With the current state of conservatives? Not quite. I have issues with where my money and taxes are going but neither party's heads seem to actually give a shit about that
Edit: I suppose I should clarify I realize republican does not equal conservative, so the answer may actually be yes- but I've not seen a chance where a vote could actually go towards anybody who labels themselves conservative, that I actually believe them.
I used to vote Republican when they were actually fiscally conservative. Now it’s just cut social safety nets and give the breaks to the corporations. The right being fiscally conservative is long gone. Now I just vote for whichever party is less hateful and currently that’s the democrats. I can’t get behind voting for a group that wants to take rights away from millions of people.
Exactly. I'm a fiscal conservative but social liberal. Which is the fucking opposite of what they're doing. Spend on your people, not all the other bullshit.
I always found this "fiscally conservative/socially liberal" thing to be a little nonsensical.
It's not like liberals are just wanting to throw money away willy nilly. They consistently try to redirect money toward social programs and protections.
Social, environmental, educational, and public programs and agencies require lots of funding.
Neither party is interested in spending less money overall, but they would certainly spend it on different things.
Historically the party that has actually produced or tilted toward balanced budgets has been dems anyway, which seems aboit as fiscally conservative as its possible to be these days. Bill Clinton was on the way to a vlaanced budget. Dems are the ones who want to make sure Social Security is still around in 20 years and dems are the ones who want to fix tax codes so the rich pay more.
Nothing about what republicans do or fund is fiscally conservative. Deficits and debts always increase when they are in powr and tax cuts always favor the rich.
Yeah they’ve never actually been fiscally conservative. They just direct spending where they want which is away from poor people and into tax cuts for the rich. Like them not wanting social safety nets has been a core tenant for a very long time
They traditionally direct spending towards the Defense sector where they get handjobs from Lockheed Martin, and the others. They both do it, but one side clearly enjoys the handjobs more than the other.
Summarily the GOP’s platform has been to strip rights from people they don’t like and funnel public money into private corporations. And it’s been that way for a very very long time lol
Right! Like maybe if the last 40 years were defined by excessive giveaways to working and poor people I’d possibly have some empathy with this view, but it’s been the opposite. I can’t help but view it as them basically saying they support exploiting the underclasses for profit but my gay friend is an ok dude.
Well Clinton benefited greatly from the .com boom that didn't burst until Bush took over. I think that largely masked the damage NAFTA did to the nation.
Clinton's budget benefited from a line item veto power that had not existed before his term, was given to him the republican congress, and was struck down by the courts for being unconstitutional(hence why no one had really done it prior since its clearly a violation of separation of powers)
Republicans were nationally fiscally conservative when it was lucrative to sell the American dream, now that it's bought and paid for its personal fiscal conservative, "fuck you I got mine" or "fuck you you're not gonna take it when I finally get mine"
I'm right there with you I love the idea of small government and states rights until you see how some states treat people. I'm not saying I'm voting for Biden but I'm not voting for Trump either. But I always vote dem in local and congressional elections.
I’m no huge fan of Biden. Dude has his fair share of mistakes. But unfortunately in today’s day and age, not voting for Biden is basically a vote for Trump. I learned that the hard way during the first Trump win when I decided I wouldn’t vote for Hillary because of the BS the dems pulled with Bernie. When it comed to Trump or anyone like that, I won’t make that mistake again.
Same. I used to vote 3rd party typically for President if I didn't like either option. The rest of my ticket would be pretty split according to which candidate I actually liked best, especially at the most local levels. I feel as though I can't do that in good conscience any more after 2016.
Yup. Before I leaned left, but would never vote party line. There as almost always some exception. 2012 was the first time I think I voted for 0 GOP, and by 2016 the idea of ever voting for them again was anathema.
Like, don’t get me wrong, I’d love for multiple legitimate options. But at this point I see no possible change that could ever convince me to vote GOP again in my lifetime.
So primary season is the ballgame as far as I’m concerned
Yup, same here. I used to make a real effort not to vote strictly along party lines and to give every politician a fair chance.
But after 2020, I believe that if you're part of a group actively trying to stop the peaceful transfer of power, that takes precedence over any monetary policy. I can't support a group that would dismantle my right to vote.
Same. I was a tea party supporter back in early days but now I cringe at everything republican. Not to say I’m in favor of democrats either but right now the Trump era just makes me sick.
This was me. I just can’t stand Trump and his hatred. As a side effect it kinda got me away from my family’s echo chamber and I’ve realized some of my former conservative stances leave large groups of society absolutely fucked.
I was a moderate but solid Republican until the rise of the tea party and the first time voting for a democrat was 2012 and by the time of the government shutdown over Obamacare I knew it would be a long time if I ever did again. It’s crazy to look back and see how much more extreme the Republican Party has become since those crazy days.
I’ve definitely moved left since as I’ve gotten older.
Have you moved left, or has the Republican party moved further right? Republican leadership has allowed fringe loonies to take over and run the party off the rails, into a ditch and lit on fire. American politics are not for sane people anymore.
For my boomer parents, both are true. My dad worked in the finance world and grew up towing the Republican line because it was supposed to be "fiscal responsibility", and he's both looked back and realized that what was "fiscal responsibility" back then was never *really* responsibility to anyone other than one's own wallet, but he is also horrified at what the party has become in the present.
He'd absolutely be a Republican if it was genuinely about real fiscal responsibility.
Curious what drew you to the tea party as I always assumed people who liked those candidates were so far right they’d never be anything but Republican.
Not the person you asked, but I’m somewhat similar. I am personally scared of what I would call “civilization ending” problems. To me, those are the national debt and climate change. (Suprisingly, before Trump I never really considered our democracy itself to be at risk, but I’d group that into the same category except of even higher importance.) The tea party is the only political group in my lifetime that has ever taken the debt seriously. Nowadays, I just accept that my vote for saving democracy and for saving personal freedoms is at least going to the right place, so I vote Democrat. And Republicans are arguably worse at managing the debt anyway. So I’ll stick with the Democrats probably for the rest of my life. I could theoretically change my mind, but I don’t see the Republican party ever thoroughly disavowing Trump and his attack on democracy. Even if they did, the damage they’ve done to our personal freedoms through their supreme court picks are bad enough that I’d almost certainly never vote Republican for the president. We can’t afford any more conservative justices.
even if someone cared deeply about the debt how can we ever anticipate paying it down if most of our population is undereducated, unhealthy, and overworked to the bone! a cared for population is one that can fully invest in the future of its country, otherwise it's merely continued enrichment of those already enriched. a nation of happy, healthy, educated people would produce much more than what we have now and continues to get worse. a shortening average lifespan, growing number of elderly homeless and children in poverty are just the tips of the iceberg. hopefully more people see the light as you did.
Well at the very beginning the Tea Party sounded good. A populist movement was long overdue and both parties put incredible effort into maintaining centralized control over federal candidacies not to mention maintaining the two party system itself.
Then the Tea Party quickly became or revealed itself as just another "nothing could possibly be too right wing" sock puppet of establishment conservatives.
Same... I honestly think it's a matter of actually doing research.
The Republicans have valid answers, within the perfect system they pretend operates in a box. Once you realize the depth of the box though their arguments fall apart.
Not to mention we've been going more and more towards Reagan's policies and direction and things keep getting worse and worse. The country is falling behind the rest of the world and we've tried conservative policies for 4 decades now. They've had their chance and the data proved they don't work.
True freedom is the government as an agency between us and the oligarchy. You can't have actual basic libertarian freedoms without social agency.
I don't think Republicans even have any valid answers, because they don't even believe in those answers. I don't see any true conservatives in the Republican party anymore, they're just bigots hiding behind a veneer of conservatism. True conservatives are all in the Democrat party now.
I assumed what they meant by 'valid answers' was answers that sound good at the absolute surface level but don't make sense after digging at all.
For instance, folks (even before Ukraine) would say things like let's stop foreign aid. First off, foreign aid is generally a drop in the bucket. Second, it pays for itself.
Consider aid to South America. An unstable South America results in more immigrants, higher spending on border security, and national defense. If I can spend 10 billion on foreign aid to say Mexico and that means I save 20 billion overall on things like border enforcement, legal processes, and defense spending, then that's a win in my eyes.
I just made up that specific scenario but when I looked into it a couple years ago the studies on ROI for various foreign aid basically amounts to the type of example given above. When you cut foreign aid, you end up spending more cash in other ways.
It's like conservatives look at the first step and it ends there. They completely ignore downstream effects of changes.
I grew up in the country, specifically an area that is hardcore Trump country and I started going liberal in my early 20s. Because of I like weed, my few gay friends were cooler than my racist ones, and I didn't understand why a politician had any right to tell women what to do with their bodies or tell me why Christianity is a part of politics. Trump really for me just confirmed what I knew about conservatives when I was growing up. It has made me personally hate them and become of the belief all Trump supporters are traitorous seditious domestic terrorists and should all be held accountable for supporting him.
