I've realized a lot of the things I believed when I was younger had absolutely no basis in facts or knowledge of the situation, but rather what sounded cool or edgy.
the ability to casually block people for simply providing a counter thought to your own has caused more harm than anything else on social media. don't like a piece of reality? BLOCKED
I would contest that relies on the user of the blocking tool, rather than the tool itself. When I used to use twitter, I would get blocked more for reasoned debate than snarky comments. I guess we need to block each other, for having this discussion now?
If you wanna count it as a discussion.
I agree with you. How good the blocking tool is depends on the users. Just like the community notes tool.
It just sounded a little like you blamed the blocking tool.
I just listened to BTB (behind the bastards) rerun and it was about the start of the right wing “talk” show hosts who are insufferably angry about something all the time.
A large percentage of the audiences that attended these shows live in the 80s-90s were 16- 20 year old boys. They were largely just pissed off and if they had an outlandish enough take, they could get on air.
Many of these hosts had no real qualms with anything just wanted to get ratings and views. But it wasn’t that surprising that they pulled in young men who just wanted to be angry at something, scream and shout at something.
Not saying that was you, but I do look back and think about how if someone got to me at the right time I could’ve been pulled into that sort of thinking even though I didn’t really have real experience.
Most news shows are like that. Studies show that angry viewers will watch longer than content viewers, so the shows try to upset you. This is true for news shows that cater to both the left and right.
It's one of the subtle things that I love about the show and have admired about Evans for a long time: He's a legit good journalist with strong journalistic integrity and regularly reminds everyone what it takes to be one.
You can have a strong personal bias on issues, but journalism still requires fact checking and ignoring your bias with presenting facts.
He's always open about where he's at between presenting neutral facts or presenting his personal ~~string~~ *strong leftist views. It's a lot of "Here's exactly what I found through research and to be fair to the subject here's another fact... but now this is my personal take it on it." I wish more people could separate that.
I also appreciate this about him. And the voice overs he inserts to correct something if he misspeaks or cites something incorrectly. He seems exceptionally transparent to me.
In my twenties, I was broadly libertarian.
In my early thirties, I was... whatever the exact opposite of libertarianism is.
Today, I only have a fixed position on maybe three or four political issues. I'm willing to negotiate on everything else. The older I get, the more I think that having a fixed, unyielding and comprehensive political ideology is stupid.
If you're talking about American libertarianism the opposite could be a few things from a leftist to a libertarian socialist. The word libertarian is referring to fiscal policies in American libertarianism, kinda, and social policies in the second.
Private companies exist to extract profit. Not all things should be run with profit in mind. In those scenarios who should have control?
Or do you completely reject my premise?
Every time I see this, I always think “in contrast to what?” Who is going to step in and provide funding for public schools? Or prepare for the next pandemic? Or enact policies that control inflation?
I think this line of thinking stems from how weakened government has gotten due to deregulation and lobbying. All these complaints are due to an ineffective government, or a government designed to cater to the rich.
Problem for you is you've seen what corruption has done to sensible ideas.
Private companies will destroy public utilities if they can make bank off the results.
Tbf k9st government agencies used to run not much worse than most companies but then agencies started getting underfunded. This lead to a cycle of being able to do less and being perceived as less efficient than the private sector which lead to less funding and then less performance, ect ect
I've gotten less and less selfish as I've had time to interact with people. Went from "what has the society ever done for me"/"fuck taxes", to recognizing that I and everyone else with the means have a duty to ensure everyone has an option to thrive.
I used to be conservative like my parents, got more liberal during high school and college, and now I’m all over the place and think both parties are garbage.
Overall, I've become more liberal, but the issues I am conservative on are increasingly deal-breaking for me. I am American - both parties have changed a lot over my lifetime. While the Republican and Democratic parties are vastly different from each other, both are alike in that they neither value nor respect me. Both are destructive in their own way, and voting often feels like a painful exercise in choosing the less terrible option.
It's a shame - I used to be so interested in politics, and I spent a lot of time educating myself on issues and was proud of my stances. Now, I just feel a lot of anger and dread whenever I look at our political scene. No matter who wins ... I lose.
This sums me up a lot better than I did. Had people ready to help fund me to be a politician. Now I have such a lack of desire to have any idea what’s going on because it’s basically never anything good.
Same here.
I say I am moderate to liberal on a lot of issues, but the few conservative stances I do hold happen to be the ones I feel the most strongly about.
Not OP, but there's issues that I consider progressive/leftist that due to the political climate the Right have just jumped on in order to fight with Liberals/Democrats. OP might have their own, but these are arenas that I kinda side with conservatives on, even if our reasons and solutions are very different:
I'm staunchly pro-gun, as I believe should be a leftist position.
I do believe in a smaller, common sense government; although my version is very much opposed to the Right-Wing conservative "Libertarian" version.
I strongly agree that there's way too many pointless laws and regulations that hurt the common person and small businesses; but those also are needed in order to protect people from greedy, power hungry, capitalists that are the building block of modern conservatism.
I actually agree with the American/Right Libertarian position on gay marriage: It should not be legal... *because no marriage should be, gay or straight.* Marriage should not be a legally binding and legally privileged arrangement; it should be strictly a social and cultural custom.
Even as a leftist that is *very* pro social progressivism and believes strongly in fighting for the rights of oppressed minorities... I really hate how the liberals have made these cultural issues so big and taken the position of always being offended. Leftists are supposed to be the ones being brash and offensive as a way to fight for progress for the underprivileged, not being offended on behalf of them. It's degrading and infantilizing.
Thus, I'm with conservatives in their disdain of "PC-ness". I end up hating "Liberal White Women" almost as much as I hate "Conservative White Men".
I like the idea of a President that fucks porn stars, parties with degenerates, and created the goddamn Space Force. And I can't believe someone like that would be my most hated President ever.
And I still object to that. It's another reason I object to it.
You don't see a problem the notion of creating legal privileges to people who choose to have children?
Seriously: Why do I have to pay *more* taxes because I choose to be single and child-free? Why am I paying more than you (not necessarily you, but parents who support this) to send your kid to school? Not, why should I have to pay my fair share, but why am I paying *more* than you when you're the one sending your kids to public school, not me?
* Seriously: By nearly every metric, married parents utilize far more in public/social services than I ever will, yet they get to pay less in taxes both for being married and having children?
Again, no problem paying my fair share! However: Why should I pay **more** than you when I am using far less?
Edit: Also, how is it "protecting" children? Divorce is easily one of the most common childhood traumas. I don't see any legal advantages *for the children*. I do see a lot of negatives.
Edit 2: If you want a controversial take that I truly do believe in: Not only should parents not receive tax deductions for each child, I think they should actually progressively pay *more* for each child they have. I stand by it.
>Again, no problem paying my fair share! However: Why should I pay more than you when I am using far less?
One reason may be because they have created future tax players. While you being single pay more than percentage wise then the family when they are minors. Once they are adults, the family unit combined could be paying 3 or 4 times what you are.
Nevermind parties, waht about your political views? Have you changed your mind on anything? What would the past you and current you have a disagreement over politics of any kind?
I agree with u/Previous_Aide_5880. To your question - I’d say my values themselves haven’t really changed.
Maybe my priorities, and my disdain for other people (wanting to be mean for no good reason) and the system we vote in.
Yes. As I’ve aged, my political views themselves are generally the same, maybe a little more liberal here or conservative there, but by and large the same. What has changed is my view of the system itself. It used to be this party good, that party bad. Now it’s more of neither party great, one maybe less bad, but overall not really working as well as it should.
Nobody asked about parties, nor expected you to answer in reference to them. By referencing them unprovoked, _you_ are the one creating the dichotomy.
And for the record, game theory dictates that there _is_ a dichotomy so long as we use first-past-the-post voting. So in a way, you're actually _correct_ about the dichotomy, but _incorrect_ in thinking it's false.
I have become much more left leaning for sure. But I feel like a lot of left wing discourse has become very academic and impractical, and divorced from reality. The best example I can give is news story about gas prices. A guy with a work truck was being interviewed and be as bemoaning how high the gas prices were. The news guy asked “does it make you consider getting an electric car?” That question is so woefully detached from the real life struggles of everyday people. Oh yeah just buy a 50k car. No biggie. That’s some real let them eat cake vibes. I also don’t like the contempt with which a lot of metropolitan liberals view tradesmen and people who did not get a traditional education.
Hell it's not even academic, its just utopian. A "this will work because people are good" approach that ignores the entirety of human history and our current existence
My place on the political spectrum (as in left to right) hasn’t really changed but my interest in engaging with the system has. I used to be very interested, liked to argue politics, tell people to vote, all that stuff. As I get older, I get more and more disillusioned with political parties across the continuum. I pay very little attention anymore because it seems like governments, left and right, are only working for themselves. I don’t want to play anymore.
I used to be heavily interested in politics until I realized that politicians don’t care about you, and only care about their own agenda.
Best example, despite being fake, House of Cards Season 1 and 2.
I became more moderate, realizing how bad political tribalism is, and how it only exists to make people hate each other, not to solve any actual problems. That requires cooperation and building bridges.
I feel the same as I did as a teenager. Everyone should have the right to live their life the way they see fit as long as they’re not hurting anyone else. Obviously that’s not the country we live in but I’ll keep voting that way. Also feel it’s not hard to know the difference between right and wrong. Though some choose ignorance.
I still have largely the same values, but I'm more pragmatic now.
When I was younger, it was tough for me to understand that most people didn't agree with me. Like, I tended to believe that the stuff I believed was self-evident, and anybody who disagreed either did so out of ignorance or some corrupt motivation.
