Political Persuasions and Guilt By Association
Blog, Democracy, Essays — By JamesWilliams on October 15, 2012 at 1:06 pm
It’s hard to nail down that exact moment when it happened. I had always relished taking a side politically, whether it was as a card-carrying liberal in my early 20s or when I reached my late 20s and took a hard turn to the Right. In both my life as a staunch Democrat and later as a die-hard Republican, I excelled in the art of mocking, hating, and pitying those misguided voters who disagreed with me. In either case, I embraced “victim” status as I complained about how the Press was biased against Us and for Them. I had come to see evil motives in everything The Other Guys did; I considered their every word to be manipulative half-truths delivered by candidates who purposely wanted to bring down our nation.
But then, at some point I cannot quite pin down, I ceased playing the Us-vs-Them game. I no longer thought about these issues along party lines. I decided to think for myself, and not let my party affiliation determine my views. And I have to say, I’ve been politically happier ever since.
Well, mostly happier. I say “mostly” because I still find it sad when I observe Us-vs-Them doing its damage. But I’m happier because I now have the freedom to choose a position on a topic without caring what I’m supposed to think to fit into some mold.
“I’m Not a Republican or a Democrat”
It’s quite fashionable these days to identify one’s self as “neither Democrat nor Republican.” Every time someone says it or blogs it, I can hear a lot of heads nodding in agreement as we read it together.
That said, my experience/observation is that many folks who claim to not be tied to any one political party still lean strongly one way or the other. It’s nice to say we’re not Republican or Democrat, but such a proclamation isn’t really accurate for most of us. I would love to know that every concerned voter is making his stance on abortion and gun control independently of one another. But it doesn’t seem to be the case for most.
I’ll take the whole suit
Consider, for a moment, those who, like me, have made a switch at some point in their life, either from Right to Left or vice versa. One of the more fascinating things I’ve observed in people who have made such a switch is the tendency to change views on most or all of the key issues which define those two mindsets. As I hear their stories, it seems to start out with one thing–for example, a re-thinking of their position on gay rights or abortion or national defense–but interestingly, their views on other topics which traditionally have strong Left/Right viewpoints follow. It’s as if a man walks into a store with the intention of purchasing a new shirt, and walks out of the store an hour later with a coat, tie, pants, belt, and shoes which all match that shirt.
The Big Question
Why do so many tend to follow the party line from top to bottom? There is no logic to explain the correlation between topics such as, say, abortion and environmentalism, yet what you think about those issues ends up being a pretty reliable predictor of your opinions on seemingly dissimilar topics like gay marriage, gun control, and capital gains tax. But the Big Question is: why? Why, when someone undergoes a 180 degree change in their view on one topic, do they tend to change views on several key issues? If you changed your view on gay marriage, why does your stance on gun control follow closely behind?
Guilt By Association
I propose an answer, but I don’t have data to back it up. Based purely on observation, it appears that the reason that politically aware citizens stick with the party line is Guilt By Association. They see conservatives or liberals as “those people” and don’t want to be anything like them. Generalizing is always dangerous, but generally, Lefties tend to view Righties in a certain caricatured way. And conservatives often think certain similar thoughts about liberals, as well.
When I was a liberal in the mid-late 80′s (voted for Dukakis in ’88, and Ann Richards for governor in ’90), it seemed to me that conservatives were looking to find communists under every rock, and everything was a conspiracy. A little later, when Talk Radio helped convince me to become a Republican, I saw liberals as godless; I equated “Progressive” with “we don’t believe in personal responsibility.”
I don’t think I was alone. As I take in the arguments that my strongly partisan friends make even now, I hear that the Right hates the poor, women, and Big Bird, and I hear that the Left perpetuates immorality and the victim mentality. The logical conclusion is that I don’t want to be like Those People, so whatever they are for, I’m against.
The knowledge that Us-vs-Them is an effective persuader is not new. Political campaigns have used it as long as there have been elections. Advertisers use it. The best example is the Apple/PC ads. They talked about the technology a little bit, but the main memory that the viewer comes away with is that the Apple guy looks cool and hip, and the PC guy looks . . . well, he looks like someone I don’t want to associate with.
The truth is that Apple computers, like Windows PCs, have their strengths and their weaknesses. And so do Republicans and Democrats. Ultimately, this nation is better off when we listen to, and in many cases implement into law, the best liberal and the best conservative ideas. But the Us-vs-Them mentality stands in the way. If we on the Right can stop, take a breath, and see liberals as humans who care about their nation as much as we do, we might find some common ground and some good ideas. And if my strongly partisan friends on the Left will do the same, maybe we’ll get out of this political gridlock we’ve found ourselves in and make some real progress. But it won’t happen till then.
