A Weblog of Centrist Voices in American Politics
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A Weblog of Centrist Voices in American Politics | |
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October 30, 2003The Middle RoadThere's an interesting new blog called The Middle Road sponsored by New Hampshire and Iowa public radio. It features a blogger in each state who is currently uncommitted to any candidate. Mickey, from Iowa, describes herself thusly: I consider myself a radical centrist -- MODERATION OR ELSE! Seriously, though, I figure I'm smart enough to look at both sides as well as the whole picture and to know things are not always as they appear. I take my own position on every issue, without any bias but my own. Sometimes it jibes with the Democrats, sometimes with the Rebuplicans; but it doesn't always jibe with either side of the equation. It entertains me to watch intelligent Democrats become horrified by things a Republican does, then write off a Democrat doing the same thing as insignificant. Ditto the Republicans, of course. It blows my mind when Republicans berate Democrats for too much legislating, then demand that we have laws against such things as homosexual marriage or flag burning. It is equally galling to me when a Democrat stands on a pulpit demanding free speech, then denies that the people booing him or calling him "unpatriotic" have the same right to free speech.Bravo! Posted by rickheller at October 30, 2003 08:29 AM Comments
Awesome. I'm adding them to the centrist blogroll. Posted by: William Swann at October 30, 2003 09:37 AMWow! She expresses my own feelings about both parties better than I ever could! I was raised by parents who were evangelical christians and would have been solidly part of the "Religious Right." However, over the years (and as I began to actively develop my own views) I've moved further towards the middle. I used to say that the main reason why the '90s were so prosperous was because we had a democratic president and a republican congress. The extremes of both sides spent all their time trying to undermine each other leaving the day to day running of the government to the moderates. All of them pretty much left the rest of us alone to live our own lives and run our businesses. I think no matter what the outcome of the next election is, I'd like to see a return to that kind of balance. Posted by: Heather Feuerhelm at October 30, 2003 10:51 AM"Moderation in all things--even moderation." Both the Left and the Right want you to view the world through *their* bias filters. What they don't want you doing is actually thinking for yourself, 'cause then they can't keep you down on the farm. Only an ideologue always sees things from one side only! So it's no surprise that if you think for yourself and dig for the facts before taking a stand, you find yourself occasionally agreeing with those on the Left or Right. After all, even a stopped clock is right twice a day.... I think we're often best served when the government is so gridlocked they can't come up with anything new, when both factions can only fight to a draw. For some reason, the tale of King Log and King Stork comes to mind. Posted by: Tully at October 30, 2003 03:35 PMI think we're mostly ignored by those on the left and right. And it's partly our own fault -- we're less vocal and less organized than they are. Notice how often you hear one of the following two basic views of us as someone's first reaction to a centrist: 1. We're indecisive and don't know what we believe. 2. To the extent that we have strong opinions, we're "really" part of the opposite camp (e.g., conservatives call us liberals, and vice versa). Both criticisms essentially make us disappear, politically speaking. If we don't know what we believe, then we're totally ineffective politically, being unable to make any policy choices. If we're "really" part of the left or right, then the center goes away. We're left with only two options in a nice, neat bipolar political universe. We largely don't exist -- in the popular conceptions of most activists, at least. Posted by: William Swann at October 30, 2003 03:56 PM |
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