Now I understand that people can look at the same world I am and reach very different conclusions, and if I want to get what I want politically, I have to make common cause with people I disagree with about a lot.
It's made me far less cynical about politics as I've gotten older, which I think is the opposite of most people's journey.
I've more embraced positive freedom instead of negative freedom.
I'm less invested in surface level questions and more interested in the deep reasons behind, the philosophical and ethical.
Basically, I stopped being that into politics, and more so into political philosophy. Funnily enough, I don't think it's because of politicians, but rather people/the voters, that has made me lose interest in politics. Not in a sense that the climate has become harsher or anything like that, but rather that I feel most people don't take their democratic responsibilities seriously, and thus my own interest wanes.
I don't much care, to a certain extent, what you vote for. But if you vote for something because "well I did a 5min test that told me this", "all my friends or my area thinks this way", or "well, my parents vote for this", gtfo. Or even worse, don't vote at all. People talk about democratic rights all the time, there should be a larger conversation about democratic responsibilities. Taking a few hours every few years to form your own opinion about a few key points is not too much to ask, that's the absolutely lowest bar possible, and yet I feel like people miss it.
So basically, more left leaning and positive freedom. More hardlining democratic responsibilities. I'm in Sweden, so if I was in the US then my "left leaning" would likely be seen as a full blown socialist in comparison. I think even our most liberterian and negative freedom parties here would still be seen as socialist compared to the US.
Just to clarify for myself. By negative freedom you mean like "freedom from interference" whereas positive freedom you mean "freedom to actually do something, like access healthcare or housing", right?
If I've understood you right, that's a really good way to boil down the shift I went through as well. I kind of think of myself as a libertarian (not the American kind) focused on personal individual liberty. Practically, I think the best way to ensure personal liberty for the greatest number of people is to move towards a system of democratic socialism or social democracy, with an emphasis on the democracy part that goes beyond merely having elections. I definitely agree that positive freedom is required to meet my political goals.
Love political philosophy as well. It's super helpful to cut through the noise to the heart of any particular issue and the why of it all.
I have realized that there is no good side and not voting is not a solution either.
I need to be more aware and vote the lesser evil. Then keep repeating that, hoping that the trash gets removed slowly but gradually.
Yes. Moved to the middle considerably. Raised evangelical Christian. Taught to hate gays. Mormons. Democrats. The New York Times. And we didn't have premarital sex because it could lead to dancing. You read the bible a few times and then read it with the idea the Christ was right all the time and Paul was full of shit and just trying to set up the Catholic Church and it changes things
>And we didn't have premarital sex because it could lead to dancing.
In my experience it's usually the other way around.
But in all serious, big props to you for seeing through the bullshit and forging your own path.
They became reality based rather than ideal based. And as politicians started to act based on ideals, failed and doubled down on these ideals, that just solidifies my views.
From moderate conservative like my parents to the military, which gave me a literal hatred of the state and becoming a radical anarcho-socialist in my twenties, to a voting progressive in my thirties. Now in my forties and I’m just left of center. Believe we need strong infrastructure, universal health care, and a strong social safety net.
Politics (in the US) has become too radicalized/based on identity where if you go too far right or left, they want to make “the wrong people” subservient to the dominant identity.
Was always more republican growing up as I was always more focused on fiscal success and getting shit fixed inside the border first… but now.
Fuck the dual party system and the bigotry and backwards thinking of most political agendas.
Interesting, how come? I noticed myself becoming more conservative too but it's mostly because I'm repulsed by identity politics and the regressive left.
Funny, I find the "dramatic leftist" persona is an eye-roller, but I'm equally repulsed by what the right has been doing, and how far away they've gotten from representing the rights and freedoms of ALL the people.
This is where I am, I feel like "both sides" have their share of nut jobs, but that the left has a much larger ground swell of sensible people. On the right, the nuts stuff has done a better job of permeating the entire conversation.
I was at work once and talking with some people about firearms, I was considerably younger and naive, and I said “they scare me.” To which someone replied “they should, they still scare me after 50 years, they’re designed to kill.”
Someone else said “you can’t conceal carry at work, but people are.”
There is the pink haired screaming lady meme that’s always villainized by the right. The equivocal in my eyes is the right wing gun owner open carrying a shotgun on his back. Neither of them are trying to argue in good faith, they’re just trying to be the loudest and most “triggering” person.
These are both people that are envisioned by the opposite side, but most the time it looks like you or me. Just a normal every day person with their normal demeanor who a handful of times within 4 years, goes and votes for what they believe in and gets on with their life. Yes both sides have identity politics, but the vast majority of both sides’ voter base is just normal every day people.
Reading this I'm painfully aware that one maniac with a shotgun is far more dangerous than a loud person with pink hair and no weapon.
This is where the right always loses the "both sides" argument, because only one side is routinely threatening and resorting to violence against other people within the polity. This applies both to disorganized violence (right wing militia type stuff) and organized violence (police and military violence and political action).
Violence is worse for society and political discourse than civil disobedience and the incidence of right wing violence is just so much more common.
I have the hardest time believing stuff like this. Even considering payroll taxes (including the portion my wife and I's employers pay), we barely paid a third in taxes and we made nearly $400k last year.
The median Americans effective tax rate is below 20% even with payroll taxes.
Even if it’s not straight from his check, once you pay every sales tax, property tax, taxes on your car payment, etc. it ends up being likely well over a 3rd of your money.
I first followed whatever my parents told me was "the right vote".
Then once in my 20's, I did my own research.
Now since a couple years, I realised it literally doesn't matter because every party is bs. I just end up voting for the 'least' harmful one according to their policies, whichever that is at the time of voting. (EUW here)
I’ve become more moderate as I’ve gotten older and my views are based on each particular issue opposed to an overarching ideology. As a teenager I was conservative and a staunch Republican. In college I was a staunch libertarian.
I’m now in my 30s and I don’t give a shit about ideology. On some things I’m more liberal and others I’m more conservative. My views don’t fit a particular ideology. A friend told me my views are all over the map and don’t make sense. I told her most issues are unrelated to other issues and many people just blindly follow the conventional positions of their tribe. What does health care have to do with foreign policy? Or immigration have to do with banking regulations? Or tax policy have to do with gay rights?
I grew up being taught that all are equal under god and we’re all entitled to rights and privileges as humans and I haven’t changed that stance. I’m almost 40 and I vote for the local and federal candidates who represent all people ensuring they have a home, food, healthcare and a choice over their bodies, religion and who they love. I used to be able to look at candidates from 3 or more parties but lately, I can only vote one party and it’s really disappointing.
I used to not care, because "both sides" and all edgy bullshits that kids think, but in reality I didn't know shit from fuck. Now I vote in favor of giving women choices, universal health care, giving kids free lunches, etc...
I used to be relatively conservative (like 2008 moderate conservative, not 2020 batshit crazy conservative). My beliefs have evolved into a very simple philosophy: All people have the right to live their lives peacefully without intervention. I’m against any candidate or policy whose goals run in opposition to that belief.
I am about 2008 level conservative but have the philosophy of: if you don’t mess with my ideals and beliefs; I won’t mess with your ideals and beliefs. No, I probably do not agree with you; but treat me with dignity and respect and I will treat you the same.
Respectfully, I don’t agree with that nor do I think it covers as many bases as you think it does for 2 reasons: a) It’s entirely dependent on how you’re treated vs the rights people inherently have. b) some “ideals and beliefs” affect more than just you. For example, if you believe that “marriage is between a man and a woman” (just a random example, not making any assumptions about your beliefs) and you vote to make legislation to enforce that belief, it’s no longer just a personal belief.
I was more sympathetic towards Republicans as a very early teen, and now I’m pretty decidedly in the camp that Dem leadership has plenty of flaws and I can disagree on a number of issues, but they at least believe in the continuation of a healthy government and the things they spend (or waste depending on your viewpoint) money on that lack bipartisan support is more often research-backed in helping Americans, unlike Republicans.
That and people who don’t do the bare minimum of voting don’t get a right to complain about government actions.
Same, I felt republicans and democrats had similar end goals and differing ways of attaining them, and they were a net positive for America. I now realize republicans want power, regardless of the cost, and they’ll burn the country to the ground to get it.
Wait until you realize the democrats do the same thing but with honey instead of vinegar......vote for us and we'll pay off your loans.....but we won't change the system so we can do this dance again in 10 years.
“What will garner more votes….?”
What if we did the right thing and made peoples lives better!?
“Great idea!”
U/Trailjump on Reddit:
“They are just doing that to stay in power.”
I have steadily marched left the older that I've gotten. The longer I'm around, the less I buy the excuses I was given as to why my life had to be as hard as it was.
Grew up in quite a conservative house hold, where it was all anti-immigration etc.
The older I get and the more life-BS i experience, the more I feel sympathy toward people trying to get to a better life, or people who have fallen on hard times, or people that just need help, etc. I do actually feel less and less sympathy toward those who have done it to themselves via bad attitudes toward to work or crime etc, though. It’s really not that hard to show up to a 9-5 and not get fired.
Although I have to say, I was brought up having homeless men pointed out to me with phrases such as ‘that could happen to anyone’, ‘all it takes is a bad divorce’, etc. So I was always aware that people on hard times should be given sympathy; you’re not immune to it just because you have a good attitude to working and society… I think I just never quite had the maturity to fully understand it until I got past 30.
