Politics

I confess to being a political junkie/wonk/pundit. Honestly, I don’t much like politics. However, I have come to realize that just about every form of human activity involves politicking, so I decided I had better get good at it.

View my Blog Posts on Politics

Foundational Texts

These are the books I consider foundational. That is, other than the Bible, they have had unrivaled influence on my politics and worldview.

Edmund Burke: Reflections on the Revolution in France
Russell Kirk: The Conservative Mind

More On My Politics

I am a conservative because conservative policies usually make sense and liberal policies, more often than not, do not. I grew up surrounded by—and taught to hold strongly to—very liberal beliefs; I remember being depressed to hear that George H. W. Bush had won the Presidency. I thought that abortion was a legitimate legal right (while opposing abortion nonetheless on moral grounds) and believed in expanded government spending and other pet liberal topics, through most of high school. By the end of high school, though, I had begun to question the economics, political theory, and moral arguments underlying liberal politics, generally, and Democratic party politics, in particular. I reached my own conclusions and realized that I agree far more often with conservative and Republican arguments than with liberal or Democratic ones.

I do try, however, to give those with whom I disagree the benefit of the doubt as to motive. For example, though I may disagree vehemently with the position of the Democratic party on abortion, I do not make the assumption that Democrats support abortion primarily because it is politically expedient. Likewise, I appreciate it when those with pro-abortion views do not assume that I am pro-life primarily because of the voter blocks that position appeals to, or because of my religious beliefs or affiliation. (In fact, on this particular issue and in practical terms, I think the non-religious case against abortion is at least as strong as, if not stronger than, the case from Christianity.) The same applies to other issues; just because two people disagree, even if each finds the other’s position insupportable, doesn’t mean they can’t be civil to each other and show a little respect.

I blog on politics.

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