Super boring Tuesday

Well said, my friend. Well said.

“Who cares what color your skin is or what you do or don’t have between your legs… it’s, CAN YOU DO THE JOB.”

That there’s some progressive thinking, James.

Sadly, the fact of the matter is that since ALL of our presidents have ALWAYS been white males, race and gender matter a fair amount, from a historical perspective. That’s not to say that I support voting for one or the other due to that, but it is a milestone nevertheless. Let’s not forget that as little as 50 years ago most women couldn’t work and blacks weren’t allowed to eat with whites in some places. With that as a backdrop I’ll restate my first sentence: that there’s some progressive thinking, James.

In some respects, we as a culture have matured to see beyond race/gender to elect public officials… and then we lean on them like a crutch to advance our candidate (”don’t pick on the poor woman!”…”ooooh you don’t want to vote him in because you’re a RACIST!”)

Just because I identify myself as a Conservative doesn’t mean I can’t have “progressive” thoughts. I don’t think Hillary or Barack should be President based on their policy and political leanings. My choice has nothing to do with WHAT they are.

We had some of this conversation over @ 9rules but it DOES really bug me when someone says “I’m a ” and the other person simply stereotypes them into a party line. (Much like McCain fancies himself a Reagan Conservative when nothing could be further from the truth).

*heh* Don’t take the “progressive” thing wrong. I was merely pointing out that historically speaking that’s a progressive thought. (It’s a good thing, trust me. Conservatism only makes sense when you have something good to conserve.) And, as far as society is concerned, I completely agree: we’re generally past the point where gender/race matter, but at a national level it’s still an issue because big enough pockets of our society still aren’t past that point. Until our actions prove otherwise, that will still be in question.

“it DOES really bug me when someone says “I’m a ” and the other person simply stereotypes them into a party line.”

You and me both. It’s one of the reasons I enjoy reading your thoughts and conversing with you, since you’re one of the few people who actually thinks your position through, though I don’t always agree with your conclusions.

As far as McCain is concerned… I still think his nomination will serve as a platform for the creation (or the rise) of another conservative party, possibly the Libertarians, possibly a reconstituted Reform party, or perhaps something else entirely. The same, I think, can be said for Hillary. Should she be nominated, you can bet a challenger will rise from another party, most likely the Greens.

Who ever said Progressive = “democrat” anyways?

Actually a lot of the liberals I know and hear from on a regular basis like to “soften” the liberal moniker with the “progressive” badge.

They like to think that it makes them appear smart and “with it” to be “progressive”.

See, I for one wouldn’t mind it if ANYTHING changed with the Conservatives, so long as they stay away from becoming fascists. (not saying they ARE)

I for one would love to see the Reagan Conservatives take back their party.

Here’s the big difference between progressive and liberal:

Progressive attempts to bring about cultural and mostly political progress. How that progress is defined is a function of the local culture. One could be a progressive in a Communist state and demand a representative government. A liberal is a transient term applied to those who want to liberate us from past social trends.

As such, one could be a progressive (desire equal treatments regardless of gender and race) and not be a liberal (rally against the homosexual lifestyle).

Of course, all too often the terms are so intertwined for the sake of message marketing we no longer remember what they truly mean. Obfuscation through definition, like the definitions of “Conservatism” and “Fascism” (which I think many Conservatives today are becoming).