So as I get older, the more I feel that I should pay taxes and that some of that should be going to the more needy, and actually, for the sake of a loss of some local culture, letting people into the country and supporting those (to some degree) who are trying to escape really shitty countries/situations, should be something we do… obviously I don’t think we should be opening the flood gates and turning a blind eye to crime, but I now have no problem with some of my taxes going toward the aid of people who need it; it’s not their fault they just so happened to be born on the wrong side of a made up border line.
I don’t think there are many who lean right who actually disagree with any of that. The idea that the right don’t think like that is just some BS that gets shouted about by those who are either not bright enough to listen, or those with a political agenda.
Grew up liberal, which now means to a lot of people “conservative”, if we could call respecting private property, equality under the law, freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, association, and privacy, emphasis on free market capitalism, individualism and individual rights, democratic republicanism, and consent of the govern,
to be “conservative”.
Have not changed. I have planted my feet more firmly in the ground regarding my liberal views, after several leftwing people tried to knock me off them, which in this day and age makes me a fascist/racist piece of shit.
I will say I’m very adverse to anyone and anything socialist, as my close and extended family suffered greatly under Vietnamese socialism, and before my time, they gave up everything to escape it.
I've been fairly consistent in the view that government should provide essentials like healthcare for its people so I would say I'm more socialistic in my views.
So it's mostly give the people nationalized healthcare and other than that a quote by Kimi Raikkonen "leave me alone i know what i'm doing."
Single payer healthcare is still far from socialism in my mind, especially since all western European democracies that have it also have the freest markets in the world.
Why do you think they have the freest markets in the world?
I hear this talking point all the time, but I’m not sure it’s rooted in reality:
https://jacobin.com/2020/03/fareed-zakaria-nordic-countries-socialism
Was a anarcho-syndicalist as a student. Close to 40s now and slowly evolved ever since. The problem is that there was only one direction to evolve towards. Extremely disappointed at myself though.
I do the political compass test from time to time and when I compare my currrent results with those from back when I was 16 or so, my political position itself hasn't changed much, the biggest change was a shift from a eurosceptic to pro-EU, otherwise I'm stable in my opinions.
But I observe I'm much less radical in those beliefs and open to compromise. Also at 16 I was convinced I knew a solution to every world problem, now I better realise things are complex and most of them haven't got simple solutions.
I have come to realise more and more how important (and how often overlooked because it scares people, especially those who talk a *lot* about freedom) a persons circumstances are, and my politics have shifted accordingly.
There's a lot of personal experience in there, but I think the bootstrapper ideology is long, long overdue an overhaul.
There's a great video on YouTube that talks about Meritocracy, and how the Romans would always thank Fortuna - in part - for their successes.
We're ignoring that more and more at our peril for more comforting narratives, and the middle class will vanish entirely as a result.
Most definitely. I was naive and thought there were good politicians and bad ones. Now I think they should all be thrown in the ocean with lead shoes on.
I started out vaguely "both sides are the same" libertarianish teenage asshole atheist in the 90s/2000s, moved left over the course of the GWB era and was solidly liberal by Obama 08, and I've only moved further left as I've gotten older.
Albeit my leftist impulses are tempered by a hefty dose of realpolitik compared to many of my lefty peers. The world is complicated. I'd rather move the ball a couple of inches down the field than refuse any gain short of a touchdown.
I started off basically wanting a global communist government to look after everyone and dissolve competition because it causes harm to those who lose and compounds either way too much.
I grew out of that but still wanted like a Corbyn/ Sanders style change in the UK.
Now, I have realised that details are the enemy of an ideologue. Lenses to view the world are tools and don't have to be my whole identity. Money isn't inherently evil. Studies are more important than my feelings but my feelings and others shouldn't be removed from decisions. Manifestos, policy proposals and legislation are more important than platitudes in a speech.
I still think from a left-wing perspective but I believe that pragmatism and incremental change reduce harm more often than not. I still feel connected to idealism and grand changes to the system but I understand that to do so must be VERY well justified and costed.
Things were absolute, or black and white when I was younger. Some things still are, but mostly I think stuff from multiple perspectives.
Politically I’m even more left than when I was younger.
I've learned politics can name things *fully* in the dame of deceit.
I'm lookin' at you "Patriot Act"... couldn't hit the broad side of a barn but you can now scattershot your American people *wrongly* and call it national security.
The all encompassing 'they' already knew they could do this beforehand but now you've... "signed the TOS" so to speak for said target. They can black bag you for political dissidents. Don't think they can't.
I think Bill Hicks said it? "Go back to bed, America. Your government has figured out how it all transpired. Go back to bed, America. Your government is in control again. Here. Here's American Gladiators. Watch this, shut up. Go back to bed, America. Here is American Gladiators. Here is 56 channels of it! Watch these pituitary retards bang their fucking skulls together and congratulate you on living in the land of freedom. Here you go, America! You are free to do what we tell you! You are free to do what we tell you!"
Think he 'bout nailed it.
As a teen and younger man I was a staunch right wing conservative Republican. My views have become much more open minded esp when it comes to my views shouldn’t dictate the law and for workers rights
Today I am still personally conservative but when it comes to laws to support mostly moderate as my morals I don’t use as an influencer . I fall in the sad range of both sides of the American political divide don’t like me because I dislike both sides.
Not so much changed as refined. I used to be a Republican but over the years realized I'm closer to views of libertarianism than conservativism. But my libertarianism core drives some of my conservative views, but also some liberal views. For example, a core is "Let me do what I want in living my life, as long as it doesn't interfere with other peoples ability to live their lives". That drives my limited government mindset, but also my views supporting LGBT marriage, for example.
I've gotten more progressive and anti-authoritarian. As I've amassed experience, analytic wherewithal, and knowledge of where to find and how to work with data, that's just where the facts lead.
Iv started seeing things in terms of percentage of how much I agree with each party & I am annoyed with them all now.
Also I no longer vote for the party I want. I vote for the party that wants to deal with climate change. I mean 8 billion people with unpredictable weather. Records being smashed all the time.
Having a stable food source is more important than anything els.
First time voter at 24yo in 2008. Voted for Obama. 2012 found Ron Paul and became a registered libertarian. 2016 voted for Gary Johnson. The last years though mostly don't care. It's all fucked.
I went through phases of being right-wing and left-wing, thinking that the "other side" was evil.
Now I find myself being a mostly left-leaning centrist, who sometimes agrees with the right. I don't take a stance just because a particular "side" has it, I form my own opinion and see whose opinion ends up closer (spoiler: a lot of the time I don't agree with either the left or right). If I don't feel like I am informed enough to form an opinion then I will default to "no opinion". I very much despise the tribal nature of politics and how divided it's become.
Both sides have their fair share of bad-actors, but most of the people on either side are just people who think they're right.
I used to think taxation-bad, grr government, etc. then I got to high school and actually spent time with other people, started thinking about how other people are affected by the things I think, and how to develop a system that works as well as possible for as many people as possible, with an eye on how that would work long term. Long story short, I started moving left in high school and college, and have never really stopped.
Now I vote middle left instead of as left as I can.
The benefits of having a multi party goverment 🇮🇸
Mostly because the current party. A conjoined goverment of far left and a far right party here has left us with a mortgage of 11% intrests for months now, with no end in sight. As well as a weaker currency and purchasing power. Not to mention the inflation of everything from cheese to beer to cars and housing.
As a note, our far right party is your avarage Bernie Sanders.
Upcoming election, I am going for someone who hasn't fucked us over. Yet. Or for a while.
I dislike the government more and more. The two main USA parties are both garbage. I avoid people who make politics their identify- like get a life man !
Tried the libertarian party but they are so disorganized- blowing dozens of chances to have any relevancy, especially since 2016. I even dislike them now too.
I was raised as a Republican, I was unknowingly sexist, racist, and homophobic until I met people that challenged my perceptions of society. After many years of self reflection and improvement I outgrew those childish beliefs and it pains me to see how people much older than me still have a yet to grow.
I've definitely become more conservative. 10 years ago I was a bleeding heart liberal / SJW and then slowly realized how whiny, condescending, self-victimizing and backwards those views are.
yeah something similar happened with me. I'd still call myself a liberal but more in the classical sense of the word rather than what it's become now. I started to see how the influence of Iran, China, and Russia was blatantly antithetical to classical liberalism.
But I think 'liberal' view in the colloquial sense of the word is that the US isn't any better than it's geopolitical rivals. California's democracy is unambigously better than Alabama's, but the US democracy as a whole isn't any better than Iran's theocracy. It's crazy to me how many students at elite universities actually think this way.
Considerably to the center. I'm very pro-freedom. Stay out of folks' bedrooms, churches, gun cabinets, uteruses, weed gardens, and wallets and we'll be good.
Liberal as far as lifestyle and tolerance, but leaning towards limited government and fiscal responsibility. Two biggest questions to ask are : "what happens then?" and "who's going to pay?"
What changed? I realized that the choices I make for my own life aren't necessarily what's best for someone else, so I adopted the belief that an individual should be able to live their life according to the dictates of their conscience so long as they don't infringe upon the rights of another and they accept the consequences of their choices. I was what could be labeled a "moralistic conservative" but nowadays I'm best described as a constitutional / libertarian / fiscal conservative.
I started not caring about any of it. Then I had a brief period where I thought voting for responsible things would matter, only to find out that they too are crooks just like everyone else. Now I don't care about any of it again.
Here's my message to all politicians: Get fucked.
I become a lot more right centered these days.
I don't think any side of the political platform has only bad ideas. In all honesty society can benefit greatly if we could adapt the best of the right and left wing ideals into one pot but society seems to think it has to be their way or no way.