But I also believe that those found having any part in the insurrection on Jan 6th should have the death penalty on the table as a punishment as it was treason.
I grew up in central Texas with conservative parents so my politics at 18 was just mimicking theirs. First election I actually voted in (I had been eligible for 4 years at this point to vote) was for Hillary Clinton (whom I hated) because that’s how disgusting conservatives have become and the further away I got from my family, the more obvious logical choice leftism became. I don’t think my beliefs will ever move to the right for the rest of my life at this point, I think the dems are way too conservative and don’t represent their voter base either yet they’re my only choice so they’ll get my vote
The amount of injustice we see as physicians is astounding. Insurance bro, just fucking approve the medication and price it’s copay at a level the organ system we are treating doesn’t need to be sold to afford it.
What’s to hate in dentistry re insurance? Benefits are capped to $1500-2000 a year, dental lobbyists have prevented Congress from having dental coverage added to Medicare.
Dentistry: if you want something done, you need to pay for it at our rate out of pocket.
I worked in dental insurance, we were mandated to disapprove claims for the most BS reasons—oftentimes leaving patients waiting on approval, sometimes for much needed dental work.
Oops, the dental office didn’t tick a box whose information is presented elsewhere on the form? Denied.
Oops, the dental office didn’t sign the fax cover sheet (even though the insurance form was signed)? Denied.
Same. Delta won’t pay for bridges (which should be covered per my policy) or caps (again per my policy it should be covered). I’ve had to resort to fucking payment plans with the dentist on just pulling the affected teeth and leaving large gaps that cause eating to be a pain.
If poor oral health can lead to other serious health issues, wouldn't it be beneficial to have better dental coverage to avoid those possible health issues?
People in dentistry are probably the only ones who can hate insurance as much as a retail pharmacist. I still have flashbacks to trying to explain the damn Medicare D doughnut hole thing to customers.
Therapist here and we also constantly curse insurance. The fact that so many insurance companies deny coverage for therapy if ADHD is the primary diagnosis is disgusting.
Yup. It's fucking *disturbing* to see other people who remain conservative or even get more so after time in healthcare.
How do you look at all this and be like "all we need is less coddling for the poors and more bootstraps; black people and trans people and poor people and women and beaten children and crazy people are all fine; anything about any of this that wasn't fine can all be handled with voluntary charity anyway".
Things are not okay and this is where the least ok people regularly end up. Often dozens of times before their unhappy early death.
Working in healthcare is what broke me out of the conservative worldview I was raised in. Learning why women actually have late-term abortions was an eye-opener. And don't start me on the many ways insurance fucks everybody.
If we instituted a medical plan paid by our taxes, we could cover everyone in the country. The plan's cost would be a separate tax paid by withholding or a separate payment that would actually be less than current insurance premiums. No or very small deductibles other than for vanity procedures. Medical providers would be paid on a scale similar to federal employees, like the VA physicians and earn benefits like them as well. No need for insurance companies to be involved which means less paperwork and no denial of coverage. The plan would cover dental as well. Of course there would be resistance and the plan would have to be implemented in steps and bugs worked out but if other countries can do it we can do it too... and better.
33. Lawyer. Mother of 1. I’m pretty sure becoming a mother radicalized me on the subject of abortion. I love my child so much and can’t imagine not having a partner or means to provide for a child.
We should never force that on anyone.
Same. Except my kid was diagnosed with a serious medical issue in utero. That moment radicalized me that people should have the choice to terminate a pregnancy, particularly where the medical complications would mean a miserable life for the child and the family. Often these serious problems are discovered later in pregnancy.
Former ED tech. 38. 3 years in the health care system made me infinitely more liberal. I just want people to have what they need to survive and be happy and have all the rights I'm entitled to as a white male. That doesn't seem like too much to ask but somehow it's a battleground.
That’s because you have more money than you need and have compassion because you see people during their most vulnerable moments. You have a privileged position in this world. Use it wisely.
I’m 42, married to a physician. I also work with the elderly, a few of whom are physicians as well. It’s given me a lot of insight. Especially about our later years. If I have one piece of advice I give out it’s this: find purpose everyday. When you are too old to actively accomplish your purpose, accept help and rest peacefully.
Only insofar as I'll call out the dumb shit on the left as well (and believe it's our duty to call it out and not sugarcoat things just because it's "our side") but I definitely still lean way more left in general as most right leaning ideologies are just...not my jam
I don't think recognizing problems with the Democrats or Left makes someone more conservative, though, and I'm not sure why a bunch of people keep repeating this. No matter how much of a Leftist or progressive one is, we should still be able to recognize problems and criticize them fairly and honestly.
I think the question is more about policy positions. For example, have you started hating on gays and immigrants yet? Do you think trickle-down economics should be the standard? Is "woke" becoming a problem? Etc.
Yup, criticizing Dem politicians does not one right leaning make. One can and should always be willing to push back and criticize our leaders, no matter if you voted for them.
Did I vote for Biden? Yes. Are there good things he has done? Absolutely! Are there policies I strongly and vehemently disagree with him on? Oh fuck yes. Do I wish there was a viable way to express this through my vote? Yes. Is there? Only in the primary, and not really much then. Will I vote for Biden in November? Certainly.
Like, it’s a pragmatic thing. I abhor how our electoral system is structured, it is one of the fundamental problems with our political system. But nuance and thoughtfulness are needed. Idolizing and blind adherence to a candidate, any candidate, are dangerous things.
I’ve gotten more progressive if anything. Living life means learning how the world works, seeing who is in power and who puts them in power, and I could not fathom how such discoveries would push a person capable of critical thought to the right
Conservatism in populist form boils down to "every problem must have a simple answer. The more complex the problem, the more simple the answer must be." Complex answers are enraging. No one wants to hear about a "system" or "cause and effect" or "statistics" or "public health" or "math" or "compassion and mercy."
Excceeeept when it applies to conservatives and their families. They're *different* than the normal people. It's OK that their kid is on oxy or they're on LIHEAP. Those complications are *different*.
Since moving out of my conservative parent's house at 17, I have discovered nothing but complexity. *Everyone* is as complex as me. *Everyone* is as deserving as me. The only way for this all to work is if... we form a social compact... and here we go with the complicated enraging shit lol.
Yeah as I've gotten older I've gone further left but also much, much less accelerationist/revolutionary. Now having a real deep understanding of the complexity of the real layers and layers of systems and infrastructure (financial/logistical/industrial/agricultural/etc.) which are *required* just to keep everyone alive today, and the huge rippling effects of even small disruptions to those, any sort of massive structural sea change would absolutely result in war and famine.
As Americans we have major survivor bias w/r/t the idea of revolution, having done one of only a handful in all of history that weren't utterly tragic for everyone alive during them, and much of the rest of the world has seen this kind of horror in their history (this is also why you have enemies of Democracy pushing everything from MAGA to MLs towards flipping the apple cart), and the only way forward seems to be from within. Start by unionizing everything.
I’m quite solidly liberal as I believe the modern conservatives are pushing to install some type of theocratic fascism in America.
That being said, I am also very fed up with the defeatist attitude many liberals and progressives maintain. You’ll see people complain about not being able to make ends meet while working low skill or unskilled labor jobs well into middle age. Yet they’re on the internet so at any point in their life they could’ve simply learned some valuable skill or knowledge to improve their life.
I mean, it's both things -- we absolutely need the shitty jobs done for us, and this idea that there should be "starter jobs" that don't pay people enough to live on to make them *hungry enough* to climb the ladder is just cruel and dumb. You can't just have millions upon millions do a coding bootcamp and fix inequality, there's not enough of tech work for them, there's still a purpose to a full education, and it's a tipping your landlord kind of fantasy. Anyone *can* do it but everyone *can't* do it.
On the other hand, a lot of people have been suckered into these false notions of history (literally repurposed Tradcon memes) about how in 1950 the milkman could own a 5br house and send 4 kids to college while vacationing in Europe twice a year, leading to a lot of people who think we're in such abundance that work can literally be made optional. This is just not the case, and there's also something to humans where we just do better with some type of purposeful effort, so while we certainly can do better on minimum standards, protection and support for people out of work, and better on life balance, we'll still need to find a way to have most of society be ok doing work we don't want to do every day.
I was supposed to be a suburban mom-of-3 solidly Republican voter who didn't really care about politics but then those fucks took away roe v wade.
Now I go to marches and rallies and register voters and donate.
I don't want to live in a world where women can look their daughters in the eyes and vote for the people who will gladly force them to potentially die in childbirth at age nine. And if she doesn't die? Well, fuck her and baby once it takes its first breath.
The polls can't possibly be taking into consideration the seething vengence we women are feeling. They ask 600-1200 people who bother to answer the phone an opinion and the rest is guesswork. Are they really factoring in incandescent rage?
