I've already gone into this a little bit in a previous post, but just to reiterate...
After taking four political typology quizzes, I've found that I'm liberal. I've always associated myself with the Democratic party, so this wasn't too much of a surprise. However, based on the typology quizzes, I was quite surprised when I found out that I'm more moderate-leaning than I thought I was.
On the other hand, if I do think about it closely, it's not too surprising after all. My dad is quite liberal (also surprising, he comes from an ultra-conservative, mid-west, Irish Catholic family), but my mom, who claims to be moderate, has historically been pretty right-leaning. (She voted for Bush. Twice.) So I suppose that somewhere along the line, some of her right-wing propaganda somehow rubbed off on me. At home, we don't really discuss politics very often, and if we do, it's mainly my dad complaining about the bureaucracy. However, my parents are both entrenched in Washington politics daily; my dad used to work for The Washington Post and now works for Pew Research Center, my mom used to work for U.S. News and World Report (ha, no one even knows what this is anymore) and now freelances for The Washington Post. So even though politics is rarely discussed in the household, we're all incredibly politically-conscious.
Like the majority of my 18-24 cohort, I believe that social agenda should be priority. (Realistically, no, it shouldn't, the country has other problems. However, like many others, it's the basis of my political beliefs.) Socially, I'm quite liberal. Gay rights? Definitely. Abortion? Pro-choice. Legalizing marijuana? Yes, but with strict government enforcement. Economically, I'm pretty liberal too. National healthcare is good. Politically? I'm a pacifist, disputes should be settled with diplomacy.
What makes me more moderate is that I actually don't have too many qualms with the government. For the most part, it does a pretty good job. The only liberal social belief that I vehemently oppose is affirmative action. America is a melting pot of cultures, and therefore everyone should be treated equally. I have nothing against civil rights, yet I think we hurdled that issue . We've come to the point where equality should actually mean true equality, no reverse discrimination. I'm all for immigration.
My general outlook in life is that people can believe whatever they wish to believe, just please, don't force those beliefs on others. To each his own. I'm pretty accepting if you can provide legitimate evidence as to why you believe a certain way.
We both share pretty much the same outlook in life....and don't worry, I was surprised too by my quiz scores. I honestly thought I was more of a post-moderate to tell the truth...but I'm alright with being a liberal. Agree with you half-and-half on the affirmative action opinion. True, people should be treated equally, but sometimes affirmative action really does help out those who need it. Though this is coming from a minority, so maybe my point really isn't all that valid....anyways, good post :)
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