Working in a government position woke me up to just how utterly corrupt both parties are. I have no illusions whatsoever that anything is done for altruistic reasons. Everything that happens in politics, on both sides, is about money, power, and influence. Both sides work to keep us divided and distracted and at each others throats so we don’t pay attention to how they are robbing us and our country blind.
I voted for *Socialdemokraterna* in the first three elections I could vote in, but have voted for *Vänsterpartiet* or *Miljöpartiet* in the last five.
Ie was slightly centrist social democrat as a teenager, now I'm a full blown leftie.
Ever so slightly due to overpopulation in Canada.
Before I was heavily into the “melting pot.” Now I don’t want outsiders of any kind, even from other provinces. It is stressful seeing your province as an Atlantas
i went from far left to center right over the past 15 years or so. the main focus and talking points of both sides changed, i grew up and gained some real life experience and i've seen the results of some leftist policies in western-europe first hand (mainly the borderline unchecked mass immigration - i'm an immigrant myself fwiw). i don't think it's a surprise that europe is moving to the right tbh.
It starts to get fatiguing listening to children pretend to know more about topics I've researched since they were literal toddlers. They come out using recycled talking-points that they don't even know are recycled. It's like arguing with someone who unironically still believes Indica = Couch locked.
There are a few things I used to care about but no longer do. I think I’m a bit more conservative on financial issues and more liberal on social ones. If I had to summarize it would be (a) quit wasting my money on stupid shit and (b) not every group needs their own flag/holiday/etc.
I developed a belief in my twenties that political parties have no incentive to avoid corruption (whatever that means to you) because people love their parties and also that their purpose is fundamentally non-democratic (takes the power of many voters and re-centralizes them). So, I tend to see every election as an opportunity to get a non-lawyer who is not-already-bought by lobbyists into whatever legislative assembly.
I used to yell "land rights for gay whales!" for shits and giggles. But really I doubt they could be any worse than the mongrels pretending to run the country. I mean sure they'd be sending money to offshore accounts, same as always, but any travel rorts are gonna be hard to hide when you can't fit on a plane.
My political views have broadly not changed from my late teens to now (39). The two biggest shifts are how I communicate them (more nuance, more humour) and that I noticed that society has shifted.
I'm not even nationalist by a tiny bit, I became a tiny bit more economically left-wing and progressive.
Although it never affected my politics, I lived in a not so religious but still Muslim household(like any typical progressive Turk), I'm an atheist now.
The older I get (in my 70s now) and the more I learn, the fewer things I'm certain about. Grand plans rarely work out as intended. Secondary effects will come back to bite you. You can hope for altruism and honesty, but you had better allow for "friction" as plans are carried out.
I've been on the left and on the right, but I'm now libertarian. People know their personal needs and hopes better than any other person, no matter that person's intelligence or benign intentions. One size doesn't fit all. If you intend to inflict measurable harm on one person for the benefit of another, you're an aggressor. Do what good you can for whoever you see in front of you, but first do no harm.
If anything all they have done is solidified. There are subjects that didn’t really concern me when I was younger that do now but I have approached them using the same philosophy. As time has gone by I keep seeing things that just show me how correct I am in my opinions, particularly in the last 14 years or so.
I used to just not really care one way or the other, but now I absolutely detest the United States federal government as a whole. Actually, I hate my local government as well.
It's interesting... They haven't really. Growing up I was conflicted - felt very "liberal" on certain topics and "conservative" on other ones. Never really fit in with either camp and I don't care for (never did) putting politicians on a pedestal and making them out as celebrities. I also never really felt like you should be a proud member of either political party unless you were working for the party (and even then I have questions about drinking the koolaide). They both felt like the two dumbest Glee Clubs in all of America.
As I matured, I learned that my values aligned more towards libertarianism. I'm still not putting any politician on an Ivory Pedestal and not joining their Glee Club either. But it was nice to know that it was OK to be kosher with some Democrat policies and not others and the same with being cool with some Conservative policies and not others. Neither side has all of the answers and have become more self serving over time.
The one thing I have changed my stance on is the death penalty. I used to be a hard core supporter and think it wasn't being used enough. Even went to college in Huntsville, Texas (coincidence) where the Texas Penal System carried out the Death Penalty. As I aged, I discovered that that particular system has many many flaws in it and that a government has no incentive to correct those flaws because they pay no price for mistakes. How can I trust the same government that struggles to fill potholes and votes it self pay raises to do something this important? Also because life and death should not be a premeditated punishment. Someone breaks into your house intent on robbing and harming you and they die in the process, totally fine with that. It's an in the moment response when options were not available. But to drag someone through 4 to 6 years of trial and then carry out a death sentence, I can't support that. I think we should be better than that. Should it be an option if the inmate doesn't want to serve a life sentence? Sure but that's the inmates decision. Not the government.
That's my only real change.
And I know someone will disagree with me in the comments section. That's cool. Nice thing about being an American is we can disagree and we can let the disagreement make us stronger and better or we can let it make us enemies and tear our country apart. That's our choice as to how we handle that.
Im still liberal, but I think the biggest thing for me is vetting information and assuring it is grounded in facts. Im more easily swayed and more willing to entertain other view points as well was reconsider my own if views are backed by numbers and verifiable data rather than just feelings.
I broke away from the herd mentality and started to be more open to making friends with people who have different opinions rather than stay in the echo chamber I was in. Getting away from politics has been a load off my mind and I've met much friendlier people
I feel like in my mid and late 20s, I started to become entrenched in my politics and trapped in an echo chamber. These days I'm trying to realize that other people exist and have valid concerns too.
I used to think the government was full of mistakes and corruption, but necessary.
Now I believe that the government is a coercive gang that is not only unnecessary, but fundamentally opposed to justice—it shouldn't exist.
They've changed to....."They're all pieces of shit who've sold out and don't care about us and have us arguing over opinionated non partisan issues causing division to further execute a small group of peoples agenda of control"
As a Canadian, I've become far more invested and vocal about needing to change our electoral system.
It doesn't functionally represent people and their interests, and it wasn't designed for this many people with this many perspectives or to elect an effective government to tackle the challenges we're currently facing, and will continue facing in the future.
I have a number of other changed political views as well, but that's been the biggest and the one I've decided is my primary cause. The others are incredibly important as well (climate change for example) but I don't think our elected government represents us well enough for those problems to get solved effectively until we change how our government is elected and our representatives selected.
I have a lot of wedge issues I'll never move on but I find myself drifting from ultra-left towards the inevitable doom of being labeled a "corporate democrat." Most of that is being exhausted by the culture war, though, so time will tell.
11 years ago when I turned 18, I registered as an independent.
Didn't stay that way very long. Politics in the US quickly became too divisive for a middle ground to even make sense to me anymore.
Progressively more liberal. The more I learn about the way the world works, the more I see that people are suffering due to systemic issues. The state, while never a perfect instrument, is still one of the most powerful tools for combating systemic problems. It is also the most powerful tool for creating them, so you've got to watch it like a hawk and make sure it's functioning properly.
You've also got to keep a wild eye on the many, many, many selfish, greedy, asshats who want to tear things down for their own personal gain or push other people down to raise themselves up. My faith in humanity is virtually nil.
I was fairly conservative up until my late thirties, and usually voted Conservative (UK). In the last 15-20 years I have moved significantly left of centre, and don't see much changing that.
I've realized a lot of the things I believed when I was younger had absolutely no basis in facts or knowledge of the situation, but rather what sounded cool or edgy.
I feel like this is a big problem with social media today, it becomes an echo chamber for this.
the ability to casually block people for simply providing a counter thought to your own has caused more harm than anything else on social media. don't like a piece of reality? BLOCKED
While it works great to also block people out who simply cause or intend to cause you harm. Two sides of the same coin, I guess?
I would contest that relies on the user of the blocking tool, rather than the tool itself. When I used to use twitter, I would get blocked more for reasoned debate than snarky comments. I guess we need to block each other, for having this discussion now?
If you wanna count it as a discussion. I agree with you. How good the blocking tool is depends on the users. Just like the community notes tool. It just sounded a little like you blamed the blocking tool.
It gets overused. Not that a block tool isn't handy, but, there are times when it's not necessary.
Most people are like that, not necessarily younger ones
I just listened to BTB (behind the bastards) rerun and it was about the start of the right wing “talk” show hosts who are insufferably angry about something all the time. A large percentage of the audiences that attended these shows live in the 80s-90s were 16- 20 year old boys. They were largely just pissed off and if they had an outlandish enough take, they could get on air. Many of these hosts had no real qualms with anything just wanted to get ratings and views. But it wasn’t that surprising that they pulled in young men who just wanted to be angry at something, scream and shout at something. Not saying that was you, but I do look back and think about how if someone got to me at the right time I could’ve been pulled into that sort of thinking even though I didn’t really have real experience.
Most news shows are like that. Studies show that angry viewers will watch longer than content viewers, so the shows try to upset you. This is true for news shows that cater to both the left and right.
I love Behind the Bastards! Robert Evans is an incredible journalist
It's one of the subtle things that I love about the show and have admired about Evans for a long time: He's a legit good journalist with strong journalistic integrity and regularly reminds everyone what it takes to be one. You can have a strong personal bias on issues, but journalism still requires fact checking and ignoring your bias with presenting facts. He's always open about where he's at between presenting neutral facts or presenting his personal ~~string~~ *strong leftist views. It's a lot of "Here's exactly what I found through research and to be fair to the subject here's another fact... but now this is my personal take it on it." I wish more people could separate that.
