There’s a big election today, and all the fighting has got me thinking about taking sides, in general.
Why we are liberal or conservative
I’ve been wondering why it seems like those with liberal theology are also often the ones who believe Aspartame will kill you. And why those with conservative theology are often also staunch capitalists. I know that’s not a rule, but it just seems interesting that we generally fall into one camp or the other. Conservative or Liberal. Why?! What made us decide one way was better than the other?
This is extremely generalized, but what if it’s this…
If the current system serves us well we resist forces that will change it. Thus, that person would be a conservative. (And perhaps this is why a lot of white middle class American males tend to trust the current system–it serves us well!)
But if we feel like the current system doesn’t serve us well, maybe we generally invite change. Thus, a liberal.
I bet this often starts with our parents. If they provided a good life, it would be natural for their children to think their way of looking at the world is the best one. And it’s easy to see that people who are trying to change it are threatening to destroy a good thing. Thus the animosity!
But If we feel mainly hurt by parents, it seems natural that our default would be to gravitate toward seeking change, which I see as basically the definition of being liberal.
Why we grab onto certain ideas
And I also noticed that philosophies get solidified in me when I am the one that comes up with an idea that could solves something that threatens my pleasures. It’s like the movie, “Inception.” The ideas we are most attached to are the ones that we think are ours.
What is the alternative?
I think what this does is that we generally try to defend the old system as a whole, or we fight to change it.
But what if I could take myself out of the ‘what has been good for me’ and just ask what seems like the smartest solution for the most number of people. What if I decide to trust the governing body that seems to earn it by their actions, instead of what I’ve traditionally sided with.
Unfortunately for this political election, I think we’re all threatened by the choices that are out there.
Raw Spoon, 11-7-16