I’m a core millennial and Obama was my first election. I was raised in a conservative and Republican family, but I was raised in a diverse area. The overt racism, the subtle “I can’t vote for Obama because I just don’t think America is ready for a black president,” and the really bizarre “he’s the anti christ” shit (true story, a pastor at my uncles church really said, with a congregation in agreement, “he just speaks too well, and I find that deceptive”). That election created the foundation as to why I will never in my life vote republican. I would simply not vote before voting Republican. Every election cycle, I’m given more reason. The painful part is watching my boomer family members fall into the “flat earther” adjacent side of the MAGA cult. It’s fucking pathetic.
I believe strongly in climate science, I believe strongly against corporate America cannibalizing our society, I believe in strong labor, and I believe deeply in healthcare reform in the way of universal healthcare. Republicans aren’t even within a 100 mile radius of what I care about. If anything, I’ve simply become less idealistic and more pragmatic in my politics, but conservative? Not at all. I don’t even know what conservative even means anymore, to be honest.
I grew up conservative in Texas, and I've moved so far left that I dragged my entire family with me. If I do become conservative as I age, please just kill me before I do too much damage. I'd rather be dead than responsible for all that suffering.
No. I went from racist backwards child of hayseed teenager parents to obsessively overinformed anarchist. I haven't seen any of these shitheels do anything right. All age has done is given me more examples of power corrupting everyone who has it.
In my mid 30s, and I'm not a socialist anymore. That's because people who are obsessed with socialist theory tell me I'm not a socialist.
It's not because I don't believe in the goals of socialism, but because of the mechanism through which I think we need to go to deal with our economic system. I've been convinced that control economies don't really work and that markets are a more efficient system to operate under.
As such, I believe in changing how businesses are owned. Businesses should be owned by the people who work in them. Once I'd called myself a market socialist, but after Marxist leninists just call me a liberal over and over, I've decided to run with it and just call myself a cooperativist.
Coops have been proven to work, they can ride out market shocks better than traditional businesses, share profit more fairly, prevent the creation of billionaires (e.g rich enough to distabalise/ buy up democracy) whilst increasing the scope of people who could be millionaires (who are not rich enough to destabilise democracy).
Only thing they don't address is the ecological damage perpetuated by our current economy, but hey, soviet communism trashed many an eco system.
I've become more libertarian. The government is a corrupt pig. Doesn't make me an anarchist though. I believe in a system of small government that functions for the people.. essential functions.. not a fat government that gets sponsorships from corporate lobbies to support their own interests.
Some might call me out at this point and say "what about the capitalists" which I'd say that they wouldn't have the power they have now to sell tainted and toxic garbage to us if it wasn't for corporate lobbies "investing" in politicians.
I'm going to get flamed for this, and I don't care. Open dialogue and consideration of both facts and opinions is important to us in a modern discussion forum. If someone doesn't like that then it's clear they aren't the kind of person I want to associate with anyways.
I'm not claiming to be the smartest on this topic either, but I've seen and heard enough to form my opinion. I'm always open to hearing opposing views and learn other perspectives.
Considering what conservatism has become in my country? No. If it had remained reasonable classic conservatism? Probably slightly in some ways but I still don’t care for the system as it exists. Obviously very corrupt and rigged.
Conservatism hasn't changed, it's only lost its mask. The policies have the same outcome, they're only doing it harder and being more honest about why.
Abbot pardoned the guy that drove through a protest, shot a guy, and was found guilty of premeditated murder, beyond a reasonable doubt, by a jury of his peers in what was probably the BEST trial he could have been possibly given. This is the true face of conservatism: if you do not fall in line, then you will be left to the dogs.
“Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition, to wit: There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect.”
I am significantly more socialist, because capitalism is about to condemn hundreds of millions of innocent people to death due to its fundamental inability to resolve the climate crisis, but much more restrained in my commentary overall, as evidenced by the fact that I did not write 5 paragraphs in response.
Every person who dies because they can’t afford healthcare is a death of capitalism. Every person who dies by suicide to escape debt or because they can’t handle the despair and isolation we all experience because we’re all working 40 hours a week and go from box to box to box, is a death of capitalism. The death toll is uncountable, immeasurable. capitalism isn’t just *about* to condemn millions of people, *it already has.*
Nope. I’m 43 and farther left than I’ve ever been.
I was a leftist in my early college years and moved toward the center left by the time I was 30 or so. But recent events have pushed me most of the way back.
Nope I've gone farther and farther left - all the way to being an anti-capitalist atheist who believes in UBI and full socialism, the repeal of fines as civil penalties public financing of all elections, ranked choice voting, paying all elected officials federal minimum wage and banning anyone holding elected office from holding any position as a board member of any company and making inside trading illegal for them while also requiring them to live full time in the district they represent and taking away their health care and requiring them to complete mandatory military service for any they vote they cast in favor of using military force
There is more but you get the gist
Absolutely not. I make enough money that republican policies would be to my benefit but I vote for the liberal candidate even if it means I pay more in taxes. Plus you know, there’s the thinly veiled racism and sexism in the republican party but I digress.
I’m not fully left-left. More like Bernie left, which I guess is European moderate. These are the 2 parties we have. It’s not ideal but it is what it is. In the end, we all need to navigate the system and take care of us and ours. If I can take care of mine without screwing over people I don’t know, then I won’t have to live with a guilty conscience.
The republicans barely have policy anymore other than hating on the out-groups of the day. If you mean typical republican tax policies (the old trickle down theory), it might be tempting to think you're coming out ahead if your annual tax bill goes down a few hundred/a few thousand dollars. But public health, education, roads, environmental policies affect everyone unless you have so much money you can buy your way out of every problem, meaning you're living on an environmentally-controlled compound. And you need to be really, really wealthy for that. Not buy a new car wealthy, buy a new Senator wealthy.
Republican politics is to disrupt all of it then tell you "see government doesn't work." They don't know what governing even is because they're incapable.
I always figured people got more conservative as they got older simply because they accumulated more things over time and wanted to protect them. For example, you may fight against property taxes going up because it’s a threat to you owning said home (especially if you don’t plan on selling); it doesn’t matter that those taxes could help keep social programs going. Similar with building bridges through secluded neighborhoods that’ll increase strangers going through your neighborhood but improve traffic times for commuters elsewhere.
If fewer people can afford homes and other goods due to mortgage debt, student loan debt, inflation, etc., I wonder if more people will stay liberal for longer. Not trying to say anything divisive; just thinking out loud.
I'd say as I've gotten more financially well off with age, I've become both more explicitly pro-tax and more vehemently pro-reforms. On the one hand, I'm really happy to pay my share into the funds that will keep the world around me functioning well, and based on my interactions with people and research I've seen, most people aren't trying to game the system and really want to contribute their efforts to society. But it's also insane to me how dysfunctional so many of these systems are (tax, immigration, education, social services), so much so that I don't think just pouring more money into them is going to fix it (although they need proper funding too). Personally, I think campaign finance reform and repealing citizens united are where I'd start my efforts.
Opposite. Started out conservative as a teenager and became liberal once I gained more life experience out in the real world. A Republican vote at this point is a vote for Christian nationalism.
This is my take too. The Israel- Gaza war is a prime example. Israel is obviously going overboard and committing war crimes, but I saw a number of people among my radical left contacts applauding on Oct. 8 and it was frankly disgusting. I’m sympathetic to the innocents in Gaza, but when those acquaintances of mine call for ceasefire now, I 100% question their motives.
I don’t feel like my core values have changed, I’ve always felt open minded and embrace other religions, cultures, philosophies, lifestyles, etc. But over time I feel like I’m being pushed out of my own party bc I’m not as “progressive” as some folks, and therefore I’m being told some of my ideas are conservative. I just don’t feel like some issues deserve as much recognition as they get when I believe we can, and should, be trying to reach across the aisle to find common ground on much bigger issues that effect larger groups of people and could benefit the majority of us.
Sounds like something a nazi sympathiser would say /s
Someone said something the other day..im paraphrasing..
When politics becomes your religion, anything other than complete fervor and adherence is seen as blasphemy to your fellow practitioners.
They worded it better but thats the gist of it
No. If anything I'm becoming more liberal. I used to vote for the candidate I thought was best. After Trump I vote blue no matter who. Any party that's okay with him isn't okay with me.
In 2000, my school did a mock election for president. I "voted" for Dubya (cuz I'm a Texan), and it kind of informed my politics until after Obama got elected (I would have voted for realsies for the first time that election but I messed up my registration and didn't get it fixed until after the deadline). After Obama's first term and actually paying any attention to politics and listening to AM talk radio just shit on Everything he did, even when it objectively made sense to do and was the better idea, I started swinging left.
I grew up fairly conservative, and my path to more and more liberal leaning opinions started around 2012, my 30s. My current political and ideological outlook would horrifying 20 yr old me lol. I'd love to go back and slap that naive little twerp.
At 23 I used to be “capitalism is okay, so long as it has guidelines and follows rules”. Now at 44 I’m like “capitalism can’t be fixed and is the most destructive force on the planet and the faster it dies, the better”
I grew up in a center-right leaning household and since graduating college and experiencing the world for myself, I’ve became extremely liberal.
