# is there a conservative version of SDMB? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 21, 2010, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875 "2010-04-21T16:49:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2010, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/61 "2010-04-22T23:13:58Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > I doubt such a thing exists. > > Social conservativism is all about anger, moral righteousness, and self-indulgence. It is hard to imagine a board with a majority of those members being civil in debates with each other and the occasional liberal. > > Think about how conservatism’s goals. They want to dictate morals to everybody and anyone who disagrees is degrees of evil away from Satan. They think that people should be completely non-communal, they don’t want anyone messing with them in other words, and they always always consider themselves right, not because of facts, but because god tells them, or they just simply “know”. I would love to find a board filled with conservatives that can debate intelligently without resorting to the kind of name-calling and vile-spewing BS that conservative boards are known for. > > I think the very nature of conservatism makes such a board’s existence difficult [Moderator Warning]As has been pointed out before, these broad-brush political diatribes are off-topic in this thread, and are better suited for Great Debates. Infraction given.[/Moderator Warning] ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/62 "2010-04-23T18:13:15Z")
What about [uspoliticsonline.com](http://uspoliticsonline.com) ? Real message board with a minimum of stupidity, in my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![jcppp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ccd318/32.png) [@jcppp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jcppp)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2010, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/63 "2010-04-23T21:08:39Z")
I’ve been away from this board a long time, but reading this post makes me think that conservatives are not welcome or would not be treated with respect on this board. No wonder posters think that “the world has a liberal bias” or that there “just isn’t a lot to be defended about social conservatism” since it appears you guys have a pretty nice bubble going on here. I don’t know of any comparable boards on the right, but I think SD is unique since Cecil’s column brings up so many debatable topics each week and that attracts curious people. It is what it is. Most other boards are political or religious or whatever but not as eclectic as SD. Sorry, gotta go watch Beck now. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/64 "2010-04-24T04:11:26Z")
I honestly don’t know how the people who broadside conservatives in general find themselves to be different from Limbaugh et ilk. I can’t listen to him for 5 minutes without getting mad, and I’ve never voted Democrat. He’s a windbag with little time for evidence or discourse. But how do the statements here differ, except in side-of-the-court? ---
**Author:** ![Dostoyevsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5a626/32.png) [@Dostoyevsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dostoyevsky)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/65 "2010-04-24T04:33:10Z")
I’m not sure if this what the OP wants, but what about Free Republic? ---
**Author:** ![flickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7bcc69/32.png) [@flickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flickster)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/66 "2010-04-24T05:22:06Z")
I appreciate everyone’s suggestions. Not that I’m leaving here, but I found a couple more places to enjoy 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/67 "2010-04-24T11:11:53Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > The political compass might be more useful - there were some polls/debates on this a while back, but maybe it needs revisiting. I’m… not sure how accurate the political compass is, to be honest. I get compared with Jeremy Clarkson a lot in “real life”, and I find myself agreeing with probably everything he says and his views on pretty much everything- but according to the Political Compass, I’m further to the left than Gandhi or the Dalai Lama. Which is not something I - or anyone who actually knows me - is likely to agree with. In response to the OP, I find the best thing to do is refuse to be labelled politically. It’s not about whether you’re a “liberal” or a “conservative” overall, it’s how you feel on each individual issue. ---
**Author:** ![Dereknocue67](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6de8d8/32.png) [@Dereknocue67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dereknocue67)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/68 "2010-04-25T12:22:09Z")
I found a site originally set up for woodworkers but was expanded to include an “Off Topic” forum that includes a conservative majority. Political threads are common. In my opinion, it’s fairly low brow and should you visit, I think you will quickly see most members belong to a “All Against Obama and All Democrats for that matter” crowd. They love to gang up against the few less conservative posters and seldom use recognizable logic to defend or explain their rants. More of a far right wing Tea party crowd. I doubt any of them venture out to less conservative sites as they enjoy their strength in numbers majority at this site. If you enjoy endless/mindless/childlike zingers against Democrats, this site’s for you. [http://www.woodnet.net/forums/](http://www.woodnet.net/forums/) ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/69 "2010-04-25T18:54:48Z")
Most boards that have a declared political slant wind up being driven by partisanship, in my opinion. That applies to boards on both the left and the right. Daily KOS and HuffingtonPost and the like are going to have discussions that are just as wacky on the left as FreeRepublic can be on the right. Your best hope for good political debate is to find a board that is not primarily political but which contains a politics section. That way, the people who go there come from all kinds of political viewpoints, and you’re likely to get more balance when they talk politics. So if you want to find good conservatuve political discussions, seek out some message boards and blogs that aren’t overtly political, but in which the readers are more likely to trend to the right. Business-oriented sites, engineering sites, etc. I find that a lot of ‘grassroots’ hobbies like ham radio, RC modeling, private aviation, and the like tend to attract a more conservative crowd. Probably because they are mostly carried out by people who live in the suburbs or rural locations. The highest quality debates and discussions in terms of educational level seem to occur in the comment sections of blogs run by professors or professional academics like economists. If you check out the blogs of economists who tilt to the right, such as many at the University of Chicago or George Mason University, you’ll find a lot of right-wing participants who really know what they’re talking about. And, these blogs tend to be very civil and open to opposing viewpoints. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/70 "2010-04-25T23:20:04Z")
