why are so many dopers liberal?

[Sofa_King]

Uh, just what conservative Star Chamber is doing the expulsions here? What’s you’ve written is not true. A conservative is perfectly free to be a “freethinker”, as it were. There is no official line to toe. Conservatives are no more tight-knit than liberals. We come in hundreds of flavors.

I respectfully disagree, bordelond. But hey, I can’t prove it, so you certainly get to keep your marbles. I’ll just point out that right now, John McCain and Jim Jeffords probably don’t agree with you, either. You may be a free-thinking conservative, but do you get to wear the elephant ears? Many don’t.

[Fibonacci]

*Originally posted by TwistofFate *
**Lets look at it like this.

World and local events influence what topics are discussed. lets take from the last election onwards.

At the Election, it is safe to say that both sides came out in fairly equal numbers to discuss the election.

with the ensuing debate caused by the events surrounding the Election, the board took a jump to the left, settled back to normal. (which, IMO is center right). The board was creeping to the left with the AWNR, Kyoto, and “Star Wars” discussions, before 9/11 pushed the board extreme right for a brief while, and now has settled back to normal.

Events determine the political mood of this board. **

So, in other words this is not so much a board as it is a moebius strip.
We’re all on the same side (fighting ignorance) and it just appears that some of us are on the wrong side at a given moment/point of view.

[Musicat]

*Originally posted by bordelond *
So what’s that – Ashcroft is uber-conservative, and therefore irredeemably bad somehow? Ashcroft never had a good idea in his life?

But that boy sure can sing. A Streisand he is.

Whoops – was that a liberal statement?

[Doubting_Robert]

I love this board, and this thread is a good example of one of the reasons why. Political questions are among the most emotional ones, and yet most of the posters to this thread have remained reasonably calm and polite.

*Originally posted by Shagnasty *
**I identify myself as a Libertarian (socially liberal, economically conservative) but I tend to side more to the Republican party in practice. The reason is simple. All the debates about abortion, gay rights, and other social issues never actually go anywhere in practice. Important fiscal decisions get made all of the time. **

Like Shagnasty, I generally think of myself as socially liberal and economically conservative, although I would not call myself a Libertarian. (Most of the Libertarians running for office around here sound way too much like Anarchists for my taste. I would not like to live under a highly authoritarian government, but no government at all sounds just as bad to me.)

Also like Shagnasty, I tend to vote Republican, but that may be more because my father did than for any good reason. I think that on many issues, I have become more liberal with age. I think that my parents were both socially liberal and economically conservative, although I am not at all sure how either of them felt about many issues.

I have just said that I consider myself socially liberal and economically conservative, but there are some social issues where I am conservative, and some fiscal issues where I am liberal. I try to think about issues as separate entities, without worrying about who might agree or disagree with me.

For those of you who are about to berate me for voting Republican blindly, I don’t. In recent elections, I have voted for Republicans, Democrats, at least one Libertarian, and members of one or two other parties.