# I'm A Liberal But... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 27, 2008, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483 "2008-06-27T18:56:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/21 "2008-06-27T21:47:29Z")
I’m a liberal, but… I don’t think we need any more gun control in this country. I support nuclear power. I think legal abortion is only barely the lesser of two evils, and have a lot of sympathy for people who are pro-life. I wish Roger Moore would shut up and go away. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/22 "2008-06-27T21:50:23Z")
I’m a conservative, but I think civil marriage should be allowed no matter what the gender of either participant. I’m a conservative, but I think that home-schooled children should have to pass annual standardize testing on all subjects, including science, or they would be required to go back to a regular school. I’m a conservative, but I’m against the death penalty. StG ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/23 "2008-06-27T21:51:49Z")
**Miller** - Roger Moore? James Bond? Maybe you mean Michael Moore. StG ---
**Author:** ![Mosier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ea924/32.png) [@Mosier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mosier)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/24 "2008-06-27T21:55:26Z")
I’m a liberal, but I hate lawyers and think the legal system is seriously flawed. I want serious and substantial cuts in lots of social programs. I want a big reduction in taxes, although paid for in mostly liberal ways (like reducing military funding). I want smaller government overall. ---
**Author:** ![gravitycrash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@gravitycrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gravitycrash)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/25 "2008-06-27T22:01:38Z")
I’m a conservative but… I’ve come around to allowing 1st trimester abortions, after they begin to look like little humans I can’t stand the thought. I used to be against gay marriage but changed my mind about this as well. I’m still not kosher with the adoption thing though. Not because I think that a gay couple couldn’t be wonderful parents. Kids can be so cruel as we all know, I think there would be considerable torment. I used to be pro- suv’s but I have somewhat changed my mind on this. It doesn’t really matter anymore. Dealerships can’t give those behemoths away, they sometimes will not even take them as trade ins. Damn! this board is corrupting me. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/26 "2008-06-27T22:04:26Z")
[QUOTE=StGermain] **Miller** - Roger Moore? James Bond? Maybe you mean Michael Moore. StG [/QUOTE] You’re right, I didn’t mean Roger Moore. I meant George Lazenby. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/27 "2008-06-27T22:06:53Z")
**Miller** - Now if you said Sean Connery, that would make some sense. StG ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/28 "2008-06-27T22:22:45Z")
Oh- I’m also a [nuke hugger](http://wearscience.com/design/hugger/) (I’m actually considering buying one of those shirts). ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/29 "2008-06-27T22:34:14Z")
I’m conservative, but… I’m sl-o-o-o-wly coming around on the death penalty issue (in part due to the Catholic church’s position on the issue, in part because imposing it has become so difficult in the current socio-political climate). ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/30 "2008-06-27T22:41:44Z")
I’m a liberal but . . . I strongly support the 2nd amendment, and I feel even more strongly that I shouldn’t have to add “but” after the word “liberal” to state that. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/31 "2008-06-27T22:44:59Z")
I’m a radical but… • I think you build something new that works _and then_ tear down the old system. • As critical as I am of the existing social system, I think it is long since past the point where you can go anywhere by force of arms & coercion from where we are except _worse_. • I believe in pragmatic assessments of what’s feasible at any given time. I may be opposed to law enforcement (eventually) but I don’t want jails or police officers to disappear this evening. I’d like a world with nothing akin to a government as we know it, but in the mean time I can distinguish between a somewhat representative western semi-democracy and a totalitarian regime. • I think it is of overwhelming importance for anyone far beyond the mainstream to make an awareness of their own fallibility central to their understanding of politics. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/32 "2008-06-27T22:45:04Z")
According to that quiz, I scored a 19. I tend to think of myself as a liberal, but I support nuclear power (even if we don’t figure out the waste problem right away). I’m opposed to most gun control. I think that many social service programs are wasteful and we’d be better off if the government just gave a bigger tax break to the targeted group. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/33 "2008-06-27T22:48:02Z")
