Posted by
Orville on Monday, October 16, 2006 11:47:52 PM
With election day just three weeks away, I thought it might be helpful to provide moderates with a guide to help them make their decision when they enter the voting booth. Okay, so they're not really booths any more, but you get the picture.
Moderates hold a special place in the U.S. electorate. Since it's assumed that liberals will vote Democrat and conservatives will vote Republican, moderates are the swing voters that both sides court. I've often wondered why it is that moderates can't make up their mind which side they are on. I suspect in some cases, they just like the attention. Others probably just don't want to offend either side, so they play Switzerland and remain neutral. For those moderates who genuinely want to choose, but don't feel like they have a clear-cut choice, I offer some clarity.
There's a tendency to judge a particular candidate by individual issues. The problem with that is, many politicians will sell out to a special interest on an issue if they believe it gets them votes. That's why we call them politicians instead of statesmen. Behind the issues is the notion of a worldview, or what the Germans call Weltanschauung. (NOTE: The Missus is a naturalized German, so you'll have to ask her how to pronounce it correctly.) The worldview is simply the perspective from which you see the world. In the aggregate, you'll vote Democrat if you have a liberal worldview and Republican if you have a conservative worldview. Occasionally there's an independent candidate that will go one way or the other, but there's no Moderate party to speak of, so here's how you can decide:
Liberals believe that people are basically good and can therefore adapt their standards to conform to whatever they would like them to be.
Conservatives believe man is fallen and must look to a higher power for an absolute standard that doesn't change.
Liberals believe organized religion is a corrupting influence that deserves no place in the public sphere.
Conservatives believe religion provides a framework for civilized society and is, sadly, missing from the public sphere.
Liberals make decisions based on how it makes them feel.
Conservatives make decisions based on data like documented history, statistical analysis and hard science.
Liberals believe in equal outcomes.
Conservatives believe in equal opportunity.
Liberals believe that if you are successful, you must have taken advantage of someone else to get there, therefore you must forfeit your gain. See the previous point.
Conservatives believe that if you are successful, you probably worked hard to get there and are therefore an example for others to follow.
Liberals would rather give a man a fish.
Conservatives would rather teach a man to fish.
Liberals believe government is the solution.
Conservatives believe government is the problem. See Ronald Reagan.
Liberals believe fetuses should die, but convicted murderers who had bad childhoods should live.
Conservatives believe unborn children should live, but convicted murderers who are responsible for their actions should die.
Liberals believe that the family structure is irrelevant and all children need is someone to love them.
Conservatives believe that the best situation for every child is to have a mother and a father that are married and living together.
Liberals believe that America is a scourge on the world and that we are responsibile for all the evils that plague the earth today.
Conservatives believe that America is the greatest country that has ever existed and that we should continue to lead by defending the weak and oppressed and encouraging democratic forms of government, despite what other countries think.
While this list is by no means comprehensive, it will point the way on most important issues. And don't be fooled by people on either side that don't hold true to form on one or two issues. Look below the surface and the worldview will emerge. Then you'll know.
Moderates, take a stand!