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snake321
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11 Apr 2007, 1:50 pm

This thread, though a bit controversial, is to shed light on a subject here that I wish to discuss..... I am completely for freedom, but within reasonable bounds towards the greater common good of mankind. Another way of saying this might be a democratic socialist.
But too much freedom is a threat to freedom. Lemme explain here. Look at some of the options for 3rd political parties, groups like American Communist Party, American Nazi Party, NAMBLA (North American Man Boy Love Association, in other words child molestor rights). These people should not be given the means to push these agendas. Understood that 3rd parties have little to no power in the present times, but that's not the point here. History has shown that any paper checks and balances are no match for the human desire to over-ride them in the name of tyranny, and in this since our constitution is nothing more than a piece of paper. Because freedom isn't free.
Yes, you COULD say "oh it's their right to be ignorant" but when it starts getting political.... See NT society misses the whole idea here, freedom isn't supposed to be a race to screw eachother over, but when we fall back on that "oh it's their right to be stupid" argument, your pretty much turning it into a big game of "lets screw these people before they screw us". America was supposed to have been a place to escape inequality and persecution (despite our hypocritical history of oppressing minorities, which we're still doing today, as sick as that is).
America, as much as I loved what we were supposed to have been, and what we were on paper, Americans are very spoiled. Granted this is humanity in general who have these behaviors, but hardship often matures people, many in the 3rd world countries see our arrogance and we come off looking like 13 yr old spoiled brats (no offense to teenagers, I was once one too).



snake321
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11 Apr 2007, 1:52 pm

I mean think, American Communist Party, well if you give them the "freedom" to push their agenda and they succeed, you just signed away your rights. Same for American Fascist Party, American Nazi Party, etc.



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11 Apr 2007, 3:02 pm

snake321, I pretty much agree.
We (in holland) also have some kind of problem: another nationalist founded a political party and about 7% of the voters appeared to agree with him on the last elections. According to newer polls, it's 10%. This man hates foreigners and wins votes only by fear of the unknown.
Also christian parties are winning, an undermining of the democracy imo.

Still, it IS democracy we're in. Most ignorant political parties don't get the chance to get big, like this NAMBLA you're speaking of. They'll never get any sort of power. So why not let them exist? Why make the freedom less if there's no true threat coming from them?
If the ignorant parties are winning, is it the fault of the parties and freedom, of that of the other parties that apparently didn't make their true point clear? That also tried to win the elections by giving cookies and false prospects? I think it's the last. I know there'll always be ignorant people, so ignorant political parties will always win some votes, but parties should try to win the other voters by stating and defending just statements, not the brainless part by lying.

I do agree on banning political parties that want to ban democracy and freedom of course :)



Awesomelyglorious
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11 Apr 2007, 3:16 pm

What you mean is whether or not a state of freedom is stable, correct? That is an interesting thought and it makes it very hard to say as well.

I do not fear the fringe groups though, I fear the thoughts of the majority as those can go against freedom. I think that both Alex Tabarrok and Joseph Schumpeter have both argued that economic freedom will create the prosperity that will lead to the death of that freedom and badness resulting from that. I don't think that it is this freedom you are worried about.

I don't think that this same trend exists in social freedoms at all. If anything allowing more freedom has spurred on more freedom as it allows people to question norms from what I have seen in the US. The only cases where I see this freedom as declining significantly is whenever a big bad threat encroaches and the big bad threats today are not that big or bad. Such is somewhat likely to exist in many cases though. I think that our economic freedom is most threatened though.



snake321
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11 Apr 2007, 3:23 pm

