# Can right and left agree on anything? (the non-Pit)
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [November 20, 2017, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207 "2017-11-20T18:46:11Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/1 "2017-11-20T18:46:11Z")
The [Pit thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=842274)started by \*\*Clothahump \*\*went Pitt-y immediately, but I think there are a few things that the political right and left generally agree on enthusiastically, and want to see what else there might be.
[ol]
[li]Just because something is legal doesn’t necessarily mean it is morally right.[/li][li]Just because something is illegal doesn’t necessarily mean it is morally wrong.[/li][li]There should be “equality” in society. (The dispute is over just what exactly that means.)[/li][li]Some people are indeed treated badly because of their race, gender, or religion. (The dispute is over who falls into that category - are white men victims of discrimination today? etc.)[/li][li]Free speech does not mean freedom from social consequences of speech.[/li][li]Facts and truth are extremely important. (The dispute is over \*who \*and \*what \*is correct.)[/li][/ol]
What else?
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### Author:  [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/2 "2017-11-20T18:52:13Z")
The peaceful transition of power is a good thing. People should be generally free to practice their religion as they see fit. Handguns should not be banned. We all hate the TSA.
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### Author:  [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/3 "2017-11-20T19:02:53Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#):
>
> Handguns should not be banned.
Not sure about this one; there are a considerable number of people who want an outright repeal of the 2nd Amendment and a total ban on private gun ownership.
(I could live with that; I actually wouldn’t mind that too much.)
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### Author:  [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/4 "2017-11-20T19:08:55Z")
> [@Velocity](#):
>
> Not sure about this one; there are a considerable number of people who want an outright repeal of the 2nd Amendment and a total ban on private gun ownership.
>
> (I could live with that; I actually wouldn’t mind that too much.)
There are certainly dissenters, but they’ve shrunk to a rather insignificant minority at this point. Gallup has the question like this:
> [@](#):
>
> [Do you think there should or should not be a law that would ban the possession of handguns, except by the police and other authorized persons?](http://news.gallup.com/poll/1645/guns.aspx)
The “yes” vote has been generally trending down for decades, and last month it got 28% while “no” got 71%. While I would guess that most of that 28% is on the left side of the political spectrum, I still think this is an area of significant bipartisan agreement, which is the thread topic.
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### Author:  [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/5 "2017-11-20T19:12:30Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#):
>
> There are certainly dissenters, but they’ve shrunk to a rather insignificant minority at this point. Gallup has the question like this:
>
> The “yes” vote has been generally trending down for decades, and last month it got 28% while “no” got 71%. While I would guess that most of that 28% is on the left side of the political spectrum, I still think this is an area of significant bipartisan agreement, which is the thread topic.
I think (without evidence) that a large segment of the 28% was simply trying to express extreme frustration at current state of gun laws and endorsing the most extreme option on the poll.
to the OP:
Perhaps there is wide agreement that disputes should be resolved in court of law, and that in criminal cases, the accused should be afforded a presumption of innocence.
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### Author:  [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/6 "2017-11-20T19:55:42Z")
That the birth of the United States was an important historical event.
The United States has a valuable form of government (albeit one that is currently a bit beaten up)
We are simultaneously annoyed by government reach into our lives, but also count on the government to provide a large array of functions and services
I actually agree with **HD**. I think that most liberals want gun _violence_ control, not gun control.
We value personal freedom, even if we don’t always agree what that means.
Jobs here in the US are important.
The right to peacefully assemble it important.
Infrastructure is important.
Healthcare is important
Social security is important
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### Author:  [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/7 "2017-11-20T20:08:53Z")
> [@Sunny\_Daze](#):
>
> That the birth of the United States was an important historical event.
>
> The United States has a valuable form of government (albeit one that is currently a bit beaten up)
>
> We are simultaneously annoyed by government reach into our lives, but also count on the government to provide a large array of functions and services
>
> I actually agree with **HD**. I think that most liberals want gun _violence_ control, not gun control.
>
> We value personal freedom, even if we don’t always agree what that means.
>
> Jobs here in the US are important.
>
> The right to peacefully assemble it important.
>
> Infrastructure is important.
>
> Healthcare is important
>
> Social security is important
From what I gather, the Right only wants rights and benefits for THEMSELVES, and they want all those they view as unlike themselves to be excluded. The Left wants those things for everyone. Big damn difference there. Also there’s a large or at least extremely vocal segment of the Right which doesn’t want a democracy, they want a theocracy. An astonishing number would be just fine with fascism.
My list:
The sun does rise in the east and does set in the west.
Gravity has to be taken into account.
Kind of stumped on anything else.