Yeah, but blog comments don’t offer quite the same arena for debate as a message board. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/71 "2010-04-25T23:40:05Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Most boards that have a declared political slant wind up being driven by partisanship, in my opinion. That applies to boards on both the left and the right. Daily KOS and HuffingtonPost and the like are going to have discussions that are just as wacky on the left as FreeRepublic can be on the right. > > Your best hope for good political debate is to find a board that is not primarily political but which contains a politics section. That way, the people who go there come from all kinds of political viewpoints, and you’re likely to get more balance when they talk politics. > > So if you want to find good conservatuve political discussions, seek out some message boards and blogs that aren’t overtly political, but in which the readers are more likely to trend to the right. Business-oriented sites, engineering sites, etc. I find that a lot of ‘grassroots’ hobbies like ham radio, RC modeling, private aviation, and the like tend to attract a more conservative crowd. Probably because they are mostly carried out by people who live in the suburbs or rural locations. Words Of Wisdom. ---
**Author:** ![Plan\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Plan\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plan_B)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2010, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/72 "2010-04-26T02:30:23Z")
You might try [redstate.com](http://redstate.com). Also, there used to be a board for University of Kentucky sports fans that leaned a little to the right, both fiscally and socially. And very stringent standards about what was acceptable. I’m guessing that it could be found without too much effort. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2010, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/73 "2010-04-26T04:28:09Z")
RedState typically bans liberal posters (though only fiscally liberal ones). ---
**Author:** ![IdahoMauleMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/71c47a/32.png) [@IdahoMauleMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IdahoMauleMan)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2010, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/74 "2010-04-26T05:16:36Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Most boards that have a declared political slant wind up being driven by partisanship, in my opinion. That applies to boards on both the left and the right. Daily KOS and HuffingtonPost and the like are going to have discussions that are just as wacky on the left as FreeRepublic can be on the right. > > Your best hope for good political debate is to find a board that is not primarily political but which contains a politics section. That way, the people who go there come from all kinds of political viewpoints, and you’re likely to get more balance when they talk politics. > > So if you want to find good conservatuve political discussions, seek out some message boards and blogs that aren’t overtly political, but in which the readers are more likely to trend to the right. Business-oriented sites, engineering sites, etc. I find that a lot of ‘grassroots’ hobbies like ham radio, RC modeling, private aviation, and the like tend to attract a more conservative crowd. Probably because they are mostly carried out by people who live in the suburbs or rural locations. > > The highest quality debates and discussions in terms of educational level seem to occur in the comment sections of blogs run by professors or professional academics like economists. If you check out the blogs of economists who tilt to the right, such as many at the University of Chicago or George Mason University, you’ll find a lot of right-wing participants who really know what they’re talking about. And, these blogs tend to be very civil and open to opposing viewpoints. Would agree with this. General aviation, banking and professional investing sites attract a mix of people who are often self-made and successful, but who also interface with the government and governmental regulation on a frequent basis. They talk about the bad and the good of same…which leads to good political discussions. I’ve also seen some good outdoor adventure sites, especially if they have a high % of people who actually want to use the land for hunting or fishing, as opposed to just stopping all development in the name of preserving the wilderness. One thing I’ve noticed on this board are the phenomenally high post rates of certain posters in Great Debates, with a correspondingly high correlation to employment in either (1) the government (2) academia or teaching or (3) no work at all, due to a disability or some other reason. My experience is that people in those 3 buckets tend strongly to the left side of the political spectrum. ---
**Author:** ![Plan\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Plan\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plan_B)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2010, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/75 "2010-04-26T21:22:30Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > RedState typically bans liberal posters (though only fiscally liberal ones). I didn’t know that, are you sure? Also, is it a matter of politeness or point of view? Forgot to mention: [freerepublic.com](http://freerepublic.com) is also worth a try. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2010, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/76 "2010-04-26T23:42:21Z")
Quite sure. I hope you’re joking about [freerepublic.com](http://freerepublic.com). Not only is it populated by morons, they ban not only liberals but conservatives who don’t support the right candidates (Giuliani, for example). ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2010, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/77 "2010-05-01T01:41:50Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Quite sure. > > I hope you’re joking about [freerepublic.com](http://freerepublic.com). Not only is it populated by morons, they ban not only liberals but conservatives who don’t support the right candidates (Giuliani, for example). I know I’ve been scathed for supporting Mitt Romney and someone else I know was banned for supporting Ron Paul. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2010, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/78 "2010-05-01T02:56:35Z")
From where I sit, this is a slightly bright wing site. It is pro-corporate, pro-military and pro-war. It scoffs at Green Energy, is pro nuclear power, loves off shore drilling ( maybe a little less now). It is strongly anti union and has no use for teachers. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2010, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/79 "2010-05-01T04:01:28Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > From where I sit, this is a slightly bright wing site. It is pro-corporate, pro-military and pro-war. It scoffs at Green Energy, is pro nuclear power, loves off shore drilling ( maybe a little less now). It is strongly anti union and has no use for teachers. I don’t know what universe you are from. But most Dopers seem to be sceptical of corporations and military interventionism among other things. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2010, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875/80 "2010-05-01T08:24:34Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > From where I sit, this is a slightly bright wing site. It is pro-corporate, pro-military and pro-war. It scoffs at Green Energy, is pro nuclear power, loves off shore drilling ( maybe a little less now). It is strongly anti union and has no use for teachers. I’m inclined to agree. Maybe I’m a commie or something. In truth, I really, honestly have no use for political labels (I know the world seems to - so there’s no need for anyone to point this out to me). I participate in debates here, but I don’t automatically think of certain positions as ‘conservative’, ‘liberal’, etc. And I’m not exaggerating at all when I say that the only time I identify a poster as conservative is when they’re whining about liberal bias or some such, and vice versa. I’m interested in what people have to say for the value of what it is, whether it makse sense and whether it works, not what group of people consider themselves to own it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-conservative-version-of-sdmb/536875.md?page=5)