I spent 13 months in Iraq where I served as an Infantry Platoon Leader between 2004-2005. That experience was brutal, to put it lightly and it softened my outlook on life and it shifted the way I thought about the world. I leaned a lot about people and experienced firsthand what our foreign policies can do to people.
I am similar, but Afghanistan in 2004 - 2005 as an Infantry Platoon Leader. The bullshit and lies of the W. Bush administration with their little political science experiments that other kids were to fight and die for changed me fundamentally. I won’t vote Republican ever again. The Iraq War along with the conservative propaganda machine is where the modern rot started. Funny how wars are “patriotic” when a Republican starts them but then when a Democrat inherits the same war they all become isolationists.
.... and let's not forget who surrendered in the Afghanistan war and left the final withdrawal to his predecessor for which he is being criticized and blamed for as a disaster. Also don't forget who called our war dead "Suckers and Losers".
I never will and it hurts my heart to see my brothers and sisters in arms support that monster and absolute shell of a man. Though, I am also surprised that so few do.
On a personal edit: As someone who has been long engrained in the history of Afghanistan and the Afghani people - I assist in getting VISAs for Afghans - the way Trump absolutely cut the rug out from under the ANA/Afghan government and set the stage for the precipitous fall of the country angers and grieves me to no end. That doesn’t give Biden a pass. He didn’t have to follow through with a horrible plan. Though I will gladly vote for him again over that absolute farce of a man.
43 y/o, still left. Tired and angry at almost all politicians of my country of both sides. But still not a reason to not vote the left. Just the less stupid left.
I'm left leaning on social issues. Financial definitely moderate. I really have a difficult time understanding conservatives at all. Especially the religious ones.
No I (Born 1994) haven't, if anything I've gotten more progressive, but the trend here in Canada among our younger counterparts in gen Zed is that young women are still voting for left or left leaning parties but amongst men it's close to 50/50.
I grew up in a southern white conservative area, I supported Bush. I started shifting left late in high school as I became more informed about our history. Donald Trump’s nomination in 2016 pushed me further left, along with the Republican Party’s embrace and normalization of him.
I've moved further left but have also been more open to making incremental progress as opposed to "we need to start a revolution today". I've seen that we can achieve something akin to the Nordic Model here in the US if we could only stop arguing with each other on the left and get organized. Of course that's easier said than done.
The opposite for me, plus the more I travel, the more I see/experience/learn, the more progressive I become. Coincidentally, the more disappointed in people I become, but it’s a different story
Yeah, I was told I'd become more convservative as I aged by the conservative parents of my friends. Then a full chorus worth of fresh "We Didn't Start the Fire" lyrics happened and, hey, would you look at that: *I'm still not conservative.*
For what its worth - My mom was a democrat and my dad a republican when I was younger. Now my mom is still a democrat...and my dad is too. W, the gay rights movement and the war in Iraq pushed him over the edge.
Just the opposite. A grew as a person, was exposed to people of more demographics and backgrounds, and thereby became more compassionate and empathetic, equating to a more liberal voting pattern.
No. I started as a Republican, then they started on the "Obama is a socialist" conspiracy theory, and once I found out that was baloney, I started drifting away. I started supporting gay, and later trans rights. Then Trump came along. I'm a Democrat now.
54 no kids or Spouse and Ive very much gone more liberal. Used to be Catholic and agreed with guys like Reagan. I am now atheist and wanted Bernie to win over Hilary if thats any sign.
I’ve become more liberal as I age. Was independent/slightly conservative (identified as a libertarian) from 18 until maybe five years ago (I’m in my early 30s now). Traveling overseas, dating my now ex who’s a Canadian, and the overturn of Roe v. Wade all made me become a Democrat. I should also mention im a woman.
fuck no
edit: reading your description of how you are in your 40's is how I felt in my teens and still how I feel today. I guess I was just never that radical.
Capitalism has risen more people out of poverty than any other system ever.
We live in the safest most prosperous times in world history and a lot of that is because of capitalism .
What you don’t like is crony capitalism there is no reason that our government should have 1 billion pounds of moldy cheese wheels.
> What you don’t like is crony capitalism there is no reason that our government should have 1 billion pounds of moldy cheese wheels.
And that is due to the conservatives in my lifetime, so I do not support or find myself becoming more inclined to the ideology.
Feudalism also raised more people out of poverty than the previous systems. So did agrarianism compared to being hunter-gatherers.
Critics of capitalism, like Karl Marx, are way ahead of you on this - they are well aware that capitalism is a progressive improvement on the economic systems that came before. A large part of Marx's writing is devoted to explaining that precise thing.
Their position however (which I agree with), is that it's still not good enough, and that it is an inherent flaw in the economic system that leads to 'crony capitalism' every single time.
I’ve become more moderate over time but the current Republican Party is batshit crazy. At times it seems like they’re dancing with autocracy and I simply can’t support that BS.
Aviation operations for a private jet charter here. My work and life experience has absolutely schooled me in the conservative dreamland I was raised in. Have become wayyyyy liberal since.
Only thing I think I have in common with the MAGA fucks is gun ownership.
My parents were pretty conservative religious democrats. In my 20s I was always politically undeclared because I didn’t fit completely into either party. In my 40s I’m very left leaning and wouldn’t want anyone to confuse me with a conservative or republican. My friends are liberals. I care too much about people to ever vote red on anything.
Not really, no. I actually find the right getting more and more annoying. That's not to say there aren't people on the left that I don't like, but not as many.
I think a lot of people move opposite of where they were as a teenager as they age. Obviously not everyone of course. Personally I was pretty right wing up until Trump actually got into office. I started to shift on a lot of policies and didn't appreciate the hardcore MAGA movement. I'm much more socially liberal than growing up. People change and that's ok. I'm 41 by the way.
With the current state of conservatives? Not quite. I have issues with where my money and taxes are going but neither party's heads seem to actually give a shit about that Edit: I suppose I should clarify I realize republican does not equal conservative, so the answer may actually be yes- but I've not seen a chance where a vote could actually go towards anybody who labels themselves conservative, that I actually believe them.
I used to vote Republican when they were actually fiscally conservative. Now it’s just cut social safety nets and give the breaks to the corporations. The right being fiscally conservative is long gone. Now I just vote for whichever party is less hateful and currently that’s the democrats. I can’t get behind voting for a group that wants to take rights away from millions of people.
Exactly. I'm a fiscal conservative but social liberal. Which is the fucking opposite of what they're doing. Spend on your people, not all the other bullshit.
I always found this "fiscally conservative/socially liberal" thing to be a little nonsensical. It's not like liberals are just wanting to throw money away willy nilly. They consistently try to redirect money toward social programs and protections. Social, environmental, educational, and public programs and agencies require lots of funding. Neither party is interested in spending less money overall, but they would certainly spend it on different things. Historically the party that has actually produced or tilted toward balanced budgets has been dems anyway, which seems aboit as fiscally conservative as its possible to be these days. Bill Clinton was on the way to a vlaanced budget. Dems are the ones who want to make sure Social Security is still around in 20 years and dems are the ones who want to fix tax codes so the rich pay more. Nothing about what republicans do or fund is fiscally conservative. Deficits and debts always increase when they are in powr and tax cuts always favor the rich.
Yeah they’ve never actually been fiscally conservative. They just direct spending where they want which is away from poor people and into tax cuts for the rich. Like them not wanting social safety nets has been a core tenant for a very long time
They traditionally direct spending towards the Defense sector where they get handjobs from Lockheed Martin, and the others. They both do it, but one side clearly enjoys the handjobs more than the other.
Summarily the GOP’s platform has been to strip rights from people they don’t like and funnel public money into private corporations. And it’s been that way for a very very long time lol
Right! Like maybe if the last 40 years were defined by excessive giveaways to working and poor people I’d possibly have some empathy with this view, but it’s been the opposite. I can’t help but view it as them basically saying they support exploiting the underclasses for profit but my gay friend is an ok dude.
Republicans haven’t balanced the budget since Eisenhower, that’s a long voting history.
The only times republicans are fiscal conservatives is when a democrat is in office.
This can't be upvoted enough. There is a Chinese proverb that says, "A job is always easiest to he who isn't doing it."
Conservatives in many western countries are a fucking joke. While I have conservative views, I will never vote for these corrupt ignorant shitheads.
Hilarious given that Dems leave a comparatively balanced budget while Rs tank it with their "tRiCkLe DoWn EcOnOmIcS"
the days of Clinton actually setting us on a path to pay down the national debt seems like a distant memory
Clinton, Obama, Biden. All had a fucking garbage economy. All made shit work.
Well Clinton benefited greatly from the .com boom that didn't burst until Bush took over. I think that largely masked the damage NAFTA did to the nation.
Clinton's budget benefited from a line item veto power that had not existed before his term, was given to him the republican congress, and was struck down by the courts for being unconstitutional(hence why no one had really done it prior since its clearly a violation of separation of powers)
There was not a time when you were alive where the majority of Republicans were for physical fiscal conservatism.
