Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
As a transplanted northerner, all I can say is ^^^^^THIS ^^^^^
I was once a conservative because I was in favor of smaller government and less taxes. I still have those core beliefs. Southern Republicans, who want a Christian controlled government pushed me to the other side, though. They gave me no choice. I mean they're seriously NUTS and DANGEROUS. These wingnuts are killing the Republican party. Conservatives in New Hampshire would laugh at these ads. Here's just the tip of the iceberg:
I'm from Texas, and I would never vote for Dan Patrick. Since he won the Republican nomination for Lieutenant Governor, I will probably vote for the libertarian candidate or maybe even the Democratic candidate. I can't stand Dan Patrick. I'm getting to the point where I can't stand the local Republican party because they have to pander to the Christian right, but Dan Patrick IS the Christian Right.
If Republicans would just shed the Christian social positions they'd win more elections. Who cares if gays want to marry? As long as they don't force businesses to cater to them or churches to perform the services, then what difference does it make to them? I do have a problem with the government saying a bakery has to make a cake for a gay wedding, or a photographer can't refuse to work at one due to religious beliefs. Surely there are plenty of bakeries and photographers and caterers that have no objection, and they will just get more business for it while the others hurt themselves.
Abortion I can understand a little better. However, don't try to change the law. Fight it on the cultural side. Make it so unpopular that people don't want to do it except in very desperate situations. Outlawing abortion will never work.
I think the Republican party is going to wrestle with this divide in the party for a while. On one side we have Rand Paul and his "conservatarian" movement, and the other is the social conservative movement, and somewhere in the middle is the old-fashioned fiscal conservative movement that wants to still have a strong defense and get involved in world affairs but doesn't care what you do in the bedroom.
For example are conservatives in Nebraska different from those in Alabama or Utah or the Northeast? The only thing that I find different living in NEbraska is that while there is a strong Christian element it's not as evangelistic and preachy and also there ironically is still support for some big government programs (farm subsidies, public power, higher taxes for infrastructure) where as people from Texas or the south would probably equate public power with socialism. So how different are conservatives in different parts of the country. Liberals to me don't seem as divided on geography except that Democrats in the south and mountain west tend to be more moderate.
I'm also a Nebraska Conservative and I think you've summed it up nicely. I don't think we have a problem with public power because ours is actually very well managed. For example, LES (Lincoln) ranks very highly, with electricity costs 25% lower than the average medium/large city.
And it is a very Christian state, but that doesn't dominate our politics like it sometimes does in the South. Republican candidates rarely focus on social issues, instead addressing the economy, education and taxes.
I'm also a Nebraska Conservative and I think you've summed it up nicely. I don't think we have a problem with public power because ours is actually very well managed. For example, LES (Lincoln) ranks very highly, with electricity costs 25% lower than the average medium/large city.
And it is a very Christian state, but that doesn't dominate our politics like it sometimes does in the South. Republican candidates rarely focus on social issues, instead addressing the economy, education and taxes.
Seems fair enough...Nebraska is a state we don't hear about all that much (outside of college football). Maybe there's just more common sense politics (which translates to less extremes)?
I'm also a Nebraska Conservative and I think you've summed it up nicely. I don't think we have a problem with public power because ours is actually very well managed. For example, LES (Lincoln) ranks very highly, with electricity costs 25% lower than the average medium/large city.
And it is a very Christian state, but that doesn't dominate our politics like it sometimes does in the South. Republican candidates rarely focus on social issues, instead addressing the economy, education and taxes.
I agree. I think it helps that in Nebraska our faith is more based on Lutheran and or Catholic traditions with evangelicals and mainliners behind both of these groups. I've noticed that a lot of catholics and lutherans (even faithful ones) aren't in support of a theocracy or making america a "christian nation" in the sense that we are a theocracy. More that we think these laws are good for everybody because they are good. Not because "Jesus said so". Also I think it does help that we focus more on economic issues. Sadly I think social issues left or right will lose out. I'm sick of the whole "war on women" talk with contraception but also don't like the whole idea of having a "christian nation". I think we find a good balance here in Nebraska, as well as iowa and the Dakota's (don't know what's up with Kansas).
Seems fair enough...Nebraska is a state we don't hear about all that much (outside of college football). Maybe there's just more common sense politics (which translates to less extremes)?
It's very common sense. Iowa in a way is similar (though with a more liberal bent) where people focus more on issues at hand. You'd never see the tea party BS laws like Oklahoma banning fetuses in food (I'm a pro lifer and all I can say is WTF) or things like that
There isn't any answer to this question, as it confuses two distinctly different concepts ,and attempts to address them as one.
There are cultural conservatives and fiscal (role of government) conservatives.
The Democrat party used to have a lot of cultural conservatives, but they were driven out by the rabid pro-abortion, pro-drug, anti-morality radicals it has attracted and now run it.
When you wish to address each group, make sure you explain which group you referring to, as attempting to say that the Texas fiscal (role of government) conservatives aren't the same as the Nebraska cultural conservatives is a lot like saying that cooked spinach isn't quite the same as a grilled steak.
Back home where I grew up, they campaign on "stopping the abomination of gay marriage" and "the only real choice to maximize the war on drugs". Only problem is: I'm referring to Democrats in Pittsburgh.
Mon keeps mailing me all these flyers with the intent of showing how out of touch the GOP is because all her flyers from local Dems running for congress are: Vote out the GOP and we promise to keep pot illegal, or vote out the GOP and we'll protect marriage as one man and one woman. She does not believe me when I tell here these are conservative planks in the rest of the US.
I'm not a big fan of "labels" .... Period.
Anyone who thinks that a resident of Texas, California, New York, Florida or any State between all those is "the same" is living in the Twilight Zone.
So YES, "Conservatism", "Liberalism" and even "Libertarianism" is going to be different in all of these areas. By the way ..... so are the Black Communities, Asian Communities and Hispanic Communities. We don't live in a Cookie Cutter World .... anyone who thinks we do is just not paying attention.
Issues are different and so are life styles and history.
Social conservatives are often idiots but they do our nation no harm. Fiscal liberals do our nation a great deal of harm. I will vote for a fiscal and social conservative over a fiscal and social liberal every time, despite the fact I am socially liberal.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