Tags: Abortion, gay marriage, gun control, Humanity, not republican or democrat, partisan views, Prejudice, republicans and democrats, single issue voters, us vs. them
13 Comments
Since I know you, and you have argued with me on a multitude of topics, I’m curious about which topics you don’t fit the Conservative party with? I know you love to decry people on both sides being treated “unfairly”, but I can’t recall seeing you stepping outside party lines.
Valid question, Emily. You are right: I take the “Right” position on almost every issue which, in the US, has a generally-accepted conservative and liberal position. the exceptions which come to mind:
1. Gay marriage. I’m not pro legalization of gay marriage, but for me, it’s very very far down my list. I don’t see why my fellow righties make this such a priority.
2. I am anti-death penalty. Period.
3. The war in Iraq: While many on the right came to realize around 2006 that the war was not a good idea, I was the only one I know of who was vocally against it from Day One. I think it’s the worst thing President Bush has done.
4. Global Warming. While I don’t support the Kyoto treaty, I am otherwise on board with most liberals regarding climate change. It pains me to hear a conservative talk about how climate change isn’t real.
5. I know this is no longer an issue, but in the mid-80′s, when people working for the Reagan administration were running covert operations in Central America, I was very vocal in my opposition.
6. Many of the people who my fellow Christian conservatives revere as their spokesmen are repulsive to me: Ann Coulter, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and Oliver North come to mind.
7. I’m for the right of citizens to own a gun for protection, but I am not on board with them when it comes to automatic weapons and such. I won’t own a gun myself, other than a shotgun which I inherited and never use, keeping for sentimental reasons.
There are probably more, but that’s what I can think of.
That’s a pretty substantial list, James.
James and Emily, Just had an idea – Would be fascianting if you two had a column, discussing current events, issues, and trends from your perspectives! It would be a great read!
Love it!
On a related note, how bout Christian Conservatism vs Christian Socialism…..
In Fact, could you guys explain this Social Justice phenomenon in Modern Christianity, isn’t it just Pro-Obama Christian socialism under the guise of ‘Social Justice’?
When I hear about even the playing field, economic redistribution and borrowing and spending away our children’s future, I about the 8, 9 & 10 commands of The Lord being challenged
Who are you asking to talk about that? James and Emily? Or Burnside as a whole?
AC it predates Obama by a century. It’s actually postmodern critique of modern business practices and ethical violations due to greed and monopolizing markets. Social Justice hearkens to the turn of the 20th century Liberal Christian movement often labeled “The Social Gospel” that challenged the immoral practices of capitalism in its exploitation of laborers and its abuses in the name of profit making. Many Social Gospel Christians had a platform similar to the 99ers from earlier this year.
AC, a person who’s a dedicated liberal or strong conservative could certainly read the Law of Moses (apparently what you’re referring to at the end of your comment) and see something they agree with, and come away convinced God’s a Leftie or a Rightie. Since the Mosaic Law is not just 10 commanmdents, but actually 613, it’s very easy to do so.
Liberals could see the mandate for the Jubilee, where a government law, not the church, mandates that the rich give back to the poor in many ways. Conservatives, as you point out, could see “thou shall not covet” and find reason to denounce those who want to raise taxes on the wealthy.
But in reality, it’s not that simple. We have to get past seeing what we want to see in Scripture just so we can back up our positions and win the arguments. At this stage of my life, I’m no longer as interested in winning arguments as I am in doing what’s best.
Thanks for the clarification Michael, I understand what you are saying James…..
I like to see people like Gates or Romney give large amounts to charity like they do….and yes greed and reckless markets are bad…
I just don’t trust politicians or Christians using politicians to advance a cause no matter how noble, cause you can’t just throw money at a problem and make it go away especially when you are spending money that we don’t have and promising immediate relief that cannot be delivered at least in the long term…..
I guess the dividing line has been healthcare, but from my research, we may cover more people but the expense of ACA will still keep US at the top for national sending on health care, but I will concede if it wasn’t for the Dems the issue probably would not have been addressed. Despite the fact I think we over diagnosed the problem and did not solve it efficiently
It is refreshing to see civil discourse again. I applaud you, James, and your commenters. As for me, James and AC, my heart will be gladdened when the Beatitudes become at least as prominent as the Ten Commandments in our discussions.
I have been noticing the same thing in myself, and in a large portion of those around my age (28).
So do Christian endorse socialism to achieve social justice? I agree with social justice efforts, I agree with social justice legislation that leads to equal opportunity just not equal results, that I believe is putting too much faith in man and not enough in
God