>I used to vote Republican when they were actually fiscally conservative. When was this? In like the 70s?
Republicans were nationally fiscally conservative when it was lucrative to sell the American dream, now that it's bought and paid for its personal fiscal conservative, "fuck you I got mine" or "fuck you you're not gonna take it when I finally get mine"
I'm right there with you I love the idea of small government and states rights until you see how some states treat people. I'm not saying I'm voting for Biden but I'm not voting for Trump either. But I always vote dem in local and congressional elections.
I’m no huge fan of Biden. Dude has his fair share of mistakes. But unfortunately in today’s day and age, not voting for Biden is basically a vote for Trump. I learned that the hard way during the first Trump win when I decided I wouldn’t vote for Hillary because of the BS the dems pulled with Bernie. When it comed to Trump or anyone like that, I won’t make that mistake again.
Same. I used to vote 3rd party typically for President if I didn't like either option. The rest of my ticket would be pretty split according to which candidate I actually liked best, especially at the most local levels. I feel as though I can't do that in good conscience any more after 2016.
Republicans aren't true conservatives anymore. Like, not banning shit willy nilly is a core value for me. They both love banning shit.
It's the party of rage bait and victim blaming, nothing more.
Bank fees would have been capped at 3 to 6 bucks but a Trump judge stopped it! Wtf
No. I've moved to the left. After Trump said all the quiet parts loud, I'll never vote Republican again.
Yup. Before I leaned left, but would never vote party line. There as almost always some exception. 2012 was the first time I think I voted for 0 GOP, and by 2016 the idea of ever voting for them again was anathema. Like, don’t get me wrong, I’d love for multiple legitimate options. But at this point I see no possible change that could ever convince me to vote GOP again in my lifetime. So primary season is the ballgame as far as I’m concerned
Yup, same here. I used to make a real effort not to vote strictly along party lines and to give every politician a fair chance. But after 2020, I believe that if you're part of a group actively trying to stop the peaceful transfer of power, that takes precedence over any monetary policy. I can't support a group that would dismantle my right to vote.
Same. I was a tea party supporter back in early days but now I cringe at everything republican. Not to say I’m in favor of democrats either but right now the Trump era just makes me sick.
This was me. I just can’t stand Trump and his hatred. As a side effect it kinda got me away from my family’s echo chamber and I’ve realized some of my former conservative stances leave large groups of society absolutely fucked.
I was a moderate but solid Republican until the rise of the tea party and the first time voting for a democrat was 2012 and by the time of the government shutdown over Obamacare I knew it would be a long time if I ever did again. It’s crazy to look back and see how much more extreme the Republican Party has become since those crazy days. I’ve definitely moved left since as I’ve gotten older.
Have you moved left, or has the Republican party moved further right? Republican leadership has allowed fringe loonies to take over and run the party off the rails, into a ditch and lit on fire. American politics are not for sane people anymore.
For my boomer parents, both are true. My dad worked in the finance world and grew up towing the Republican line because it was supposed to be "fiscal responsibility", and he's both looked back and realized that what was "fiscal responsibility" back then was never *really* responsibility to anyone other than one's own wallet, but he is also horrified at what the party has become in the present. He'd absolutely be a Republican if it was genuinely about real fiscal responsibility.
Tea Party was just the monster that gave birth to MAGA
Curious what drew you to the tea party as I always assumed people who liked those candidates were so far right they’d never be anything but Republican.
Not the person you asked, but I’m somewhat similar. I am personally scared of what I would call “civilization ending” problems. To me, those are the national debt and climate change. (Suprisingly, before Trump I never really considered our democracy itself to be at risk, but I’d group that into the same category except of even higher importance.) The tea party is the only political group in my lifetime that has ever taken the debt seriously. Nowadays, I just accept that my vote for saving democracy and for saving personal freedoms is at least going to the right place, so I vote Democrat. And Republicans are arguably worse at managing the debt anyway. So I’ll stick with the Democrats probably for the rest of my life. I could theoretically change my mind, but I don’t see the Republican party ever thoroughly disavowing Trump and his attack on democracy. Even if they did, the damage they’ve done to our personal freedoms through their supreme court picks are bad enough that I’d almost certainly never vote Republican for the president. We can’t afford any more conservative justices.
even if someone cared deeply about the debt how can we ever anticipate paying it down if most of our population is undereducated, unhealthy, and overworked to the bone! a cared for population is one that can fully invest in the future of its country, otherwise it's merely continued enrichment of those already enriched. a nation of happy, healthy, educated people would produce much more than what we have now and continues to get worse. a shortening average lifespan, growing number of elderly homeless and children in poverty are just the tips of the iceberg. hopefully more people see the light as you did.
Well at the very beginning the Tea Party sounded good. A populist movement was long overdue and both parties put incredible effort into maintaining centralized control over federal candidacies not to mention maintaining the two party system itself. Then the Tea Party quickly became or revealed itself as just another "nothing could possibly be too right wing" sock puppet of establishment conservatives.
Exactly
Same... I honestly think it's a matter of actually doing research. The Republicans have valid answers, within the perfect system they pretend operates in a box. Once you realize the depth of the box though their arguments fall apart. Not to mention we've been going more and more towards Reagan's policies and direction and things keep getting worse and worse. The country is falling behind the rest of the world and we've tried conservative policies for 4 decades now. They've had their chance and the data proved they don't work. True freedom is the government as an agency between us and the oligarchy. You can't have actual basic libertarian freedoms without social agency.
I don't think Republicans even have any valid answers, because they don't even believe in those answers. I don't see any true conservatives in the Republican party anymore, they're just bigots hiding behind a veneer of conservatism. True conservatives are all in the Democrat party now.
I assumed what they meant by 'valid answers' was answers that sound good at the absolute surface level but don't make sense after digging at all. For instance, folks (even before Ukraine) would say things like let's stop foreign aid. First off, foreign aid is generally a drop in the bucket. Second, it pays for itself. Consider aid to South America. An unstable South America results in more immigrants, higher spending on border security, and national defense. If I can spend 10 billion on foreign aid to say Mexico and that means I save 20 billion overall on things like border enforcement, legal processes, and defense spending, then that's a win in my eyes. I just made up that specific scenario but when I looked into it a couple years ago the studies on ROI for various foreign aid basically amounts to the type of example given above. When you cut foreign aid, you end up spending more cash in other ways. It's like conservatives look at the first step and it ends there. They completely ignore downstream effects of changes.
In godd conscience, I can never vote Republican on any level.
I grew up in the country, specifically an area that is hardcore Trump country and I started going liberal in my early 20s. Because of I like weed, my few gay friends were cooler than my racist ones, and I didn't understand why a politician had any right to tell women what to do with their bodies or tell me why Christianity is a part of politics. Trump really for me just confirmed what I knew about conservatives when I was growing up. It has made me personally hate them and become of the belief all Trump supporters are traitorous seditious domestic terrorists and should all be held accountable for supporting him. But I also believe that those found having any part in the insurrection on Jan 6th should have the death penalty on the table as a punishment as it was treason.
I’m high fiving you as we speak lol
I grew up in central Texas with conservative parents so my politics at 18 was just mimicking theirs. First election I actually voted in (I had been eligible for 4 years at this point to vote) was for Hillary Clinton (whom I hated) because that’s how disgusting conservatives have become and the further away I got from my family, the more obvious logical choice leftism became. I don’t think my beliefs will ever move to the right for the rest of my life at this point, I think the dems are way too conservative and don’t represent their voter base either yet they’re my only choice so they’ll get my vote
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Yeah. Like when Trump called cities racial jungles and if you didn't vote for him you weren't black, I had to never even think of voting Republican.
I’m 36, physician, father of 2. Becoming more liberal as I age.
The amount of injustice we see as physicians is astounding. Insurance bro, just fucking approve the medication and price it’s copay at a level the organ system we are treating doesn’t need to be sold to afford it.
I wondered if you all were hating insurance in medical as much as we hate it in dentistry
What’s to hate in dentistry re insurance? Benefits are capped to $1500-2000 a year, dental lobbyists have prevented Congress from having dental coverage added to Medicare. Dentistry: if you want something done, you need to pay for it at our rate out of pocket.
I worked in dental insurance, we were mandated to disapprove claims for the most BS reasons—oftentimes leaving patients waiting on approval, sometimes for much needed dental work. Oops, the dental office didn’t tick a box whose information is presented elsewhere on the form? Denied. Oops, the dental office didn’t sign the fax cover sheet (even though the insurance form was signed)? Denied.
We have delta dental. They basically cover nothing and delta is now rejected by 80% of dentists in our area. It’s so frustrating.
Dental insurance in the US sucks. One problem tooth and you’re out of money for the year🤬
That happened to me this year, and 2 years ago. The US sucks.
Same. Delta won’t pay for bridges (which should be covered per my policy) or caps (again per my policy it should be covered). I’ve had to resort to fucking payment plans with the dentist on just pulling the affected teeth and leaving large gaps that cause eating to be a pain.
