After a long break, I think I'm going to give this blogging thing another shot. This time, I want to focus mainly on politics, as that seems to be the subject that most compels me to writing. As such, I think it's important to outline my general political opinions and leanings.
I think labels are important. They may be unhelpful sometimes but mostly they are imporant as a means of summarising the general political opinions of someone. I identify myself as a social democrat, someone who believes passionately in democracy and freedom, but seeks to reform capitalism in ways that align it more to the goals of social justice, while still maintaining the capitalist mode of production. Socially, I, of course, support equality for gays and lesbians. I think the fact that abortion is illegal in this country in the year 2010 is to our great shame. I support the legalisation of all drugs, but not because I believe everyone can do with their own bodies as they please. Hardcore drugs are enormously harmful, not just to the users but to their families and friends and to the general good order of society. That said, prohibition just is not working. The War on Drugs is a catastrophic failure. It is time to get serious about the issue, legalise drugs so we can enforce some kind of regulation on them and bring drug addicts into the system where we can work at rehabilitating them, rather than criminalising them and keeping them at a distance. I detest any influence of religion on policy. Religion is harmful in all its' guises, and the less influence it has over anyone, the better.
I'm also a neoconservative. I think labels are important, but sometimes they can be misleading. The term "neoconservative" has a long and storied history, but when I use it I mean to convey the presently understood meaning of that term. Moreover, a neocon is someone who is literally willing to declare war on the status quo and can hardly be considered a conservative.
Often, people are confused at my left-leaning fiscal and social opinions and my hawkish outlook on matters of foreign policy. This apparently seems contradictory to some people, which surprised me at first. The Left usually stands up for the oppressed, stands against fascism ... right? As such, it only makes sense that the goals of the Left would be a liberated Iraq and a free Afghanistan, etc. I soon learned this was not the case at all. The anti-war Left protested against intervention in Bosnia, when thousands of Ethnic Muslims were being cleansed for the depraved fantasy of a Greater Serbia. That same movement would have left Iraq as the personal property of a deranged criminal family, one guilty of genocide. That is their legacy, and they're welcome to it. I believe that Western power (specifically the power of the US and her allies) is there to be used, and should be used to shape the world in a way that promotes democracy and freedom. It is not a coincidence that free countries do not suffer famines or political violence. Moreover, if the US does not act to shape the world, someone else will. I would rather it be the US, government , which runs a free and tolerant society, than fascist, extremist governments like Iran or North Korea.
This is just a terse summary of my opinions, just laying the groundwork for future writings in which I intend to further explore my own opinions and examine the opposing arguments.
I think labels are important. They may be unhelpful sometimes but mostly they are imporant as a means of summarising the general political opinions of someone. I identify myself as a social democrat, someone who believes passionately in democracy and freedom, but seeks to reform capitalism in ways that align it more to the goals of social justice, while still maintaining the capitalist mode of production. Socially, I, of course, support equality for gays and lesbians. I think the fact that abortion is illegal in this country in the year 2010 is to our great shame. I support the legalisation of all drugs, but not because I believe everyone can do with their own bodies as they please. Hardcore drugs are enormously harmful, not just to the users but to their families and friends and to the general good order of society. That said, prohibition just is not working. The War on Drugs is a catastrophic failure. It is time to get serious about the issue, legalise drugs so we can enforce some kind of regulation on them and bring drug addicts into the system where we can work at rehabilitating them, rather than criminalising them and keeping them at a distance. I detest any influence of religion on policy. Religion is harmful in all its' guises, and the less influence it has over anyone, the better.
I'm also a neoconservative. I think labels are important, but sometimes they can be misleading. The term "neoconservative" has a long and storied history, but when I use it I mean to convey the presently understood meaning of that term. Moreover, a neocon is someone who is literally willing to declare war on the status quo and can hardly be considered a conservative.
Often, people are confused at my left-leaning fiscal and social opinions and my hawkish outlook on matters of foreign policy. This apparently seems contradictory to some people, which surprised me at first. The Left usually stands up for the oppressed, stands against fascism ... right? As such, it only makes sense that the goals of the Left would be a liberated Iraq and a free Afghanistan, etc. I soon learned this was not the case at all. The anti-war Left protested against intervention in Bosnia, when thousands of Ethnic Muslims were being cleansed for the depraved fantasy of a Greater Serbia. That same movement would have left Iraq as the personal property of a deranged criminal family, one guilty of genocide. That is their legacy, and they're welcome to it. I believe that Western power (specifically the power of the US and her allies) is there to be used, and should be used to shape the world in a way that promotes democracy and freedom. It is not a coincidence that free countries do not suffer famines or political violence. Moreover, if the US does not act to shape the world, someone else will. I would rather it be the US, government , which runs a free and tolerant society, than fascist, extremist governments like Iran or North Korea.
This is just a terse summary of my opinions, just laying the groundwork for future writings in which I intend to further explore my own opinions and examine the opposing arguments.
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