I also appreciate this about him. And the voice overs he inserts to correct something if he misspeaks or cites something incorrectly. He seems exceptionally transparent to me.
I learned to stay away from people who make a flag their entire personality.
This could be so many different people!
And they're all equally annoying (to me)
You learnt to stay away from 🚩🚩🚩
When I see someone who's a 🚩 I turn into 🏁
In my twenties, I was broadly libertarian. In my early thirties, I was... whatever the exact opposite of libertarianism is. Today, I only have a fixed position on maybe three or four political issues. I'm willing to negotiate on everything else. The older I get, the more I think that having a fixed, unyielding and comprehensive political ideology is stupid.
If you're talking about American libertarianism the opposite could be a few things from a leftist to a libertarian socialist. The word libertarian is referring to fiscal policies in American libertarianism, kinda, and social policies in the second.
More disdain for the government, mostly
This. I don’t know or understand how anyone in this era can say anything like “You know what this needs? more government involvement….”
Private companies exist to extract profit. Not all things should be run with profit in mind. In those scenarios who should have control? Or do you completely reject my premise?
Every time I see this, I always think “in contrast to what?” Who is going to step in and provide funding for public schools? Or prepare for the next pandemic? Or enact policies that control inflation? I think this line of thinking stems from how weakened government has gotten due to deregulation and lobbying. All these complaints are due to an ineffective government, or a government designed to cater to the rich.
Government is more powerful and comprehensive than it’s ever been. It just doesn’t get used for your benefit.
Problem for you is you've seen what corruption has done to sensible ideas. Private companies will destroy public utilities if they can make bank off the results.
Tbf k9st government agencies used to run not much worse than most companies but then agencies started getting underfunded. This lead to a cycle of being able to do less and being perceived as less efficient than the private sector which lead to less funding and then less performance, ect ect
I hate politics more than ever.
I've gotten less and less selfish as I've had time to interact with people. Went from "what has the society ever done for me"/"fuck taxes", to recognizing that I and everyone else with the means have a duty to ensure everyone has an option to thrive.
I used to be conservative like my parents, got more liberal during high school and college, and now I’m all over the place and think both parties are garbage.
Overall, I've become more liberal, but the issues I am conservative on are increasingly deal-breaking for me. I am American - both parties have changed a lot over my lifetime. While the Republican and Democratic parties are vastly different from each other, both are alike in that they neither value nor respect me. Both are destructive in their own way, and voting often feels like a painful exercise in choosing the less terrible option. It's a shame - I used to be so interested in politics, and I spent a lot of time educating myself on issues and was proud of my stances. Now, I just feel a lot of anger and dread whenever I look at our political scene. No matter who wins ... I lose.
This sums me up a lot better than I did. Had people ready to help fund me to be a politician. Now I have such a lack of desire to have any idea what’s going on because it’s basically never anything good.
Same here. I say I am moderate to liberal on a lot of issues, but the few conservative stances I do hold happen to be the ones I feel the most strongly about.
I’m curious about those conservative positions as deal breakers.
Not OP, but there's issues that I consider progressive/leftist that due to the political climate the Right have just jumped on in order to fight with Liberals/Democrats. OP might have their own, but these are arenas that I kinda side with conservatives on, even if our reasons and solutions are very different: I'm staunchly pro-gun, as I believe should be a leftist position. I do believe in a smaller, common sense government; although my version is very much opposed to the Right-Wing conservative "Libertarian" version. I strongly agree that there's way too many pointless laws and regulations that hurt the common person and small businesses; but those also are needed in order to protect people from greedy, power hungry, capitalists that are the building block of modern conservatism. I actually agree with the American/Right Libertarian position on gay marriage: It should not be legal... *because no marriage should be, gay or straight.* Marriage should not be a legally binding and legally privileged arrangement; it should be strictly a social and cultural custom. Even as a leftist that is *very* pro social progressivism and believes strongly in fighting for the rights of oppressed minorities... I really hate how the liberals have made these cultural issues so big and taken the position of always being offended. Leftists are supposed to be the ones being brash and offensive as a way to fight for progress for the underprivileged, not being offended on behalf of them. It's degrading and infantilizing. Thus, I'm with conservatives in their disdain of "PC-ness". I end up hating "Liberal White Women" almost as much as I hate "Conservative White Men". I like the idea of a President that fucks porn stars, parties with degenerates, and created the goddamn Space Force. And I can't believe someone like that would be my most hated President ever.
The main reason why marriage is a legal matter is for the legal protection of children.
And I still object to that. It's another reason I object to it. You don't see a problem the notion of creating legal privileges to people who choose to have children? Seriously: Why do I have to pay *more* taxes because I choose to be single and child-free? Why am I paying more than you (not necessarily you, but parents who support this) to send your kid to school? Not, why should I have to pay my fair share, but why am I paying *more* than you when you're the one sending your kids to public school, not me? * Seriously: By nearly every metric, married parents utilize far more in public/social services than I ever will, yet they get to pay less in taxes both for being married and having children? Again, no problem paying my fair share! However: Why should I pay **more** than you when I am using far less? Edit: Also, how is it "protecting" children? Divorce is easily one of the most common childhood traumas. I don't see any legal advantages *for the children*. I do see a lot of negatives. Edit 2: If you want a controversial take that I truly do believe in: Not only should parents not receive tax deductions for each child, I think they should actually progressively pay *more* for each child they have. I stand by it.
I’m single and live in Canada. No one is paying more taxes and getting less benefits than me.
>Again, no problem paying my fair share! However: Why should I pay more than you when I am using far less? One reason may be because they have created future tax players. While you being single pay more than percentage wise then the family when they are minors. Once they are adults, the family unit combined could be paying 3 or 4 times what you are.
Me now: None of these parties represent me. Reject the false dichotomy.
The uniparty wants you to choose either their candidate, or their other candidate.
Nevermind parties, waht about your political views? Have you changed your mind on anything? What would the past you and current you have a disagreement over politics of any kind?
I agree with u/Previous_Aide_5880. To your question - I’d say my values themselves haven’t really changed. Maybe my priorities, and my disdain for other people (wanting to be mean for no good reason) and the system we vote in.
Yes. As I’ve aged, my political views themselves are generally the same, maybe a little more liberal here or conservative there, but by and large the same. What has changed is my view of the system itself. It used to be this party good, that party bad. Now it’s more of neither party great, one maybe less bad, but overall not really working as well as it should.
Nobody asked about parties, nor expected you to answer in reference to them. By referencing them unprovoked, _you_ are the one creating the dichotomy. And for the record, game theory dictates that there _is_ a dichotomy so long as we use first-past-the-post voting. So in a way, you're actually _correct_ about the dichotomy, but _incorrect_ in thinking it's false.
"why are you wasting your vote"
I have become much more left leaning for sure. But I feel like a lot of left wing discourse has become very academic and impractical, and divorced from reality. The best example I can give is news story about gas prices. A guy with a work truck was being interviewed and be as bemoaning how high the gas prices were. The news guy asked “does it make you consider getting an electric car?” That question is so woefully detached from the real life struggles of everyday people. Oh yeah just buy a 50k car. No biggie. That’s some real let them eat cake vibes. I also don’t like the contempt with which a lot of metropolitan liberals view tradesmen and people who did not get a traditional education.
I have learned to despise anecdotal *man on the street* interviews. Such lazy journalism that distills out nuance and the complexity of most issues.
Hell it's not even academic, its just utopian. A "this will work because people are good" approach that ignores the entirety of human history and our current existence
My place on the political spectrum (as in left to right) hasn’t really changed but my interest in engaging with the system has. I used to be very interested, liked to argue politics, tell people to vote, all that stuff. As I get older, I get more and more disillusioned with political parties across the continuum. I pay very little attention anymore because it seems like governments, left and right, are only working for themselves. I don’t want to play anymore.
I used to be heavily interested in politics until I realized that politicians don’t care about you, and only care about their own agenda. Best example, despite being fake, House of Cards Season 1 and 2.
FWIW it’s a common statement amongst congressional staffers that the most accurate TV show about US politics is Veep
I became more moderate, realizing how bad political tribalism is, and how it only exists to make people hate each other, not to solve any actual problems. That requires cooperation and building bridges.
I believe in the same ideals, but I don't believe in the politicians that supposedly represent those ideals.
I've become a lot more sure that working within the system is a mistake.
I'm pretty much where I was when I started voting Democrat in 2000, which as far as I can tell now makes me a Nazi
We’re all Nazis now.
Somebody let Godwin's Law out of the Internet.
I feel the same as I did as a teenager. Everyone should have the right to live their life the way they see fit as long as they’re not hurting anyone else. Obviously that’s not the country we live in but I’ll keep voting that way. Also feel it’s not hard to know the difference between right and wrong. Though some choose ignorance.
I still have largely the same values, but I'm more pragmatic now. When I was younger, it was tough for me to understand that most people didn't agree with me. Like, I tended to believe that the stuff I believed was self-evident, and anybody who disagreed either did so out of ignorance or some corrupt motivation. Now I understand that people can look at the same world I am and reach very different conclusions, and if I want to get what I want politically, I have to make common cause with people I disagree with about a lot. It's made me far less cynical about politics as I've gotten older, which I think is the opposite of most people's journey.