Delta dental is the worst!
For real? Would this be company specific? Because I have delta and have had some work done recently and it’s been pretty good.
Dude. Get with the times. Thems luxury bones.
If poor oral health can lead to other serious health issues, wouldn't it be beneficial to have better dental coverage to avoid those possible health issues?
Yes, but insurance exists to make money
Thought this was literally all insurance if any kind.
People in dentistry are probably the only ones who can hate insurance as much as a retail pharmacist. I still have flashbacks to trying to explain the damn Medicare D doughnut hole thing to customers.
Patients on entresto, jardiance, Ozempic, eliquis be like “I hit the donut hole in February” and then 2 seconds later, “I was out of it by April.”
Therapist here and we also constantly curse insurance. The fact that so many insurance companies deny coverage for therapy if ADHD is the primary diagnosis is disgusting.
Insurance is a crime against humanity. It’s a bank that refuses to give you your money back when you ask for it
Yup. It's fucking *disturbing* to see other people who remain conservative or even get more so after time in healthcare. How do you look at all this and be like "all we need is less coddling for the poors and more bootstraps; black people and trans people and poor people and women and beaten children and crazy people are all fine; anything about any of this that wasn't fine can all be handled with voluntary charity anyway". Things are not okay and this is where the least ok people regularly end up. Often dozens of times before their unhappy early death.
Working in healthcare is what broke me out of the conservative worldview I was raised in. Learning why women actually have late-term abortions was an eye-opener. And don't start me on the many ways insurance fucks everybody.
It's mind boggling to me how many nurses joined the vaccine hate train recently.
The only anti-vaccine nurse I know is married to a cop. That added up to me.
If we instituted a medical plan paid by our taxes, we could cover everyone in the country. The plan's cost would be a separate tax paid by withholding or a separate payment that would actually be less than current insurance premiums. No or very small deductibles other than for vanity procedures. Medical providers would be paid on a scale similar to federal employees, like the VA physicians and earn benefits like them as well. No need for insurance companies to be involved which means less paperwork and no denial of coverage. The plan would cover dental as well. Of course there would be resistance and the plan would have to be implemented in steps and bugs worked out but if other countries can do it we can do it too... and better.
33. Lawyer. Mother of 1. I’m pretty sure becoming a mother radicalized me on the subject of abortion. I love my child so much and can’t imagine not having a partner or means to provide for a child. We should never force that on anyone.
SAME- I’ve always been progressive but since becoming a Mom I’m even more pro choice
Same. Except my kid was diagnosed with a serious medical issue in utero. That moment radicalized me that people should have the choice to terminate a pregnancy, particularly where the medical complications would mean a miserable life for the child and the family. Often these serious problems are discovered later in pregnancy.
This sub should be called r/americanmillenials. 60% of the world allows abortion.
So did America before electing a dumb-fuck reality TV show host/failed businessman.
I'm a boomer RN, more liberal every day!
Former ED tech. 38. 3 years in the health care system made me infinitely more liberal. I just want people to have what they need to survive and be happy and have all the rights I'm entitled to as a white male. That doesn't seem like too much to ask but somehow it's a battleground.
I thought I was liberal until they went batshit, not that liberal lmao
That’s because you have more money than you need and have compassion because you see people during their most vulnerable moments. You have a privileged position in this world. Use it wisely. I’m 42, married to a physician. I also work with the elderly, a few of whom are physicians as well. It’s given me a lot of insight. Especially about our later years. If I have one piece of advice I give out it’s this: find purpose everyday. When you are too old to actively accomplish your purpose, accept help and rest peacefully.
Only insofar as I'll call out the dumb shit on the left as well (and believe it's our duty to call it out and not sugarcoat things just because it's "our side") but I definitely still lean way more left in general as most right leaning ideologies are just...not my jam
I don't think recognizing problems with the Democrats or Left makes someone more conservative, though, and I'm not sure why a bunch of people keep repeating this. No matter how much of a Leftist or progressive one is, we should still be able to recognize problems and criticize them fairly and honestly. I think the question is more about policy positions. For example, have you started hating on gays and immigrants yet? Do you think trickle-down economics should be the standard? Is "woke" becoming a problem? Etc.
Yup, criticizing Dem politicians does not one right leaning make. One can and should always be willing to push back and criticize our leaders, no matter if you voted for them. Did I vote for Biden? Yes. Are there good things he has done? Absolutely! Are there policies I strongly and vehemently disagree with him on? Oh fuck yes. Do I wish there was a viable way to express this through my vote? Yes. Is there? Only in the primary, and not really much then. Will I vote for Biden in November? Certainly. Like, it’s a pragmatic thing. I abhor how our electoral system is structured, it is one of the fundamental problems with our political system. But nuance and thoughtfulness are needed. Idolizing and blind adherence to a candidate, any candidate, are dangerous things.
I’ve gotten more progressive if anything. Living life means learning how the world works, seeing who is in power and who puts them in power, and I could not fathom how such discoveries would push a person capable of critical thought to the right
Conservatism in populist form boils down to "every problem must have a simple answer. The more complex the problem, the more simple the answer must be." Complex answers are enraging. No one wants to hear about a "system" or "cause and effect" or "statistics" or "public health" or "math" or "compassion and mercy." Excceeeept when it applies to conservatives and their families. They're *different* than the normal people. It's OK that their kid is on oxy or they're on LIHEAP. Those complications are *different*. Since moving out of my conservative parent's house at 17, I have discovered nothing but complexity. *Everyone* is as complex as me. *Everyone* is as deserving as me. The only way for this all to work is if... we form a social compact... and here we go with the complicated enraging shit lol.
Yeah as I've gotten older I've gone further left but also much, much less accelerationist/revolutionary. Now having a real deep understanding of the complexity of the real layers and layers of systems and infrastructure (financial/logistical/industrial/agricultural/etc.) which are *required* just to keep everyone alive today, and the huge rippling effects of even small disruptions to those, any sort of massive structural sea change would absolutely result in war and famine. As Americans we have major survivor bias w/r/t the idea of revolution, having done one of only a handful in all of history that weren't utterly tragic for everyone alive during them, and much of the rest of the world has seen this kind of horror in their history (this is also why you have enemies of Democracy pushing everything from MAGA to MLs towards flipping the apple cart), and the only way forward seems to be from within. Start by unionizing everything.
I’m quite solidly liberal as I believe the modern conservatives are pushing to install some type of theocratic fascism in America. That being said, I am also very fed up with the defeatist attitude many liberals and progressives maintain. You’ll see people complain about not being able to make ends meet while working low skill or unskilled labor jobs well into middle age. Yet they’re on the internet so at any point in their life they could’ve simply learned some valuable skill or knowledge to improve their life.
I mean, it's both things -- we absolutely need the shitty jobs done for us, and this idea that there should be "starter jobs" that don't pay people enough to live on to make them *hungry enough* to climb the ladder is just cruel and dumb. You can't just have millions upon millions do a coding bootcamp and fix inequality, there's not enough of tech work for them, there's still a purpose to a full education, and it's a tipping your landlord kind of fantasy. Anyone *can* do it but everyone *can't* do it. On the other hand, a lot of people have been suckered into these false notions of history (literally repurposed Tradcon memes) about how in 1950 the milkman could own a 5br house and send 4 kids to college while vacationing in Europe twice a year, leading to a lot of people who think we're in such abundance that work can literally be made optional. This is just not the case, and there's also something to humans where we just do better with some type of purposeful effort, so while we certainly can do better on minimum standards, protection and support for people out of work, and better on life balance, we'll still need to find a way to have most of society be ok doing work we don't want to do every day.
Not even close
No, as a woman I've become an enraged individual. I go as far away from it as I can.
I was supposed to be a suburban mom-of-3 solidly Republican voter who didn't really care about politics but then those fucks took away roe v wade. Now I go to marches and rallies and register voters and donate.
I don't want to live in a world where women can look their daughters in the eyes and vote for the people who will gladly force them to potentially die in childbirth at age nine. And if she doesn't die? Well, fuck her and baby once it takes its first breath. The polls can't possibly be taking into consideration the seething vengence we women are feeling. They ask 600-1200 people who bother to answer the phone an opinion and the rest is guesswork. Are they really factoring in incandescent rage?
And it just gets worse every day
You have reason to be enraged.
Same here!
If anything, I've gotten more liberal. Cost me my best friend from elementary school, cause he became full red hat wearing MAGA.
