Reply #44: Thanks, but you might have taken it too far. [View All]

[GymGeekAus]

You see, in any society there will always be people who have not "thought themselves all the way through." There has to be--we are not born with complete awareness. We change constantly. We're not the same people we were five years ago. The political position one thought through all the way to the core of their being last week might not reflect who they are tomorrow. We change a lot over our lives, after all.

In addition, there is no "absolute correct" here. People are free to disagree about their base motivations. We are all individuals. And if there is a higher moral compass, none of us are privy to it with any certainty (although some claim they are).

At the root of poltics is the idea of compromise. But before you compromise, you really should discuss. It's the discussion where the best realizations happen, IMHO. And that happens on both sides. The sharing of perspectives puts everything on the table, and an honest debate leads to an honest compromise. An honest compromise leads to a "more perfect Union."

I too consider myself a liberal--a pretty hard-core one at that. Central to the liberal philosophy in my mind is the idea of pluralism: that we can all get along despite our differences. Liberalism itself, though, doesn't guarantee me any moral authority. Especially in a general sense. Each issue must still be discussed and debated on its own merits, each position must be examined for it's root motivation.

One person might hate themselves and covet acceptance from others who hate them, just like you described. But another might simply be pursuing a fully-self examined philosophy of pragmatism. Some might simply be motivated by selfishness over anything else. And just like you mentioned, many are motivated out of fear--be it fear of judgement or fear of consequence or whatever. There are all sorts of people out there. The better we understand our neighbors, the "more perfect" a Union we can create.

An examined perspective can very well lead an individual to a different conclusion than it leads you or me. There is no guarantee of hegemony through pluralism--quite the opposite in fact.

It really all depends on what beliefs exist at the root of each individual's examined moral system. Keeping in mind that we're all individuals.