I apologize for the lengthy introduction, but it seems necessary to set the scene for proper understanding.
This weekend I went on a snowboard trip with a friend who describes himself as "conservative." We had many hours in the car to go over political theory and stuff and describe our views to each other.
My friend said that he was pro-torture. He said that there were bad people out there that wanted to harm America and that the policies of the Bush administration have been instrumental in preventing another 9/11 style attack. He said that if torture could help keep him and his family safe, it was fine with him. I pushed him further on this matter to see if there was a limit. I asked him about if someone had no regard for their own well-being and then if torturing someone's wife or children would be OK, and he thought so. I asked about killing them. Like maybe killing the wife to show that we were serious about killing the kid too, and he thought that was acceptable too. In summary he felt that preventing another attack was more important than a few possibly innocent lives.
As the discussion rolled along, he often referred to liberals and democrats as the enemy. He railed against McCain-Feingold, not because it was ineffective or wrong, but what he saw as most disturbing about it was that McCain had collaborated with a liberal in crafting it. As I asked questions to try and understand his thinking on the matter it became clear to me that he thinks that there truly is a left-right dichotomy in this country. That conservatives are good and liberals are bad. He would support a stupid policy proposed by a conservative over a smart policy proposed by a liberal simply because he is a team player. He does not accept the idea that the left-right battle is merely for show and that the major political parties are really united against the people. That thinking is just plain crazy.
So now back to the subject at hand... this conversation all began with a discussion of where he could do early voting in Illinois (and my mistake in investigating this for him before him telling me his political positions oster_oops: ). I asked him who he planned to vote for in the primary. He said Romney. I asked why he likes Romney, and he started talking about Huckabee. I interrupted and said, "No, tell me about why you like Romney." He then started talking about McCain. I interrupted him again asking, "Why is it when I ask you about what you like about Romney, you start talking about other candidates?"
He said, "Because Romney is the one I have heard the fewest bad things about."
Interesting. So it is clear that he is voting republican. And he is choosing the republican that he has the least reason to dislike.
So, what are your thoughts about this oh wise and mighty s? Is it a good plan to choose the candidate that least offends you, or should you seek a candidate that you actually like? What role do you think his political opinions play in being willing to accept such a candidate?
This weekend I went on a snowboard trip with a friend who describes himself as "conservative." We had many hours in the car to go over political theory and stuff and describe our views to each other.
My friend said that he was pro-torture. He said that there were bad people out there that wanted to harm America and that the policies of the Bush administration have been instrumental in preventing another 9/11 style attack. He said that if torture could help keep him and his family safe, it was fine with him. I pushed him further on this matter to see if there was a limit. I asked him about if someone had no regard for their own well-being and then if torturing someone's wife or children would be OK, and he thought so. I asked about killing them. Like maybe killing the wife to show that we were serious about killing the kid too, and he thought that was acceptable too. In summary he felt that preventing another attack was more important than a few possibly innocent lives.
As the discussion rolled along, he often referred to liberals and democrats as the enemy. He railed against McCain-Feingold, not because it was ineffective or wrong, but what he saw as most disturbing about it was that McCain had collaborated with a liberal in crafting it. As I asked questions to try and understand his thinking on the matter it became clear to me that he thinks that there truly is a left-right dichotomy in this country. That conservatives are good and liberals are bad. He would support a stupid policy proposed by a conservative over a smart policy proposed by a liberal simply because he is a team player. He does not accept the idea that the left-right battle is merely for show and that the major political parties are really united against the people. That thinking is just plain crazy.
So now back to the subject at hand... this conversation all began with a discussion of where he could do early voting in Illinois (and my mistake in investigating this for him before him telling me his political positions oster_oops: ). I asked him who he planned to vote for in the primary. He said Romney. I asked why he likes Romney, and he started talking about Huckabee. I interrupted and said, "No, tell me about why you like Romney." He then started talking about McCain. I interrupted him again asking, "Why is it when I ask you about what you like about Romney, you start talking about other candidates?"
He said, "Because Romney is the one I have heard the fewest bad things about."
Interesting. So it is clear that he is voting republican. And he is choosing the republican that he has the least reason to dislike.
So, what are your thoughts about this oh wise and mighty s? Is it a good plan to choose the candidate that least offends you, or should you seek a candidate that you actually like? What role do you think his political opinions play in being willing to accept such a candidate?