Ignorant parties have no power? Hell, look at the bible thumping republicans, and the pc-fanatic liberals. Both of those parties are fueled by extremist ideologies. Neither of them are even a fraction capable of viewing issues without a post-hitlerite since of bias, facts are getting discarded right and left so that people can feel dominant by stomping on someone else.
As for the 3rd parties, just because they have no power right now does not mean that they can't obtain it, even if not in our lifetime, then in our childrens' or grandchildrens' lifetime. It's merely a matter of strategy, undermining the stupid masses, and finding a suitable funder. This has happened countless times throughout history. No, we shouldn't accept their ideas. I mean, even if they just spread their ideas through music, or art, etc., people will eat that s**t up. And it DOES influence people very strongly. Here in America now days, there are few people who are able to think with their own minds. Everyone is pretty much either a pc-extremist, a religious extremist, or too apathetic and stupid to care about anything but smoking dope and going to trendy parties.
Point is, these groups are dangerous. Already "conservatives" and "liberals" have divided America into two seperate, but equally extremist camps. And, as a result, we live in a society that defends blatant dysfunction and barbarism as MORALITY.



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11 Apr 2007, 3:33 pm

here, many people are emotionally chained to the "liberal" or "conservative" labels, and no matter what is said, it's not gonna open their eyes to the flaws in their tribe. I dunno how many of those types are here, but I suspect there may be quite many, just as in real life...
So lets replace "liberal and conservative" with NAMBLA and ACP. Now, you can choose between child molestors or communists. Is there even a point in voting?



Awesomelyglorious
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11 Apr 2007, 3:33 pm

snake321 wrote:
Ignorant parties have no power? Hell, look at the bible thumping republicans, and the pc-fanatic liberals. Both of those parties are fueled by extremist ideologies. Neither of them are even a fraction capable of viewing issues without a post-hitlerite since of bias, facts are getting discarded right and left so that people can feel dominant by stomping on someone else.
As for the 3rd parties, just because they have no power right now does not mean that they can't obtain it, even if not in our lifetime, then in our childrens' or grandchildrens' lifetime. It's merely a matter of strategy, undermining the stupid masses, and finding a suitable funder. This has happened countless times throughout history. No, we shouldn't accept their ideas. I mean, even if they just spread their ideas through music, or art, etc., people will eat that sh** up. And it DOES influence people very strongly. Here in America now days, there are few people who are able to think with their own minds. Everyone is pretty much either a pc-extremist, a religious extremist, or too apathetic and stupid to care about anything but smoking dope and going to trendy parties.
Point is, these groups are dangerous. Already "conservatives" and "liberals" have divided America into two seperate, but equally extremist camps. And, as a result, we live in a society that defends blatant dysfunction and barbarism as MORALITY.

I see both. They are not that extreme and they are neither has an extreme of power. I don't feel threatened by either group I have even attended political party functions too and have seen these people there. You just described politics and ideology a little with the look at facts though. I think that your perception of the world is quite messed up, I have met plenty of people on either side and I do not consider most of them any of those groups. Really though, I don't know of a single age in which there were no problems though. No, they are not dangerous. No, there are no extreme camps of "conservatives" and "liberals" all waiting to take over America. America is quite purple, people of different ideologies talk to each other, and dangerous extremists are really just some fringe group. Dysfunction and barbarism is in the eyes of the beholder. I don't trust your judgment on what is barbaric though.



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11 Apr 2007, 3:37 pm

snake321 wrote:
here, many people are emotionally chained to the "liberal" or "conservative" labels, and no matter what is said, it's not gonna open their eyes to the flaws in their tribe. I dunno how many of those types are here, but I suspect there may be quite many, just as in real life...
So lets replace "liberal and conservative" with NAMBLA and ACP. Now, you can choose between child molestors or communists. Is there even a point in voting?

Umm...... yeah, I don't really see most people as "chained". Ideology is a part of life though. Really, I think your eyes are less clear than theirs though.

Except that we don't have NAMBLA and ACP vying for power, we have 2 parties that tend to be a little around the center of the nation. I think that your views on politics tend to be a little distorted.



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11 Apr 2007, 4:04 pm

Um, so forcing religion onto people through legislation isn't extreme (conservatives)?
Blatantly sensoring facts in order to give minorities the right to push their own hatred by using history as a crutch isn't extreme (liberal)? (try taking a discrimination suit to a liberal court if your a white hetero male).

