too much and that effect on others is a bad personality trait in my eyes due to the unfairness of it. Also the amount of possible illogic it would contain is just unreconciable. I have yet to actually meet someone with these types of views, but I know they do exist.

quote:

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Started a thread on the election a few mos back in 2.0 but it had practically 0 interest since everyone was more concerned with their love lives or lack thereof.

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Haha. Yeeeeeeeah that does get really annoying a lot of the time. That's why I don't talk about mine because so many already do and I feel like it a topic beaten to death several times over.

quote:

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Originally posted by Lonake:
The fact that his health legislation likely won't be approved by the Supreme Court will actually help him.

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This is interesting. Really? I guess I could see how it would help him, but I would think it would slightly hurt him more then anything. In the end I actually don't think it will have too much of an effect on the election because the vote is so "final" and there is nothing that can be done with it once it is voted on. Thus it is really not much of an issue anymore. If it were up in the air still it would give the other side more strength to battle it and say "if elected I will repeal it!" which would get quite a number of conservitives mobilized.

posted April 08, 2012 02:15 AM            

But the other 2 bits I did (!)
I could find the thread I started & bump it. I may do as things are getting closer.

My reasoning for the benefit of it being shot down largely has to do with the economy & the burden of the individual mandate. I know many are without healthcare but most of the poorest do have Medicaid/Medicare. Every human being is entitled to health care but in my estimation his proposal is not the answer to this because I am against the mandate. Tho in the reasoning of his office they say it needs to be there to partially fund the act. Also if it's voted down it will help bring over some Independents/right leaning Dems to come back in his corner, the ones who aren't happy with Romney are the same who seemed to be dissenting from the Obama interest about mid time last year. He could get them back because he will have been forced in effect to put some more time into the question of healthcare and the mandate would have been voted down. He's looking good to getting them anyway because of Romney's 'conservatively conservative' stance to impress the Tea Party, those on the far right. Obama did his job, and a good one at that, to appeal to the middle, to keep his views on things like abortion out of the spotlight, put things in a better light, back in '08. He had a lot in his favor at the start, we knew a Dem would be elected simply because of how horribly Bush failed. It's a bit more gray this time around but Romney will win the nod but won't win the populace, unless he comes up with some maverick scheme to fix the economy. And he would have to have a genius on his team to do that. He has $$$ but the genius I'm not so sure. Money buys votes, in general, but so many people are in the politcal game now, who weren't before, because the policies enacted are impacting their life, they are waking up to the money being spent on war at the expense of our citizens, which I think is the true mark of how much a ruler cares about his country. But anyway am off on a tangent obviously.

What the country needs desperately is a genius, though. A new landscape to further the job market. When industry came around that opened so much, it opened the door to corporations obv, but there were jobs in the process. Same with the tech boom in the 90s, a new landscape opened up and new businesses formed, inventive people went to work for themselves and that kept most afloat for a while. Heck, eBay supports some people right now. But what now. Where is the new landscape? On what plane, do you know what I mean? The only promise I see there is that there is a big push for children to go into science, into engineering, technology. There's this circuit toy that's been hugely popular for some time, here's a link to the product page, the company is one to buy into if you're looking for a stock, they have several circuit toys on the market. I don't know if we have to wait for these kids to grow up to introduce this new landscape but it has to happen. My hope is sooner rather than later.

posted April 09, 2012 06:02 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by Randall:

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This doesn't really say much. What are you thinking?

posted April 12, 2012 04:50 PM            

Perhaps another category : Impervious to bullsh!t

posted April 15, 2012 07:05 AM            

quote:

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Originally posted by tautomer4314:
I've also learned that you are far less likely to influence and sway someone if you come from a clearly judgemental standpoint. It will cause others to have a knee jerk reaction and it will lead to nowhere.

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--I agree.

Over the years, I've learned that the "iron fist in the velvet glove" approach, as Linda Goodman frequently described how Libras go about getting our way, (I'm a Libra sun, Mercury, south node, and MC) tends to work.

I get really annoyed with people who make big to-dos and go to ridiculous and absurd extremes in politics. Even if I agree with someone's viewpoint, I get so frustrated when people are so stupid and stubborn that they refuse to acknowledge that their extremism is killing their cause.

posted April 15, 2012 07:06 AM            

quote:

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Originally posted by Randall:
No one ever said LL is conservative. Quite the opposite. We are pushing 70,000 members, and probably only a handful are conservative.

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Then again, though, it also depends on what one considers "conservative".