You are an average Joe/Jane and you meet someone that is smoking hot (of your preferred gender). They are into you, but they happen to be diametrically opposite to you in your political and philosophical views. How far could you or would you be able to take the relationship, assuming they would meet you there as well?
Poll to come.
When I married my wife, I was a pretty staunch conservative from a family of conservatives. My wife from a family of all Democrats. Now, we both have moved quite a bit towards libertarianism. We never really took our political differences personally even though we have serious argued with each other about it, but we still don’t talk cross politics to our respective families. She takes things personally and I enjoy challenging views so it’s easier to keep politics out of family gatherings.
I think we could have some hot angry sex, but that’s about it.
I’m a liberal atheist. My wife, when I met her, was a conservative Catholic. She remains incorrigibly Catholic, but over the past 20 some-odd years her conservatism has mellowed quite a bit. She still opposes abortion for any reason, which is bloody insane, but she’s gotten over the ‘Gay thing’ and thank goodness, because I wouldn’t give up my Gay friends, even for her.
One of the reasons we’ve lasted as long as we have is to agree to not discuss religion at all. It’s also amazing to me how supposedly immovable convictions can be rationalized when the sex is consistently good. 
Famously, James Carville (D-Pundit) and Mary Matalin (R-Pundit) are married with children and say it works because politics is their job and they don’t discuss work at home.
Personally, assuming she felt as strongly about her views as I do mine, I don’t think a long term relationship would work out. Anything less than that could, though.
I don’t identify as a liberal or conservative and am not registered as a Republican or Democrat, so something else.
I really don’t think I’d even be able to get so far as having sex with someone whose opinions on any matter I consider important are the opposite of mine, I’m too grumpy. Come to think of it, I don’t even have friends who would strongly disagree with most of my views (unless you count my vegan friends, but they are sane/tolerant vegans). We’re pretty much all religiously and politically apathetic.
Or not at all.
It would be nightmarish but challenging. :rolleyes: I can’t imagine living with a Fox News channel… however considering my track record I’ve always went for the worst possible picks.
My boyfriend and I have pretty different political views. Different religious views too.
It works though. We’ve been together for years and we argue less than the average couple.
It’s not like it’s that uncommon for people’s views on these matters to evolve over time, so I think it’s silly to avoid dating someone over this issue.
In my case, I think it works because we respect each other and we can admit that people who disagree with us are not bad people.
If I found out that my boyfriend was ranting on messageboards about how anyone who disagrees with his political views is evil or crazy (the way some people do on here), then I would probably find it difficult to be with him, but he isn’t that sort of person.
Conservative female, just friends. (I think.)
Yeah. Just friends. Pretty sure I couldn’t crawl into bed with a commie.
If I picked my friends by their political affiliations, I’d have waay fewer friends.
I refuse to talk politics with people I actually like, which is why I come here. 
I’ve actually had the experience described in the OP. There was a woman I was intensely attracted to, but somewhere along the way she picked up the gospel of Glenn Beck and started aggressively pushing it. Looked for ways to drop it into conversation. At first I tried to debate, then to gloss over, then to ignore, then I just stopped talking to her.
Really, I think it’s more intensity than direction. I know plenty of live-and-let-live folk on both sides, and none of us ever feel the need to trot it out. It’s the evangelists who are difficult to deal with.
Liberal, female, taken so it’s kinda irrelevant anyway - but it depends entirely on what ‘conservative’ means in this context. There are a lot of social conservatives who will disagree with me on what constitutes people’s human and civil rights. These people I could not imagine myself dating, and have trouble maintaining friendships with. People who disagree with me on things like military and economic policy I can deal with. Luckily I don’t have this problem.
EDIT: Well, I guess you said ‘diametrically opposite’, so considering I’m all about racial and gender equality does that mean someone who thinks women and minorities should be enslaved or taken out and shot or something? Because then I’m going to go with the ‘run the hell away, and maybe get a restraining order’ option.
Why, they are quite conservative 
I’m a misotheist anarchist and my wife’s a Christian Scientist and a run-of-the-mill capitalist, I’d say that’s pretty philosophically opposed. But otherwise, we’re both liberal, Green and generally it never actually impinges on our relationship. Most of my friends are atheists or apatheists, but some are Christians and Muslims of the quieter sort. Very few of my friends are anarchists, and some are heavily into the MBA/trading/VC scene. I remain friends with them, and would gladly tumble one or two if I were single.
I couldn’t even be friends with a racist or a homophobe, though, never mind do the dirty. Those people who despise Sarah Palin “but would so do her” … [Buzz Lightyear]you have my pity[/BL]. Never stick your dick in the crazy.
I’m a female liberal and I dated a male conservative for a while, around the 2004 elections. When we first started dating I didn’t pay much attention to politics and he was a Young Republican.
By the end of the elections I hated his guts and I also remember having this epiphany about “how could I be with someone who agrees with THAT?!” He also turned out to be a colossal douchebag.
Since then I’ve been more cautious about the politics of my beaus. I tend to date other liberals or guys who don’t follow politics. I did date a Libertarian but he was cool, he respected my opinion.
My very best friend is a Conservative, but not a religious one. I told her once that she must be a really awesome person because I love her a lot but I hate her politics.
I’m a hard-core liberal, borderline Socialist, feminist, non-Christian but vaguely theist, pacifist, hippie-ish woman. And my husband is a Catholic Republican. Needless to say, we agree on very little politically, religiously, or philosophically.
But wow, he’s fun to debate! Due to mutual respect, we complement and balance each other nicely.
Well we’ve had one child together so far and no one loooks like leaving so I had to vote long term relationship.
But politics here are nowhere near as polarising as in America.
I remember once how I got startled after my suggestion of let’s examine things before inheriting beliefs were met by ‘how dare you question generations of my family’s political belief’. I guess I was hasty.
How far could I go? All the way definitely, 
but I wouldn’t let him sleep over.
Politics is (are?) not a factor that I select for when looking for a partner, and my partners have been all over the map. I have little interest in discussing politics with people close to me, so it rarely comes up. My wife is largely committed to one party, while my voting habits are whimsical, and we’re both fine with that.