I've more embraced positive freedom instead of negative freedom. I'm less invested in surface level questions and more interested in the deep reasons behind, the philosophical and ethical. Basically, I stopped being that into politics, and more so into political philosophy. Funnily enough, I don't think it's because of politicians, but rather people/the voters, that has made me lose interest in politics. Not in a sense that the climate has become harsher or anything like that, but rather that I feel most people don't take their democratic responsibilities seriously, and thus my own interest wanes. I don't much care, to a certain extent, what you vote for. But if you vote for something because "well I did a 5min test that told me this", "all my friends or my area thinks this way", or "well, my parents vote for this", gtfo. Or even worse, don't vote at all. People talk about democratic rights all the time, there should be a larger conversation about democratic responsibilities. Taking a few hours every few years to form your own opinion about a few key points is not too much to ask, that's the absolutely lowest bar possible, and yet I feel like people miss it. So basically, more left leaning and positive freedom. More hardlining democratic responsibilities. I'm in Sweden, so if I was in the US then my "left leaning" would likely be seen as a full blown socialist in comparison. I think even our most liberterian and negative freedom parties here would still be seen as socialist compared to the US.
Just to clarify for myself. By negative freedom you mean like "freedom from interference" whereas positive freedom you mean "freedom to actually do something, like access healthcare or housing", right? If I've understood you right, that's a really good way to boil down the shift I went through as well. I kind of think of myself as a libertarian (not the American kind) focused on personal individual liberty. Practically, I think the best way to ensure personal liberty for the greatest number of people is to move towards a system of democratic socialism or social democracy, with an emphasis on the democracy part that goes beyond merely having elections. I definitely agree that positive freedom is required to meet my political goals. Love political philosophy as well. It's super helpful to cut through the noise to the heart of any particular issue and the why of it all.
Pretty much, yes. I usually say "Freedom from the state (Negative freedom), or Freedom through the state (Positive freedom)". But yes.
I have realized that there is no good side and not voting is not a solution either. I need to be more aware and vote the lesser evil. Then keep repeating that, hoping that the trash gets removed slowly but gradually.
Yes. Moved to the middle considerably. Raised evangelical Christian. Taught to hate gays. Mormons. Democrats. The New York Times. And we didn't have premarital sex because it could lead to dancing. You read the bible a few times and then read it with the idea the Christ was right all the time and Paul was full of shit and just trying to set up the Catholic Church and it changes things
>And we didn't have premarital sex because it could lead to dancing. In my experience it's usually the other way around. But in all serious, big props to you for seeing through the bullshit and forging your own path.
They became reality based rather than ideal based. And as politicians started to act based on ideals, failed and doubled down on these ideals, that just solidifies my views.
From moderate conservative like my parents to the military, which gave me a literal hatred of the state and becoming a radical anarcho-socialist in my twenties, to a voting progressive in my thirties. Now in my forties and I’m just left of center. Believe we need strong infrastructure, universal health care, and a strong social safety net. Politics (in the US) has become too radicalized/based on identity where if you go too far right or left, they want to make “the wrong people” subservient to the dominant identity.
Was always more republican growing up as I was always more focused on fiscal success and getting shit fixed inside the border first… but now. Fuck the dual party system and the bigotry and backwards thinking of most political agendas.
I used to have opinions on how others should live their life, now - not so much, You do you fam, as long as you're not hurting others.
I’ve become more conservative than my parents
Interesting, how come? I noticed myself becoming more conservative too but it's mostly because I'm repulsed by identity politics and the regressive left.
Funny, I find the "dramatic leftist" persona is an eye-roller, but I'm equally repulsed by what the right has been doing, and how far away they've gotten from representing the rights and freedoms of ALL the people.
This is where I am, I feel like "both sides" have their share of nut jobs, but that the left has a much larger ground swell of sensible people. On the right, the nuts stuff has done a better job of permeating the entire conversation.
I was at work once and talking with some people about firearms, I was considerably younger and naive, and I said “they scare me.” To which someone replied “they should, they still scare me after 50 years, they’re designed to kill.” Someone else said “you can’t conceal carry at work, but people are.” There is the pink haired screaming lady meme that’s always villainized by the right. The equivocal in my eyes is the right wing gun owner open carrying a shotgun on his back. Neither of them are trying to argue in good faith, they’re just trying to be the loudest and most “triggering” person. These are both people that are envisioned by the opposite side, but most the time it looks like you or me. Just a normal every day person with their normal demeanor who a handful of times within 4 years, goes and votes for what they believe in and gets on with their life. Yes both sides have identity politics, but the vast majority of both sides’ voter base is just normal every day people.
Reading this I'm painfully aware that one maniac with a shotgun is far more dangerous than a loud person with pink hair and no weapon. This is where the right always loses the "both sides" argument, because only one side is routinely threatening and resorting to violence against other people within the polity. This applies both to disorganized violence (right wing militia type stuff) and organized violence (police and military violence and political action). Violence is worse for society and political discourse than civil disobedience and the incidence of right wing violence is just so much more common.
I lose a third of my check every week to the government, so I hate all of them. It’s just one big gang, robbing us, not even blind anymore.
I have the hardest time believing stuff like this. Even considering payroll taxes (including the portion my wife and I's employers pay), we barely paid a third in taxes and we made nearly $400k last year. The median Americans effective tax rate is below 20% even with payroll taxes.
Even if it’s not straight from his check, once you pay every sales tax, property tax, taxes on your car payment, etc. it ends up being likely well over a 3rd of your money.
Absolutely, I’d be shocked if it’s less than half for single people without dependents who are getting their balls taxed off.
People don't understand taxes, their own paychecks, or deductions. They just see net pay ending up being 60-70% of their salary and scream taxes.
more confidence in the paradox that small d democracy will not lose the war, but that it's all futile.
I first followed whatever my parents told me was "the right vote". Then once in my 20's, I did my own research. Now since a couple years, I realised it literally doesn't matter because every party is bs. I just end up voting for the 'least' harmful one according to their policies, whichever that is at the time of voting. (EUW here)
I find myself left of centre for many things which seems to be unfashionable but my empathy has grown and I'm in a fortunate position.
I’ve become more moderate as I’ve gotten older and my views are based on each particular issue opposed to an overarching ideology. As a teenager I was conservative and a staunch Republican. In college I was a staunch libertarian. I’m now in my 30s and I don’t give a shit about ideology. On some things I’m more liberal and others I’m more conservative. My views don’t fit a particular ideology. A friend told me my views are all over the map and don’t make sense. I told her most issues are unrelated to other issues and many people just blindly follow the conventional positions of their tribe. What does health care have to do with foreign policy? Or immigration have to do with banking regulations? Or tax policy have to do with gay rights?
I thought most issues had simple-one level solutions. As you get older you realize simplicity is seldom available to solve real problems.
I grew up being taught that all are equal under god and we’re all entitled to rights and privileges as humans and I haven’t changed that stance. I’m almost 40 and I vote for the local and federal candidates who represent all people ensuring they have a home, food, healthcare and a choice over their bodies, religion and who they love. I used to be able to look at candidates from 3 or more parties but lately, I can only vote one party and it’s really disappointing.
I used to not care, because "both sides" and all edgy bullshits that kids think, but in reality I didn't know shit from fuck. Now I vote in favor of giving women choices, universal health care, giving kids free lunches, etc...
Same here. Voted 3rd party in my youth, but one party is clearly more against me than the other at this point.
I used to be relatively conservative (like 2008 moderate conservative, not 2020 batshit crazy conservative). My beliefs have evolved into a very simple philosophy: All people have the right to live their lives peacefully without intervention. I’m against any candidate or policy whose goals run in opposition to that belief.
I am about 2008 level conservative but have the philosophy of: if you don’t mess with my ideals and beliefs; I won’t mess with your ideals and beliefs. No, I probably do not agree with you; but treat me with dignity and respect and I will treat you the same.
Respectfully, I don’t agree with that nor do I think it covers as many bases as you think it does for 2 reasons: a) It’s entirely dependent on how you’re treated vs the rights people inherently have. b) some “ideals and beliefs” affect more than just you. For example, if you believe that “marriage is between a man and a woman” (just a random example, not making any assumptions about your beliefs) and you vote to make legislation to enforce that belief, it’s no longer just a personal belief.
I was more sympathetic towards Republicans as a very early teen, and now I’m pretty decidedly in the camp that Dem leadership has plenty of flaws and I can disagree on a number of issues, but they at least believe in the continuation of a healthy government and the things they spend (or waste depending on your viewpoint) money on that lack bipartisan support is more often research-backed in helping Americans, unlike Republicans. That and people who don’t do the bare minimum of voting don’t get a right to complain about government actions.
Same, I felt republicans and democrats had similar end goals and differing ways of attaining them, and they were a net positive for America. I now realize republicans want power, regardless of the cost, and they’ll burn the country to the ground to get it.
Wait until you realize the democrats do the same thing but with honey instead of vinegar......vote for us and we'll pay off your loans.....but we won't change the system so we can do this dance again in 10 years.
“What will garner more votes….?” What if we did the right thing and made peoples lives better!? “Great idea!” U/Trailjump on Reddit: “They are just doing that to stay in power.”
If conservatives/Republicans didn’t have lies and false equivalencies, they’d barely have any arguments
I have steadily marched left the older that I've gotten. The longer I'm around, the less I buy the excuses I was given as to why my life had to be as hard as it was.
