I've been reflecting on this tonight. Do liberals lie on purpose? Some liberals I know are such moral relativists that by dinner they've changed the position they held at breakfast. A liberal will claim to believe in individual rights, and argue two minutes later against the rights of individuals with whom he happens to disagree. Actually, I have some relatives like that. You have a conversation and the very next day have another that is completely at odds with the first. So do liberals lie? Or are they so "broad minded" that they can actually hold numerous contrary opinions all at the same time?
Now that I think about it isn't that a sign of mental illness? Maybe liberals aren't liars, they're certifiable. What do you think?
One of the books I'm in the middle of reading is "The Liberal Mind: The Psychological Causes of Political Madness" by Lyle H. Rossiter, Jr, M.D. It's a fascinating read, one that I'd highly recommend. Your question is more than rhetorical.
ReplyDeleteIt's complicated. Because the "liberal" believes in and advocates things that are so reprehensible, there are questions that just can't be asked and topics that can only be addressed by passion. Christians use the catechetical technique because our blessed predecessors understood that we need the answers to legitimate questions. Since the facts are on the side of He who made all things, a Christian has nothing to fear in answering any question using facts.
ReplyDeleteThere's also the influence of evil spirits, which is extreme in those who, for instance, promote sociopathic sexual deviance.
In general, I say "yes" because to them the end justifies the means. Their goal makes everything fair game - even lying. So, absolute rules governing truth don't apply. Even laws - like the Constitution are fungible to them. Just listen to the POTUS! Only one thing matters to them - winning!
ReplyDeleteProud liberal here who thinks you watch too much Fox. Conservative politicians lie all the time, too. Maybe, if you feel the need to name-call, you should just say that politicians are liars and leave the general populace out of it? I am a liberal because I believe that each person should have the right to choose their own religion, their own life partner, whether or not to have children, and that there are just some things that a central government can accomplish better than states, cities, or individuals. I always find it funny when conservatives start talking about their "rights" (like gun ownership and school choice) and yet they are ready to deny some of the most basic rights to other citizens. Just because some things are against your moral code doesn't mean that the rest of us have to abide by it.
ReplyDeleteSo... straight talking, HONEST liberal over here. Thanks very much.
Or to quote George Clooney:
ReplyDelete"I am a liberal. And I make no apologies for it. Hell, I'm proud of it.
Too many people run away from the label. They whisper it like you'd whisper "I'm a Nazi." Like it's a dirty word. But turn away from saying "I'm a liberal" and it's like you're turning away from saying that blacks should be allowed to sit in the front of the bus, that women should be able to vote and get paid the same as a man, that McCarthy was wrong, that Vietnam was a mistake. And that Saddam Hussein had no ties to al-Qaeda and had nothing to do with 9/11."
If you stake your positions based on emotions devoid of serious review of the facts, your positions can change as often as your emotions.
ReplyDeleteThat comment "a conservative is a liberal who's been mugged" rings well as it is so true - we are all goverened by emotions, but for some, facts take a more involved degree of focus.
That said, so many liberals use facts that have nothing to do with the point. "Bush lied, people died", "a war over oil",
illegal war".
Abortion is legal war? Iraq and Afganistan are just oozing out oil thanks to us - as is Vietnam. South Korea has made us so rich, gaining North Korea would have made us so much richer. Libya will bring us prosperity.
They are so "open-minded" that their brains fall out.
ReplyDeleteI'm not so much on clooney, but like JFK on liberalism:
ReplyDeleteIf by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people — their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties — someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal."
Me too.
Actually, I don't have cable so I don't watch Fox at all. Yes there are liars who wear the mask of conservativism. The neo-con warmongers are among them.
ReplyDeleteBut conservative lies are inconsistent with what conservatism is. One of its main principles is that there is a moral order (not specifically religious) with immutable moral principles. Socrates and Aristotoe believed that.
On the other hand, there is nothing immutable about liberalism at all. It is essentially based on the lie that man is perfectable by his own power. He's going to create Utopia (run by liberals) for the rest of us. We saw where that went during the Reign of Terror of the French Revolution which was essentially a liberal revolution.
The liberal says, I'm against killing, but has no problem with supporting the killing of millions of innocent unborn babies. The liberal claims to care about the environment but will have no problem like Al Gare with owning a mansion that consumes more energy in a month than most families use in a year while claiming his "carbon offsets" allow him that privilege. That's because these issues are often more about gaining power than any principle.
The liberal believes that the end justifies the means so when he can't get his way through the electoral process he will find a liberal activist judge to impose his will on the whole country and call that justice.
We are seeing liberals in action in Wisconsin where the unions play "sick out" and then get lying liberal doctors to give them fake excuses.
I think the motto of the liberal is "You have your truth, I have mine. But my truth always trumps yours."
Liberals and by this I mean what we currently call liberals not classical liberals, do not believe in truth only in getting their way. So when a liberal speaks it is for effect. They say that Hubert Humphrey would work a room and tell each person what he wanted to hear and never be concerned about the fact that he was contradicting himself all night. Liberals speak only to get their way. Reality for them is getting what they want. This is why I like Sarah Palin's statement: "If it weren't for double standards they'd have no standards at all."
ReplyDeleteExcuse me if I laugh at JFK's quote. Do those liberals in Wisconsin care about the kids? No! Not only did they close down the schools but they gave youngsters a horrendous example of lying and bullying to get your way. But they talk a good show when they discuss "conflict resolution." What a show of hypocrisy!
ReplyDeleteAs for civil rights, where are the rights for unborn children who can be killed at any time up until birth? And who cares that black babies are aborted at a much higher rate than whites. Blacks represent 12% of the population and have almost 40% of the abortions. Groups like Planned Parenthood target minority areas.
As for jobs, liberal policies destroy small businesses who cannot afford the draconian regulations and the astronomical fines imposed. That's why jobs are being outsourced to foreign countries and manufacturing has almost disappeared in this country.
And then there's health care. Obamacare is supposed to be the best thing since sliced bread. So far the administration has given out over 1040 waivers including to unions who told us how great it was. SEIU and AFT are among those being exempted. Turns out this "universal health care" isn't so great after all.
This is liberalism. We're all equal but some are more equal than others, especially those who contributed to Obama's campaign.
Lots of con-swerve-atives who say they are pro-life, but support the death penalty. And gun rights. Nobody who is really pro-life who would own a gun or would support any means of mass destruction.
ReplyDeleteNobody can say it better than Elroy:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.elroy.net/politics/liberal.html
Still proud to be a liberal, HONESTLY.
Jen, you said, "Just because some things are against your moral code doesn't mean that the rest of us have to abide by it."
ReplyDeleteMany liberals call themselves "pro-choice". That means they are willing to force upon tiny children their moral code in the most brutal, violent way possible. Here is a clear-cut case of a liberal's cognitive dissonance.