I'm tired of people being completely confident in their beliefs. It's like they need to be. No matter how many problems you point out, a lot of people just refuse to even consider that they may be mistaken.
All you have to do is take a step back and think calmly to realize that the politicians you support have other interests above their ideology. And, when it comes right down to it, no ideology is ultimately tenable. Which is why I think moderate pragmatism (read: restrained Utilitarianism) is the only way.
But no one wants to settle for that. They either want very liberal or very conservative policy. And they've blinded themselves to their ideology's pitfalls. Because, lets face it, no one wants to think they're wrong.
That goes for me, too.|||112873066719283472|||Politics
Gunaikos|||This comment has been removed by a blog administrator. Gunaikos|||I usually avoid the temptation to say I "told you so" and I'm trying to right now. Have I failed?I think I arrived at the futility of discussing politics, especially with people you care about, a long time ago. It is honestly just not worth it. It doesn't matter how little or much a person delves into learning about the intricacies of politics, in the end, people have a feeling, and bend a certain way. Unfortunately most people don't look at the world with the naïveté that I would prefer. If we could all approach these subjects acknowledging our ignorance and showing a deep sense of humility we might actually learn something about politics, and more importantly, human nature, which to me are almost synonymous.
When I take my dog Molly for a walk, we walk side by side and we enjoy each others company, as soon as she feels the slightest tug on her leash it is her natural instinct to pull in the opposite direction at which point she usually plants her butt on the ground and refuses to move. So I stand on the corner of a busy intersection trying to verbally coerce a 3 pound dog to start walking again. I imagine this scene amuses most on lookers, it's visually absurd. I liken this interaction to conversations about politics. You can walk together so far, but pull in one direction or another, and despite any rational method you employ, someone's butt ends up stubbornly planted on the ground and the other looks down on them, believing they are in a righteous and haughty position to make the other move.
Joe|||I usually avoid the temptation to say I "told you so" and I'm trying to right now. Have I failed?Yes. :)
Let me clarify that I'm not saying that it is all futile, just frustrating. I also hesitate to compare people to a three pound dog with an ass like lead.