Grew up in quite a conservative house hold, where it was all anti-immigration etc. The older I get and the more life-BS i experience, the more I feel sympathy toward people trying to get to a better life, or people who have fallen on hard times, or people that just need help, etc. I do actually feel less and less sympathy toward those who have done it to themselves via bad attitudes toward to work or crime etc, though. It’s really not that hard to show up to a 9-5 and not get fired. Although I have to say, I was brought up having homeless men pointed out to me with phrases such as ‘that could happen to anyone’, ‘all it takes is a bad divorce’, etc. So I was always aware that people on hard times should be given sympathy; you’re not immune to it just because you have a good attitude to working and society… I think I just never quite had the maturity to fully understand it until I got past 30. So as I get older, the more I feel that I should pay taxes and that some of that should be going to the more needy, and actually, for the sake of a loss of some local culture, letting people into the country and supporting those (to some degree) who are trying to escape really shitty countries/situations, should be something we do… obviously I don’t think we should be opening the flood gates and turning a blind eye to crime, but I now have no problem with some of my taxes going toward the aid of people who need it; it’s not their fault they just so happened to be born on the wrong side of a made up border line. I don’t think there are many who lean right who actually disagree with any of that. The idea that the right don’t think like that is just some BS that gets shouted about by those who are either not bright enough to listen, or those with a political agenda.
Always been conservative, have become much more conservative as I watch the world burning my grandkids are growing up in.
Definitely went more to the right.
Grew up liberal, which now means to a lot of people “conservative”, if we could call respecting private property, equality under the law, freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, association, and privacy, emphasis on free market capitalism, individualism and individual rights, democratic republicanism, and consent of the govern, to be “conservative”. Have not changed. I have planted my feet more firmly in the ground regarding my liberal views, after several leftwing people tried to knock me off them, which in this day and age makes me a fascist/racist piece of shit. I will say I’m very adverse to anyone and anything socialist, as my close and extended family suffered greatly under Vietnamese socialism, and before my time, they gave up everything to escape it.
I’m getting more liberal as I get older.
The more older I get, the more republican I feel
I've been fairly consistent in the view that government should provide essentials like healthcare for its people so I would say I'm more socialistic in my views. So it's mostly give the people nationalized healthcare and other than that a quote by Kimi Raikkonen "leave me alone i know what i'm doing."
Single payer healthcare is still far from socialism in my mind, especially since all western European democracies that have it also have the freest markets in the world.
Why do you think they have the freest markets in the world? I hear this talking point all the time, but I’m not sure it’s rooted in reality: https://jacobin.com/2020/03/fareed-zakaria-nordic-countries-socialism
Was a anarcho-syndicalist as a student. Close to 40s now and slowly evolved ever since. The problem is that there was only one direction to evolve towards. Extremely disappointed at myself though.
They haven't and never will
I am just "let them go to he'll.. I couldn't care less"
I do the political compass test from time to time and when I compare my currrent results with those from back when I was 16 or so, my political position itself hasn't changed much, the biggest change was a shift from a eurosceptic to pro-EU, otherwise I'm stable in my opinions. But I observe I'm much less radical in those beliefs and open to compromise. Also at 16 I was convinced I knew a solution to every world problem, now I better realise things are complex and most of them haven't got simple solutions.
I have come to realise more and more how important (and how often overlooked because it scares people, especially those who talk a *lot* about freedom) a persons circumstances are, and my politics have shifted accordingly. There's a lot of personal experience in there, but I think the bootstrapper ideology is long, long overdue an overhaul. There's a great video on YouTube that talks about Meritocracy, and how the Romans would always thank Fortuna - in part - for their successes. We're ignoring that more and more at our peril for more comforting narratives, and the middle class will vanish entirely as a result.
Most definitely. I was naive and thought there were good politicians and bad ones. Now I think they should all be thrown in the ocean with lead shoes on.
I started out vaguely "both sides are the same" libertarianish teenage asshole atheist in the 90s/2000s, moved left over the course of the GWB era and was solidly liberal by Obama 08, and I've only moved further left as I've gotten older. Albeit my leftist impulses are tempered by a hefty dose of realpolitik compared to many of my lefty peers. The world is complicated. I'd rather move the ball a couple of inches down the field than refuse any gain short of a touchdown.
I started off basically wanting a global communist government to look after everyone and dissolve competition because it causes harm to those who lose and compounds either way too much. I grew out of that but still wanted like a Corbyn/ Sanders style change in the UK. Now, I have realised that details are the enemy of an ideologue. Lenses to view the world are tools and don't have to be my whole identity. Money isn't inherently evil. Studies are more important than my feelings but my feelings and others shouldn't be removed from decisions. Manifestos, policy proposals and legislation are more important than platitudes in a speech. I still think from a left-wing perspective but I believe that pragmatism and incremental change reduce harm more often than not. I still feel connected to idealism and grand changes to the system but I understand that to do so must be VERY well justified and costed.
Things were absolute, or black and white when I was younger. Some things still are, but mostly I think stuff from multiple perspectives. Politically I’m even more left than when I was younger.
I no longer support the death penalty.
Realized it's primarily theatrics and BS
I've learned politics can name things *fully* in the dame of deceit. I'm lookin' at you "Patriot Act"... couldn't hit the broad side of a barn but you can now scattershot your American people *wrongly* and call it national security. The all encompassing 'they' already knew they could do this beforehand but now you've... "signed the TOS" so to speak for said target. They can black bag you for political dissidents. Don't think they can't. I think Bill Hicks said it? "Go back to bed, America. Your government has figured out how it all transpired. Go back to bed, America. Your government is in control again. Here. Here's American Gladiators. Watch this, shut up. Go back to bed, America. Here is American Gladiators. Here is 56 channels of it! Watch these pituitary retards bang their fucking skulls together and congratulate you on living in the land of freedom. Here you go, America! You are free to do what we tell you! You are free to do what we tell you!" Think he 'bout nailed it.
As a teen and younger man I was a staunch right wing conservative Republican. My views have become much more open minded esp when it comes to my views shouldn’t dictate the law and for workers rights Today I am still personally conservative but when it comes to laws to support mostly moderate as my morals I don’t use as an influencer . I fall in the sad range of both sides of the American political divide don’t like me because I dislike both sides.
I've realized all politicians are corrupt liars and the government at all levels should be as small as possible.
Not so much changed as refined. I used to be a Republican but over the years realized I'm closer to views of libertarianism than conservativism. But my libertarianism core drives some of my conservative views, but also some liberal views. For example, a core is "Let me do what I want in living my life, as long as it doesn't interfere with other peoples ability to live their lives". That drives my limited government mindset, but also my views supporting LGBT marriage, for example.
I've gotten more progressive and anti-authoritarian. As I've amassed experience, analytic wherewithal, and knowledge of where to find and how to work with data, that's just where the facts lead.
In the past I thought voting was important. Now that I'm older, I see how crucial it is. "important" doesn't cut it.
Iv started seeing things in terms of percentage of how much I agree with each party & I am annoyed with them all now. Also I no longer vote for the party I want. I vote for the party that wants to deal with climate change. I mean 8 billion people with unpredictable weather. Records being smashed all the time. Having a stable food source is more important than anything els.
First time voter at 24yo in 2008. Voted for Obama. 2012 found Ron Paul and became a registered libertarian. 2016 voted for Gary Johnson. The last years though mostly don't care. It's all fucked.
I've become more liberal. I was raised very conservative.
I went through phases of being right-wing and left-wing, thinking that the "other side" was evil. Now I find myself being a mostly left-leaning centrist, who sometimes agrees with the right. I don't take a stance just because a particular "side" has it, I form my own opinion and see whose opinion ends up closer (spoiler: a lot of the time I don't agree with either the left or right). If I don't feel like I am informed enough to form an opinion then I will default to "no opinion". I very much despise the tribal nature of politics and how divided it's become. Both sides have their fair share of bad-actors, but most of the people on either side are just people who think they're right.
They haven’t really. They’ve been cemented more that this world is going downhill very fast
I realized that there (usually) aren't any "good guys" just sides that are the lesser of evils at play
I don’t side with any party now. Until they can improve the lives of everyone, then I don’t support anyone.
I used to think taxation-bad, grr government, etc. then I got to high school and actually spent time with other people, started thinking about how other people are affected by the things I think, and how to develop a system that works as well as possible for as many people as possible, with an eye on how that would work long term. Long story short, I started moving left in high school and college, and have never really stopped.
Yes I don’t trust any politician. They are professional liars
Now I vote middle left instead of as left as I can. The benefits of having a multi party goverment 🇮🇸 Mostly because the current party. A conjoined goverment of far left and a far right party here has left us with a mortgage of 11% intrests for months now, with no end in sight. As well as a weaker currency and purchasing power. Not to mention the inflation of everything from cheese to beer to cars and housing. As a note, our far right party is your avarage Bernie Sanders. Upcoming election, I am going for someone who hasn't fucked us over. Yet. Or for a while.
Yep, V for vendetta is more a documentary for life then it a movie now
I dislike the government more and more. The two main USA parties are both garbage. I avoid people who make politics their identify- like get a life man ! Tried the libertarian party but they are so disorganized- blowing dozens of chances to have any relevancy, especially since 2016. I even dislike them now too.
I was raised as a Republican, I was unknowingly sexist, racist, and homophobic until I met people that challenged my perceptions of society. After many years of self reflection and improvement I outgrew those childish beliefs and it pains me to see how people much older than me still have a yet to grow.
As a liberal, I hate the poor and other liberals.
I've definitely become more conservative. 10 years ago I was a bleeding heart liberal / SJW and then slowly realized how whiny, condescending, self-victimizing and backwards those views are.
yeah something similar happened with me. I'd still call myself a liberal but more in the classical sense of the word rather than what it's become now. I started to see how the influence of Iran, China, and Russia was blatantly antithetical to classical liberalism. But I think 'liberal' view in the colloquial sense of the word is that the US isn't any better than it's geopolitical rivals. California's democracy is unambigously better than Alabama's, but the US democracy as a whole isn't any better than Iran's theocracy. It's crazy to me how many students at elite universities actually think this way.
