Posted by I am tired of purity politics. I’m tired of American political parties demanding homogeneity from their members.
I’m tired of being only Democrat or Republican or liberal or conservative or moderate or progressive or neo-conservative or paleo-conservative or environmentalist or libertarian.
I’m tired of activists demanding that ‘allies’ be all things to all causes and all peoples.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds.” Well, I don’t claim to have a ‘big’ mind.
Here’s what I think I think:
The free market is the best-available economist system but it is not true that the freer the market, the freer the people. Markets are populated by people and as such, they can never be the answer in and of themselves.
National borders are important but nation-states such as the USA and India and even Nigeria or Indonesia or Iraq might be too big in area and population to be administered by any central governments.
Today’s social and economic inequities can’t be solved by more appeals to government programs and policies. Technocracy will not save the Union.
I don’t give a damn about death by a thousand micro-cuts.
Man-made climate change and its deleterious effects are real. I believe this because many more smart people who do this for a living say so than don’t. The converse argument, which amounts to screaming, “librul politics!”, doesn’t invalidate the science. It’s also akin to demanding that Flat-Earthers be given an equal seat at the table with those who say the world is round.
Gay marriage will not cause the breakdown of society.
Near-instantaneous social change is inherently destabilizing even if we eventually agree that the change was necessary and right. Let us not paper over the difficult in such changes.
Science is not a substitute for religion. Otherwise, it becomes its own religion (Scientism).
Religion is not a substitute for science.
12,000,000 illegal immigrants can’t be immediately deported. But nor should they be given a free pass.
Representation matters. But not for its own sake. I don’t need to see a vanilla version of me or anyone else on the big screen. And I’m no one’s token.
We live in a society that grants more agency and power to its individuals than at any time in history. But greater opportunity does not mean greater happiness.
Masculinity is not toxic.
Failure to agree with a traditionally normative view doesn’t mean that view is wrong or that society should change its ‘standard’ definition. If you can’t find a niche or a community for what you like or want or think, you’re not looking hard enough.
I’m a Muslim and I still think America likes black people less. Black Muslims? Dang.
Purity Politics should stop at the water’s edge.
And… I’m spent.