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### Author:  [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/8 "2017-11-20T20:21:21Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#):
>
> The peaceful transition of power is a good thing.
Really, really high on the list!
> [@](#):
>
> People should be generally free to practice their religion as they see fit.
Alas, a fair number of people on the right do not accept this, and want to restrict Muslims and others. There was a nasty case in the City of Escondido (CA) where a Krishna Temple was denied a building permit, on picayune objections that were not applied to nearly-identical Christian churches. This is an ideal that gets more lip-service than actual support.
> [@](#):
>
> Handguns should not be banned.
Dunno if this is a good example. It may not be a “yes/no” dividing line between left and right, but the respective proportions change dramatically. Compare it, if you will, to support for Gay Rights. It’s no longer valid to say that the right “oppose” Gay Rights; too much progress has been made for that to be true any longer. Rather, support among the right is statistically less than among the left.
> [@](#):
>
> We all hate the TSA.
I don’t… I have some objections in practice, but think they’re necessary to our safety.
One might add:
Vigilante Justice is bad. Get a policeman to make an arrest, don’t just lynch the criminal.
Pollution is bad. We don’t want to see a return to the days of smog and poisoned rivers. There is a statistical division regarding regulations, but no one wants to see Lake Erie as close to death as it was in the past. (There are still algae blooms and dead zones.)
There must be universal education. Even if kids are home-schooled, kids must be schooled. We cannot afford a major illiterate subpopulation. There are currently some Federal lawsuits arguing that literacy is a basic Constitutional Right. The left and the right might be able to agree on that.
Racism is bad. While the overt racists of our day tend to be from the right, they’re really a pretty darn minor segment of the population. It takes a creepy kind of batshit to come right out and declare for White Supremacy, and the vast majority of those on the right don’t go there.
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### Author:  [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/9 "2017-11-20T20:26:23Z")
I think we all believe in the right to vote for every citizen of voting age.
I think the confusion/breakdown comes from an understanding of the ease of which one is able to obtain the right proof of identity, and what proof should allow one to be able to vote.
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### Author:  [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/10 "2017-11-20T20:27:44Z")
- That government derives its just authority from the consent of the governed.
- Political violence is wrong.
- The rule of law.
And, unfortunately
- The most extreme of the other side is typical.
Regards,
Shodan
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### Author:  [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/11 "2017-11-20T20:56:51Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#):
>
> I think we all believe in the right to vote for every citizen of voting age.
>
> I think the confusion/breakdown comes from an understanding of the ease of which one is able to obtain the right proof of identity, and what proof should allow one to be able to vote.
No, this is a smokescreen put forward by conservatives when they enact voter suppression laws, but doesn’t match reality. When the NC legislature came up with their voter ID laws, for example, they specifically asked the elections board to provide a breakdown of voting methods and ID’s used, then passed a law that excluded ones predominately used by minorities, but didn’t touch those used more often by whites, even though some untouched methods like absentee voting actually has some evidence of fraud while the restricted ones didn’t. There is simply no way for a reasonable person to conclude that “voter ID” laws are actually intended to curb fraud or require reasonable proof of identity, instead they’re meant to hinder voters who traditionally vote Democratic more than Republican.
> [@http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-north-carolina-voter-id-law-20160902-story.html](#):
>
> “Is there any way to get a breakdown of the 2008 voter turnout, by race (white and black) and type of vote (early and Election Day)?” a staffer for the state’s Republican-controlled legislature asked in January 2012.
>
> “Is there no category for ‘Hispanic’ voter?” a GOP lawmaker asked in March 2013 after requesting a range of data, including how many voters cast ballots outside their precinct.
>
> And in April 2013, a top aide to the Republican House speaker asked for “a breakdown, by race, of those registered voters in your database that do not have a driver’s license number.”
>
> Months later, the North Carolina legislature passed a law that cut a week of early voting, eliminated out-of-precinct voting and required voters to show specific types of photo ID - restrictions that election board data demonstrated would disproportionately affect African Americans and other minorities.
>
> Critics dubbed it the “monster” law - a sprawling measure that stitched together various voting restrictions being tested in other states. As civil rights groups have sued to block the North Carolina law and others like it around the country, several thousand pages of documents have been produced under court order, revealing the details of how Republicans crafted these measures.
>
> A review of these documents shows that North Carolina GOP leaders launched a meticulous and coordinated effort to deter black voters, who overwhelmingly vote for Democrats. The law, created and passed entirely by white legislators, evoked the state’s ugly history of blocking African-Americans from voting - practices that had taken a civil rights movement and extensive federal intervention to stop.