Of coarse, I'm sure if they filled the airwaves with garbage about why child molestation should be accepted, or why communism is such a great thing for us, many people wouldn't find much extreme about the ACP or NAMBLA either. Just put it on to a 50 cents soundtrack and pass it off as "cool" and sale it to the Mtv generation, right?



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11 Apr 2007, 4:10 pm

snake321 wrote:
Um, so forcing religion onto people through legislation isn't extreme (conservatives)?
Blatantly sensoring facts in order to give minorities the right to push their own hatred by using history as a crutch isn't extreme (liberal)? (try taking a discrimination suit to a liberal court if your a white hetero male).
Compared to past actions? No. This batch of conservatives is really just trying to maintain currently existing systems. They are not actually capable of taking much action. If you mean misrepresenting facts then I would say that every group does that. I don't think that liberals are concerned with racial hatred though, they are concerned with fairness and think that current systems are causing unjust racial disparities.
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Of coarse, I'm sure if they filled the airwaves with garbage about why child molestation should be accepted, or why communism is such a great thing for us, many people wouldn't find much extreme about the ACP or NAMBLA either. Just put it on to a 50 cents soundtrack and pass it off as "cool" and sale it to the Mtv generation, right?

It would have a mild affect but would more likely cause a public outcry. You have to recognize that the culture-media connection is not that media creates culture but rather that media and culture collide to do things because no one person controls the airwaves. We already have musicians that promote communism though. Are we communist yet? No. Not close either.



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11 Apr 2007, 4:15 pm

I see you must not keep up very well. Where were you when the patriot act was signed?



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11 Apr 2007, 4:18 pm

snake321 wrote:
I see you must not keep up very well. Where were you when the patriot act was signed?

I keep up quite well. I was in America sir. The patriot act was in response to a "big bad threat" which caused it to be signed by everyone. It had very little to do with the Christian faith though and given the current position that many people have on the Patriot act, I still do not see this as disproof. We have had worse violations of freedom in our history.



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11 Apr 2007, 4:19 pm

Also, dysfunction isn't in the eye of the beholder neccessarily, as you claim. Note, this comment from someone who consciously and openly defends selfishness, ignorance, hostility, hypocracy, schiestiness, and filth, and who swears up and down it should be his right to harm innocent beings just because he feels like it (reguardless if their human or animal, they feel pain, if it has a conscience and a personality, it feels pain).



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11 Apr 2007, 4:21 pm

Awesomelyglorious wrote:
snake321 wrote:
I see you must not keep up very well. Where were you when the patriot act was signed?

I keep up quite well. I was in America sir. The patriot act was in response to a "big bad threat" which caused it to be signed by everyone. It had very little to do with the Christian faith though and given the current position that many people have on the Patriot act, I still do not see this as disproof. We have had worse violations of freedom in our history.


There was no DIRECT connection to the patriot act and religious extremism, however, the conservatives have launched a war upon our rights in the vision of a theocratic america.



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11 Apr 2007, 4:22 pm

snake321 wrote:
Also, dysfunction isn't in the eye of the beholder neccessarily, as you claim. Note, this comment from someone who consciously and openly defends selfishness, ignorance, hostility, hypocracy, schiestiness, and filth, and who swears up and down it should be his right to harm innocent beings just because he feels like it (reguardless if their human or animal, they feel pain, if it has a conscience and a personality, it feels pain).

Yes, yes it is. You cannot objectively prove a moral system. Your claims of dysfunction rely primarily on your moral judgment. Therefore, it is in the eye of the beholder and in their own moral beliefs which may be quite different.



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11 Apr 2007, 4:25 pm

snake321 wrote:
There was no DIRECT connection to the patriot act and religious extremism, however, the conservatives have launched a war upon our rights in the vision of a theocratic america.

Just like George Bush has taken permanent control of the nation like Hitler did in Germany? I don't see this at all sir. The right is too fragmented of a group with too many desires to all be the religious right. The patriot act was simply an act of overzealous nationalism.