Being"half" a Political Science major I feel as though I am constantly being nudged to answer the following questions, "which party do you identify most with and why?" and "what are your social and economic beliefs?" Time and time again I find myself trying to identify more with one party to make my life a little easier, but life just aint' that easy. If only it were as simple as two choices...sigh
I would however have to say that after living almost 22 years of my life in a relatively liberal household, my family has heavily influenced my political ideologies just as textbooks say they should.
As far as most social issues are concerned I would say I have a liberal mentality. A "liberal mentality"--you may ask yourself what kind of nonsense is he talking about? Let's take three heated social issues and discuss. Education, abortion, and same-sex marriage. Growing up in a rather affluent town, education was always top-notch. My public school system spared no expense. When it came to adopting the newest technologies and hiring the most qualified mind molders, taxpayers were more than happy to cough up the dough. All of this seemed pretty peachy to me until I reached my later years in high school and started to think about the unfair advantages I had compared to those growing up in an inner-city. Why should my education be better? Aren't we all equal? Why should income and personal wealth determine the quality of education? I feel that every American should have access to the same education no matter their economic standing. Next up: ABORTION. I'm Pro-Choice--extenuating circumstances (rape) or not, I feel a woman should be able to decide: end of debate! Same-sex marriage anyone? I'm an advocate of same-sex marriage. The government is not decide what constitutes as a marriage. If two PEOPLE are in love that's good enough for me. Man marries man; man marries woman--is there a difference--not for this guy.
My economic stance tends to be a tad more conservative so I'll try to make this section as boring as possible--kidding... I do not believe in the redistribution of wealth and feel that money earned is money that should be kept. Why should I give my hard earned cash to the unemployed (harsh)? Also, I'm a firm believer in profit maximization. If outsourcing makes your company more profitable then so be it--why should our government give incentives (tax that I pay) to corporations that stay on American soil. I'm a firm believer in every corporation for themselves. Don't forget I'm still MORE liberal--some food for thought--economically conservative individuals talk a lot about limiting government regulation...what happened when the major banks failed and the car corporations went bankrupt?
Cornucopians. Say it three times fast.
After reading Layzer's text I would most definitely consider myself a Cornucopian. I tend to think that economic growth and prosperity have no limit and if the global population continues to create new technologies we will figure out ways to curb shortages and create new resources. While this approach seems rather optimistic, I do deem it to be true. I am also a huge proponent of individual freedom--who is anyone to say what natural resources we can and cannot use. The Earth gave them to us-- so let's use em'!
Shying away from a more environmentally philosophical approach I do find myself living in the present. I don't always think about the negative effects my actions have. How much easier is it to get in a car than to walk somewhere? Why carry groceries when you can put them in a plastic bag? At this point in my life if something is more time efficient, it's for me.
If you've got a problem with my post...........go sleep in a haystack!
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