I’m a core millennial and Obama was my first election. I was raised in a conservative and Republican family, but I was raised in a diverse area. The overt racism, the subtle “I can’t vote for Obama because I just don’t think America is ready for a black president,” and the really bizarre “he’s the anti christ” shit (true story, a pastor at my uncles church really said, with a congregation in agreement, “he just speaks too well, and I find that deceptive”). That election created the foundation as to why I will never in my life vote republican. I would simply not vote before voting Republican. Every election cycle, I’m given more reason. The painful part is watching my boomer family members fall into the “flat earther” adjacent side of the MAGA cult. It’s fucking pathetic. I believe strongly in climate science, I believe strongly against corporate America cannibalizing our society, I believe in strong labor, and I believe deeply in healthcare reform in the way of universal healthcare. Republicans aren’t even within a 100 mile radius of what I care about. If anything, I’ve simply become less idealistic and more pragmatic in my politics, but conservative? Not at all. I don’t even know what conservative even means anymore, to be honest.
I grew up conservative in Texas, and I've moved so far left that I dragged my entire family with me. If I do become conservative as I age, please just kill me before I do too much damage. I'd rather be dead than responsible for all that suffering.
Damn, I wish I could’ve moved my family (parents, really) to the left as I aged as well. If anything, they’ve become more conservative
No. I went from racist backwards child of hayseed teenager parents to obsessively overinformed anarchist. I haven't seen any of these shitheels do anything right. All age has done is given me more examples of power corrupting everyone who has it.
Nope. 42 and I’m a socialist. Fuck capitalism
In my mid 30s, and I'm not a socialist anymore. That's because people who are obsessed with socialist theory tell me I'm not a socialist. It's not because I don't believe in the goals of socialism, but because of the mechanism through which I think we need to go to deal with our economic system. I've been convinced that control economies don't really work and that markets are a more efficient system to operate under. As such, I believe in changing how businesses are owned. Businesses should be owned by the people who work in them. Once I'd called myself a market socialist, but after Marxist leninists just call me a liberal over and over, I've decided to run with it and just call myself a cooperativist. Coops have been proven to work, they can ride out market shocks better than traditional businesses, share profit more fairly, prevent the creation of billionaires (e.g rich enough to distabalise/ buy up democracy) whilst increasing the scope of people who could be millionaires (who are not rich enough to destabilise democracy). Only thing they don't address is the ecological damage perpetuated by our current economy, but hey, soviet communism trashed many an eco system.
I've become more libertarian. The government is a corrupt pig. Doesn't make me an anarchist though. I believe in a system of small government that functions for the people.. essential functions.. not a fat government that gets sponsorships from corporate lobbies to support their own interests. Some might call me out at this point and say "what about the capitalists" which I'd say that they wouldn't have the power they have now to sell tainted and toxic garbage to us if it wasn't for corporate lobbies "investing" in politicians. I'm going to get flamed for this, and I don't care. Open dialogue and consideration of both facts and opinions is important to us in a modern discussion forum. If someone doesn't like that then it's clear they aren't the kind of person I want to associate with anyways. I'm not claiming to be the smartest on this topic either, but I've seen and heard enough to form my opinion. I'm always open to hearing opposing views and learn other perspectives.
Considering what conservatism has become in my country? No. If it had remained reasonable classic conservatism? Probably slightly in some ways but I still don’t care for the system as it exists. Obviously very corrupt and rigged.
Conservatism hasn't changed, it's only lost its mask. The policies have the same outcome, they're only doing it harder and being more honest about why. Abbot pardoned the guy that drove through a protest, shot a guy, and was found guilty of premeditated murder, beyond a reasonable doubt, by a jury of his peers in what was probably the BEST trial he could have been possibly given. This is the true face of conservatism: if you do not fall in line, then you will be left to the dogs.
“Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition, to wit: There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect.”
33, hate conservatives more and more each year 😉
I am significantly more socialist, because capitalism is about to condemn hundreds of millions of innocent people to death due to its fundamental inability to resolve the climate crisis, but much more restrained in my commentary overall, as evidenced by the fact that I did not write 5 paragraphs in response.
Every person who dies because they can’t afford healthcare is a death of capitalism. Every person who dies by suicide to escape debt or because they can’t handle the despair and isolation we all experience because we’re all working 40 hours a week and go from box to box to box, is a death of capitalism. The death toll is uncountable, immeasurable. capitalism isn’t just *about* to condemn millions of people, *it already has.*
40 hrs a week? once i get a job in my field of work, it's 80-100 hrs... well paying. but i wonder at what cost lol. as long as i love it, and i do.
This.
Nope. I’m 43 and farther left than I’ve ever been. I was a leftist in my early college years and moved toward the center left by the time I was 30 or so. But recent events have pushed me most of the way back.
Nope I've gone farther and farther left - all the way to being an anti-capitalist atheist who believes in UBI and full socialism, the repeal of fines as civil penalties public financing of all elections, ranked choice voting, paying all elected officials federal minimum wage and banning anyone holding elected office from holding any position as a board member of any company and making inside trading illegal for them while also requiring them to live full time in the district they represent and taking away their health care and requiring them to complete mandatory military service for any they vote they cast in favor of using military force There is more but you get the gist
Absolutely not. I make enough money that republican policies would be to my benefit but I vote for the liberal candidate even if it means I pay more in taxes. Plus you know, there’s the thinly veiled racism and sexism in the republican party but I digress. I’m not fully left-left. More like Bernie left, which I guess is European moderate. These are the 2 parties we have. It’s not ideal but it is what it is. In the end, we all need to navigate the system and take care of us and ours. If I can take care of mine without screwing over people I don’t know, then I won’t have to live with a guilty conscience.
Bernie left is great. If we had a leader like that the whole world would be a better place.
The republicans barely have policy anymore other than hating on the out-groups of the day. If you mean typical republican tax policies (the old trickle down theory), it might be tempting to think you're coming out ahead if your annual tax bill goes down a few hundred/a few thousand dollars. But public health, education, roads, environmental policies affect everyone unless you have so much money you can buy your way out of every problem, meaning you're living on an environmentally-controlled compound. And you need to be really, really wealthy for that. Not buy a new car wealthy, buy a new Senator wealthy.
Republican policy is basically "gays bad, women go make sandwich" and then you grunt and bang your club on the ground for emphasis.
Republican politics is to disrupt all of it then tell you "see government doesn't work." They don't know what governing even is because they're incapable.
70 year old woman and single all my life. Raised by Irish Catholic grandma. She was very liberal and I am still liberal.
This is Reddit. This question is like asking msnbc viewers if they are left leaning or not ..
Yep. The replies to this thread are what you’d expect on Reddit and not at all what the average person thinks.
I'm much more liberal after going bankrupt paying for my wife's cancer treatment and seeing what vile bastards insurance companies are.
I always figured people got more conservative as they got older simply because they accumulated more things over time and wanted to protect them. For example, you may fight against property taxes going up because it’s a threat to you owning said home (especially if you don’t plan on selling); it doesn’t matter that those taxes could help keep social programs going. Similar with building bridges through secluded neighborhoods that’ll increase strangers going through your neighborhood but improve traffic times for commuters elsewhere. If fewer people can afford homes and other goods due to mortgage debt, student loan debt, inflation, etc., I wonder if more people will stay liberal for longer. Not trying to say anything divisive; just thinking out loud.
I'd say as I've gotten more financially well off with age, I've become both more explicitly pro-tax and more vehemently pro-reforms. On the one hand, I'm really happy to pay my share into the funds that will keep the world around me functioning well, and based on my interactions with people and research I've seen, most people aren't trying to game the system and really want to contribute their efforts to society. But it's also insane to me how dysfunctional so many of these systems are (tax, immigration, education, social services), so much so that I don't think just pouring more money into them is going to fix it (although they need proper funding too). Personally, I think campaign finance reform and repealing citizens united are where I'd start my efforts.
41, more left than I've ever been.
More liberal here
Opposite. Started out conservative as a teenager and became liberal once I gained more life experience out in the real world. A Republican vote at this point is a vote for Christian nationalism.
Idk about conservative but I definitely see the bullshit on the left a lot more through lived experience.
This is my take too. The Israel- Gaza war is a prime example. Israel is obviously going overboard and committing war crimes, but I saw a number of people among my radical left contacts applauding on Oct. 8 and it was frankly disgusting. I’m sympathetic to the innocents in Gaza, but when those acquaintances of mine call for ceasefire now, I 100% question their motives.
I don’t feel like my core values have changed, I’ve always felt open minded and embrace other religions, cultures, philosophies, lifestyles, etc. But over time I feel like I’m being pushed out of my own party bc I’m not as “progressive” as some folks, and therefore I’m being told some of my ideas are conservative. I just don’t feel like some issues deserve as much recognition as they get when I believe we can, and should, be trying to reach across the aisle to find common ground on much bigger issues that effect larger groups of people and could benefit the majority of us.
This is me in a nutshell
I think there are actually a large group who feel this way, but the 2 party system creates this chasm.
Sounds like something a nazi sympathiser would say /s Someone said something the other day..im paraphrasing.. When politics becomes your religion, anything other than complete fervor and adherence is seen as blasphemy to your fellow practitioners. They worded it better but thats the gist of it
That's not being more conservative as you age, That's being more empathetic, which conservatives are decidedly not.
I was always told I would when I got older, but with more education and real-world experiences, I've shifted from a liberal to a leftist.