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### Author:  [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/12 "2017-11-20T21:01:39Z")
IMO, as long as we agree that our nation is based on the Rule of Law (i.e. that nobody is above the law), all is not lost.
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### Author:  [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/13 "2017-11-20T21:02:25Z")
I think all sides agree that congress has become too partisan and doesn’t compromise enough in producing legislation that is good for the American people. Of course both sides disagree as to what compromise means.
I think all sides agree that the Middle class is not a prosperous as it once was and that this is a problem. But they disagree as to what the causes are and how to solve this.
Both sides agree that the deficit is too big, but both sides also agree that its not so much of a problem if their side is in power.
At this point it also seems that both sides are generally opposed to more Military adventurism. (although our leader may not be)
Both sides agree that Terrorism is bad, and that oppression of women and religious minorities in certain majority Muslim countries is bad. We just disagree as to whether this makes the Muslim religion/Muslims inherently bad. As a result those on the right don’t believe that those on the left oppose these things.
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### Author:  [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/14 "2017-11-20T21:16:47Z")
> [@Pantastic](#):
>
> No, this is a smokescreen put forward by conservatives when they enact voter suppression laws, but doesn’t match reality. When the NC legislature came up with their voter ID laws, for example, they specifically asked the elections board to provide a breakdown of voting methods and ID’s used, then passed a law that excluded ones predominately used by minorities, but didn’t touch those used more often by whites, even though some untouched methods like absentee voting actually has some evidence of fraud while the restricted ones didn’t. There is simply no way for a reasonable person to conclude that “voter ID” laws are actually intended to curb fraud or require reasonable proof of identity, instead they’re meant to hinder voters who traditionally vote Democratic more than Republican.
I understand that elected officials on the right are blatantly going out there trying to suppress voters. But in my humble experience, the actual voting public don’t understand why their tactics are a big deal. My parents routinely say “I showed my drivers license and I was able to vote. What is the big deal?” There is absolutely no way to impart to them that being stricken from rolls or being denied the right to vote is a thing. I think they would be against peoples’ right to vote being taken away if they could understand that is really does happen. I don’t think they can even fathom that it does happen.
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### Author:  [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)
#### Post date: [November 20, 2017, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/15 "2017-11-20T21:55:32Z")
> [@scr4](#):
>
> IMO, as long as we agree that our nation is based on the Rule of Law (i.e. that nobody is above the law), all is not lost.
That’s a biggie. At this point, both left and right can point to Supreme Court decisions they don’t like…both both left and right agree that these decisions are the law of the land, and cannot simply be ignored at will.
(This is the single most troubling thing about Alabama’s Roy Moore: he chose to ignore rulings from higher courts, including the Supreme Court. That’s the ugliest mark against him, even worse than his sexual transgressions.)
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### Author:  [@Tempe\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tempe_Jeff)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2017, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/16 "2017-11-21T00:45:58Z")
As usual, the hateful come out to play and insist, NO!
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### Author:  [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2017, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/17 "2017-11-21T00:55:01Z")
There are always a lot of things that are so commonplace that they don’t even register.
In Aus, the right-wing party once put up as a suggestion for a bill-of-rights, the “right to private ownership of property”. It was a kinda of private political insult that most people didn’t understand. The right to private ownership of property is such a fundamental right for most Australians of both parties that those that oppose it don’t even want to talk about it it.
Another one is car ownership. I see discussion here about gun ownership, but can you imagine either party coming out against car ownership? You know that plenty of NYC left-liberals don’t own cars, but can you imagine the party coming out against the right of other people to own cars?
Or how about food? Plenty of places in the world where eating pigs or cows will put you at risk of mob violence: you don’t see either American party taking a partisan stand on diet.
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### Author:  [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2017, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/18 "2017-11-21T02:09:50Z")
> [@Velocity](#):
>
> Facts and truth are extremely important. (The dispute is over \*who \*and \*what \*is correct.)
If conservatives agreed with this, Fox News and right-wing talk radio would be universally condemned, as well as websites like Breitbart and InfoWars.
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### Author:  [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2017, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/19 "2017-11-21T03:34:10Z")
If courses. As an extreme liberal, I used to have personal conversations with my friend, the local commander of the national guard about many divisive issues. All we need to do was to recognize that each other were reasonable and knowledgeable and thoughtful men of intellect, and to agree to keep the discussion civil. Adults ought to be able to do that.
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### Author:  [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2017, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-right-and-left-agree-on-anything-the-non-pit/802207/20 "2017-11-21T03:43:14Z")
I think most Americans, conservative and liberal, believe in some level of government-provided social services and infrastructure. There are, of course, disputes over the details.
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