I’m a liberal but… I have no ethical problems with the death penalty so long as the guilt is “beyond question” (not just the “12 high school dropouts think it’s beyond a reasonable doubt” but I’m talking airtight) and the crime appropriately heinous (i.e. there’s no reason Susan Atkins/Tex Watson needed to hang around for the past 39 years). I can’t stand it when liberal entertainers talk about their political views as if they’re some kind of expert (or liberal professors in a class that has nothing to do with the topic- yeah, I hate Bush too, explain again how this is relevant to astronomy?) I think that announcing a date for troop withdrawal in Iraq would be absolute disaster (“now you insurgents just behave yourselves til April 1 2010 and then we’ll be out of your way! Don’t go trying to jump the gun when we have a severely reduced presence… promise me!”) I think that people who are not permanently disabled and draw public assistance for longer than a certain period of time should be trained to do _something_ in the service of the government (ala CCC) if it’s not but wiping down tables in the Federal courthouse cafeteria I think that minimum wage should be decided upon on the local level (city/county moreso than state) rather than the federal I couldn’t stand John Kerry I think that sexually explicit entertainment and music really have undermined values in terms of teenaged sexual behavior I think the paparazzi should be severely curtailed (and I don’t think this is a violation of freedom of the press- 43 people chasing Britney Spears’ car on mopeds or hurling expletives to get a rise from John Travolta while he’s eating in an outdoor cafe just really aren’t what the Founders were talking about) ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/34 "2008-06-27T22:50:24Z")
I’m a liberal but… I think abortion is disgusting (although I’d never try to outlaw them) I think unions should not have as much power as they do I think Affirmative Action should be stopped in all it’s forms ---
**Author:** ![myskepticsight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cc9497/32.png) [@myskepticsight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/myskepticsight)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/35 "2008-06-27T22:54:26Z")
I’m a liberal, but: I’m not against the death penalty. Although there have been instances where people sentenced to death row have been exonerated, it enrages me when people take the life of other people in a criminal sense. If someone murdered any of my family, my friends, or my boyfriend, I would want that person dead. I don’t care if they are sorry. They took that person from me and they do not deserve to take another breath. And most murders I have heard about have been for completely stupid reasons, or no real reason at all. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/36 "2008-06-27T22:57:08Z")
I’m a liberal but sometimes I think: The welfare system still needs fixing. People behaving badly shouldn’t be given TV time. Some people shouldn’t be allowed to have children. ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/37 "2008-06-27T23:21:56Z")
I’m a liberal, but: I think that Social Security drastically needs to be reduced and possibly done away with. I fully support nuclear power. I think a lot of modern feminists need to shut up, reevaluate what’s really important, and learn how to have a discussion without flinging accusations. I don’t particularly like Obama, and I really dislike a lot of his supporters. I’m quite wary of unions. I think jobs should go to the best person for the job, absolutely regardless of race and gender. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/38 "2008-06-27T23:25:21Z")
[QUOTE=Sampiro] I can’t stand it when liberal entertainers talk about their political views as if they’re some kind of expert (or liberal professors in a class that has nothing to do with the topic- yeah, I hate Bush too, explain again how this is relevant to astronomy?) [/QUOTE] Yeah, this one is annoying. I was taking some college classes in the fall of 2004 and EVERY lecture and EVERY assignment in EVERY class seemed to be about how Bush was teh sux. It made me feel about my professors the same way I feel about Margaret Cho: “I agree with you, but could you please shut the hell up?” ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/39 "2008-06-27T23:29:36Z")
[QUOTE=kniz] [http://franz.org/quiz.htm](http://franz.org/quiz.htm) [/QUOTE] I went there and scored a 7 - so I guess I make Ted Kennedy seem kind of right-wing. Then again, I have tried desperately to think of one single thing I think Bush has done right in the past 7 1/2 years and I came up with zip. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2008, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483/40 "2008-06-27T23:32:11Z")
I’m a liberal but… -as much as I would love to see government support of the arts, it’s currently a luxury we just can’t afford. -I think people should have to pass a “political literacy test” before they can vote. Nothing too in depth- no “explain H.R. 92-724 (and no, we will not tell you what it was, you should know” or “How did Millard Fillmore meet his wife?” or partisan “Why should Bush be impeached?” questions, but something on par with the [INS Citizenship Test](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13442226/). I don’t think you should be allowed to vote if you don’t have some _basic_ understanding of U.S. government. -I believe English should be the official language of the USA and reasonable fluency a prerequisite for citizenship in all but emergency/asylum cases [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-a-liberal-but/454483.md?page=3)