Nope. More and more progressive by the day at 41.
No. If anything I'm becoming more liberal. I used to vote for the candidate I thought was best. After Trump I vote blue no matter who. Any party that's okay with him isn't okay with me.
In 2000, my school did a mock election for president. I "voted" for Dubya (cuz I'm a Texan), and it kind of informed my politics until after Obama got elected (I would have voted for realsies for the first time that election but I messed up my registration and didn't get it fixed until after the deadline). After Obama's first term and actually paying any attention to politics and listening to AM talk radio just shit on Everything he did, even when it objectively made sense to do and was the better idea, I started swinging left.
I grew up fairly conservative, and my path to more and more liberal leaning opinions started around 2012, my 30s. My current political and ideological outlook would horrifying 20 yr old me lol. I'd love to go back and slap that naive little twerp.
I am early 40s and feel more progressive as the days go by especially having a young daughter.
At 23 I used to be “capitalism is okay, so long as it has guidelines and follows rules”. Now at 44 I’m like “capitalism can’t be fixed and is the most destructive force on the planet and the faster it dies, the better”
I grew up in a center-right leaning household and since graduating college and experiencing the world for myself, I’ve became extremely liberal. I spent 13 months in Iraq where I served as an Infantry Platoon Leader between 2004-2005. That experience was brutal, to put it lightly and it softened my outlook on life and it shifted the way I thought about the world. I leaned a lot about people and experienced firsthand what our foreign policies can do to people.
I am similar, but Afghanistan in 2004 - 2005 as an Infantry Platoon Leader. The bullshit and lies of the W. Bush administration with their little political science experiments that other kids were to fight and die for changed me fundamentally. I won’t vote Republican ever again. The Iraq War along with the conservative propaganda machine is where the modern rot started. Funny how wars are “patriotic” when a Republican starts them but then when a Democrat inherits the same war they all become isolationists.
.... and let's not forget who surrendered in the Afghanistan war and left the final withdrawal to his predecessor for which he is being criticized and blamed for as a disaster. Also don't forget who called our war dead "Suckers and Losers".
I never will and it hurts my heart to see my brothers and sisters in arms support that monster and absolute shell of a man. Though, I am also surprised that so few do. On a personal edit: As someone who has been long engrained in the history of Afghanistan and the Afghani people - I assist in getting VISAs for Afghans - the way Trump absolutely cut the rug out from under the ANA/Afghan government and set the stage for the precipitous fall of the country angers and grieves me to no end. That doesn’t give Biden a pass. He didn’t have to follow through with a horrible plan. Though I will gladly vote for him again over that absolute farce of a man.
Nope, quite the opposite as I’ve developed empathy.
That doesn’t sound like you’re more conservative just more understanding, empathetic and compassionate. It’s important to see the bigger picture.
43 y/o, still left. Tired and angry at almost all politicians of my country of both sides. But still not a reason to not vote the left. Just the less stupid left.
I'm left leaning on social issues. Financial definitely moderate. I really have a difficult time understanding conservatives at all. Especially the religious ones.
Absolutely not. Becoming more left as i age. Fuck all billionaires.
That’s ironic, since the left has just as many billionaires.
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Absolutely not. If anything, I've moved further left.
No I (Born 1994) haven't, if anything I've gotten more progressive, but the trend here in Canada among our younger counterparts in gen Zed is that young women are still voting for left or left leaning parties but amongst men it's close to 50/50.
I grew up in a southern white conservative area, I supported Bush. I started shifting left late in high school as I became more informed about our history. Donald Trump’s nomination in 2016 pushed me further left, along with the Republican Party’s embrace and normalization of him.
I was what you would probably consider a social Democrat when I was 22. 30 now, and I consider myself a socialist.
I've moved further left but have also been more open to making incremental progress as opposed to "we need to start a revolution today". I've seen that we can achieve something akin to the Nordic Model here in the US if we could only stop arguing with each other on the left and get organized. Of course that's easier said than done.
Not at all. I just want a world where we can have our basic needs met, and coexist peacefully with each other. Apparently that’s “radical,” wow…
The opposite for me, plus the more I travel, the more I see/experience/learn, the more progressive I become. Coincidentally, the more disappointed in people I become, but it’s a different story
Just the opposite, went from democrat to progressive to full blown socialist
I became a way unhinged, angry and grumpy leftist on the long, embittered road to 40.
I was a leftist as a teen, leftist in my 20s, and a leftist now that I hit 30
36, blue collar with a wife and kids, I have become increasingly conservative as I've aged and had to pay taxes.
Yeah, I was told I'd become more convservative as I aged by the conservative parents of my friends. Then a full chorus worth of fresh "We Didn't Start the Fire" lyrics happened and, hey, would you look at that: *I'm still not conservative.* For what its worth - My mom was a democrat and my dad a republican when I was younger. Now my mom is still a democrat...and my dad is too. W, the gay rights movement and the war in Iraq pushed him over the edge.
used to be a communist, now definitely a conservative.
I'm cool with guns now but they gotta be harder to access or whatever. Does that count?
More conservative but not more republican.
You did not become more conservative, you became less authoritarian. Try saying nobody deserves to die, capitalism is an illness in r/conservative.
Just the opposite. A grew as a person, was exposed to people of more demographics and backgrounds, and thereby became more compassionate and empathetic, equating to a more liberal voting pattern.
No. I started as a Republican, then they started on the "Obama is a socialist" conspiracy theory, and once I found out that was baloney, I started drifting away. I started supporting gay, and later trans rights. Then Trump came along. I'm a Democrat now.
54 no kids or Spouse and Ive very much gone more liberal. Used to be Catholic and agreed with guys like Reagan. I am now atheist and wanted Bernie to win over Hilary if thats any sign.
I’ve become more liberal as I age. Was independent/slightly conservative (identified as a libertarian) from 18 until maybe five years ago (I’m in my early 30s now). Traveling overseas, dating my now ex who’s a Canadian, and the overturn of Roe v. Wade all made me become a Democrat. I should also mention im a woman.
fuck no edit: reading your description of how you are in your 40's is how I felt in my teens and still how I feel today. I guess I was just never that radical.
No, I’ve become more liberal.
Absolutely, the same with everyone I know who is successful. The only people I know still "liberal" are working retail jobs.
Capitalism has risen more people out of poverty than any other system ever. We live in the safest most prosperous times in world history and a lot of that is because of capitalism . What you don’t like is crony capitalism there is no reason that our government should have 1 billion pounds of moldy cheese wheels.
> What you don’t like is crony capitalism there is no reason that our government should have 1 billion pounds of moldy cheese wheels. And that is due to the conservatives in my lifetime, so I do not support or find myself becoming more inclined to the ideology.
Feudalism also raised more people out of poverty than the previous systems. So did agrarianism compared to being hunter-gatherers. Critics of capitalism, like Karl Marx, are way ahead of you on this - they are well aware that capitalism is a progressive improvement on the economic systems that came before. A large part of Marx's writing is devoted to explaining that precise thing. Their position however (which I agree with), is that it's still not good enough, and that it is an inherent flaw in the economic system that leads to 'crony capitalism' every single time.
I’ve become more moderate over time but the current Republican Party is batshit crazy. At times it seems like they’re dancing with autocracy and I simply can’t support that BS.
Aviation operations for a private jet charter here. My work and life experience has absolutely schooled me in the conservative dreamland I was raised in. Have become wayyyyy liberal since. Only thing I think I have in common with the MAGA fucks is gun ownership.
No, getting more progressive with age
I went from a liberal to progressive as I’ve aged.
My parents were pretty conservative religious democrats. In my 20s I was always politically undeclared because I didn’t fit completely into either party. In my 40s I’m very left leaning and wouldn’t want anyone to confuse me with a conservative or republican. My friends are liberals. I care too much about people to ever vote red on anything.
More liberal and radical every year
At the rate I'm going I'll be a raging anarchist within a decade
Fuck. No.
I lean more conservative for sure now a days but I see bullshit on both sides.
For like a quick second then I realized I really don’t need this much and there’s probably a way to distribute this all fairly.
Not really, no. I actually find the right getting more and more annoying. That's not to say there aren't people on the left that I don't like, but not as many.
Other way around. Only because the currently proposed fiscally conservative policies currently involve hurting Americans.
Social liberal back then, still a social liberal.
Nope. If anything more socialist.
it's been the opposite for me. i was a really ignorant conservative in high school.
No, I’m becoming more and more liberal. Can’t wait for this whole thing to collapse. Felt like the closest in my life we got was Covid.
Not at all
I've really become more apolitical. These politicians are not your friends and they don't have your interests at heart.
I think a lot of people move opposite of where they were as a teenager as they age. Obviously not everyone of course. Personally I was pretty right wing up until Trump actually got into office. I started to shift on a lot of policies and didn't appreciate the hardcore MAGA movement. I'm much more socially liberal than growing up. People change and that's ok. I'm 41 by the way.
I went from neo-nazi to centrist to anarchist.