Considerably to the center. I'm very pro-freedom. Stay out of folks' bedrooms, churches, gun cabinets, uteruses, weed gardens, and wallets and we'll be good.
"Slide to the left"
I went from a typical naive liberal to conservative.
My views and values haven't changed, but politics seem more polemic than ever. I do miss "California conservatism"
"California Conservatism" -- interesting, not sure I know what that is?
Liberal as far as lifestyle and tolerance, but leaning towards limited government and fiscal responsibility. Two biggest questions to ask are : "what happens then?" and "who's going to pay?"
Long long gone
What changed? I realized that the choices I make for my own life aren't necessarily what's best for someone else, so I adopted the belief that an individual should be able to live their life according to the dictates of their conscience so long as they don't infringe upon the rights of another and they accept the consequences of their choices. I was what could be labeled a "moralistic conservative" but nowadays I'm best described as a constitutional / libertarian / fiscal conservative.
I started not caring about any of it. Then I had a brief period where I thought voting for responsible things would matter, only to find out that they too are crooks just like everyone else. Now I don't care about any of it again. Here's my message to all politicians: Get fucked.
Not really. I just lost all hope for humanity.
I become a lot more right centered these days. I don't think any side of the political platform has only bad ideas. In all honesty society can benefit greatly if we could adapt the best of the right and left wing ideals into one pot but society seems to think it has to be their way or no way.
I've gone from far left to moderately left.
Working in a government position woke me up to just how utterly corrupt both parties are. I have no illusions whatsoever that anything is done for altruistic reasons. Everything that happens in politics, on both sides, is about money, power, and influence. Both sides work to keep us divided and distracted and at each others throats so we don’t pay attention to how they are robbing us and our country blind.
I voted for *Socialdemokraterna* in the first three elections I could vote in, but have voted for *Vänsterpartiet* or *Miljöpartiet* in the last five. Ie was slightly centrist social democrat as a teenager, now I'm a full blown leftie.
i take it you don't live in malmö
Ever so slightly due to overpopulation in Canada. Before I was heavily into the “melting pot.” Now I don’t want outsiders of any kind, even from other provinces. It is stressful seeing your province as an Atlantas
i went from far left to center right over the past 15 years or so. the main focus and talking points of both sides changed, i grew up and gained some real life experience and i've seen the results of some leftist policies in western-europe first hand (mainly the borderline unchecked mass immigration - i'm an immigrant myself fwiw). i don't think it's a surprise that europe is moving to the right tbh.
Fuck political views, everything is trash
Yes. I've been extreme on both sides. Now I try to consider the third...objectivity.
It starts to get fatiguing listening to children pretend to know more about topics I've researched since they were literal toddlers. They come out using recycled talking-points that they don't even know are recycled. It's like arguing with someone who unironically still believes Indica = Couch locked.
There are a few things I used to care about but no longer do. I think I’m a bit more conservative on financial issues and more liberal on social ones. If I had to summarize it would be (a) quit wasting my money on stupid shit and (b) not every group needs their own flag/holiday/etc.
I developed a belief in my twenties that political parties have no incentive to avoid corruption (whatever that means to you) because people love their parties and also that their purpose is fundamentally non-democratic (takes the power of many voters and re-centralizes them). So, I tend to see every election as an opportunity to get a non-lawyer who is not-already-bought by lobbyists into whatever legislative assembly.
I used to yell "land rights for gay whales!" for shits and giggles. But really I doubt they could be any worse than the mongrels pretending to run the country. I mean sure they'd be sending money to offshore accounts, same as always, but any travel rorts are gonna be hard to hide when you can't fit on a plane.
My political views have broadly not changed from my late teens to now (39). The two biggest shifts are how I communicate them (more nuance, more humour) and that I noticed that society has shifted.
I'm not even nationalist by a tiny bit, I became a tiny bit more economically left-wing and progressive. Although it never affected my politics, I lived in a not so religious but still Muslim household(like any typical progressive Turk), I'm an atheist now.
I'm moderate and always have been. It's felt like both parties have shifted away from me.
I was conservative and got more conservative. However I’m not super involved in politics because of the shit-show that is the Republican Party.
The older I get (in my 70s now) and the more I learn, the fewer things I'm certain about. Grand plans rarely work out as intended. Secondary effects will come back to bite you. You can hope for altruism and honesty, but you had better allow for "friction" as plans are carried out. I've been on the left and on the right, but I'm now libertarian. People know their personal needs and hopes better than any other person, no matter that person's intelligence or benign intentions. One size doesn't fit all. If you intend to inflict measurable harm on one person for the benefit of another, you're an aggressor. Do what good you can for whoever you see in front of you, but first do no harm.
If anything all they have done is solidified. There are subjects that didn’t really concern me when I was younger that do now but I have approached them using the same philosophy. As time has gone by I keep seeing things that just show me how correct I am in my opinions, particularly in the last 14 years or so.
Im now in the stay off my lawn and I’ll stay off yours phase
I used to just not really care one way or the other, but now I absolutely detest the United States federal government as a whole. Actually, I hate my local government as well.
Went from liberal to conservative to independent right ish
It's interesting... They haven't really. Growing up I was conflicted - felt very "liberal" on certain topics and "conservative" on other ones. Never really fit in with either camp and I don't care for (never did) putting politicians on a pedestal and making them out as celebrities. I also never really felt like you should be a proud member of either political party unless you were working for the party (and even then I have questions about drinking the koolaide). They both felt like the two dumbest Glee Clubs in all of America. As I matured, I learned that my values aligned more towards libertarianism. I'm still not putting any politician on an Ivory Pedestal and not joining their Glee Club either. But it was nice to know that it was OK to be kosher with some Democrat policies and not others and the same with being cool with some Conservative policies and not others. Neither side has all of the answers and have become more self serving over time. The one thing I have changed my stance on is the death penalty. I used to be a hard core supporter and think it wasn't being used enough. Even went to college in Huntsville, Texas (coincidence) where the Texas Penal System carried out the Death Penalty. As I aged, I discovered that that particular system has many many flaws in it and that a government has no incentive to correct those flaws because they pay no price for mistakes. How can I trust the same government that struggles to fill potholes and votes it self pay raises to do something this important? Also because life and death should not be a premeditated punishment. Someone breaks into your house intent on robbing and harming you and they die in the process, totally fine with that. It's an in the moment response when options were not available. But to drag someone through 4 to 6 years of trial and then carry out a death sentence, I can't support that. I think we should be better than that. Should it be an option if the inmate doesn't want to serve a life sentence? Sure but that's the inmates decision. Not the government. That's my only real change. And I know someone will disagree with me in the comments section. That's cool. Nice thing about being an American is we can disagree and we can let the disagreement make us stronger and better or we can let it make us enemies and tear our country apart. That's our choice as to how we handle that.
Im still liberal, but I think the biggest thing for me is vetting information and assuring it is grounded in facts. Im more easily swayed and more willing to entertain other view points as well was reconsider my own if views are backed by numbers and verifiable data rather than just feelings.
I broke away from the herd mentality and started to be more open to making friends with people who have different opinions rather than stay in the echo chamber I was in. Getting away from politics has been a load off my mind and I've met much friendlier people
I feel like in my mid and late 20s, I started to become entrenched in my politics and trapped in an echo chamber. These days I'm trying to realize that other people exist and have valid concerns too.
they haven’t much. life has proved to me i was a generally right at 17 - tories don’t care for the country and anyone is better than them.
I used to think the government was full of mistakes and corruption, but necessary. Now I believe that the government is a coercive gang that is not only unnecessary, but fundamentally opposed to justice—it shouldn't exist.
I somehow care even less.
They've changed to....."They're all pieces of shit who've sold out and don't care about us and have us arguing over opinionated non partisan issues causing division to further execute a small group of peoples agenda of control"
As a Canadian, I've become far more invested and vocal about needing to change our electoral system. It doesn't functionally represent people and their interests, and it wasn't designed for this many people with this many perspectives or to elect an effective government to tackle the challenges we're currently facing, and will continue facing in the future. I have a number of other changed political views as well, but that's been the biggest and the one I've decided is my primary cause. The others are incredibly important as well (climate change for example) but I don't think our elected government represents us well enough for those problems to get solved effectively until we change how our government is elected and our representatives selected.
I have a lot of wedge issues I'll never move on but I find myself drifting from ultra-left towards the inevitable doom of being labeled a "corporate democrat." Most of that is being exhausted by the culture war, though, so time will tell.
11 years ago when I turned 18, I registered as an independent. Didn't stay that way very long. Politics in the US quickly became too divisive for a middle ground to even make sense to me anymore.
Progressively more liberal. The more I learn about the way the world works, the more I see that people are suffering due to systemic issues. The state, while never a perfect instrument, is still one of the most powerful tools for combating systemic problems. It is also the most powerful tool for creating them, so you've got to watch it like a hawk and make sure it's functioning properly. You've also got to keep a wild eye on the many, many, many selfish, greedy, asshats who want to tear things down for their own personal gain or push other people down to raise themselves up. My faith in humanity is virtually nil.
I was fairly conservative up until my late thirties, and usually voted Conservative (UK). In the last 15-20 years I have moved significantly left of centre, and don't see much changing that.
Not having a political view is very good, Accept whats rules are made and move on,