Have Your Political Views Changed?

[WaitingInfinity]

I don't know if this has already been a topic, but I haven't seen any polls floating around about this so... (crossing fingers). 

 

I ask because my political views have definitely changed. I was an uber conservative person during my time in Christianity. No gay marriage, no taxing rich, no entitlements. I was just spouting off what my parents said. 

 

When I learned to think for myself, I learned that many of the things I had so despised were actually goods for society. 

 

So my political views have flopped a little (a lot). I consider myself a liberal leaning moderate.

 

What about anyone else? Did your views change?

 

For fellow Americans (sorry guys from outside the states! ): I also included a link below to a quiz that I took a while back on NBC's websites. Researchers did a study to find out where most of Americans lie on the political spectrum. It's a neat quiz and places you on that spectrum. I scored MBA Middle, meaning I am probably educated and white, etc. If you haven't looked at it, it is interesting. I had my dad and boyfriend take it. My dad scored The Talk Radio Heads (farthest conservative category) and my boyfriend scored The Bleeding Hearts (farthest liberal category). It's pretty interesting. And I am a psych major, so hey.

 

http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10/15/20977799-quiz-are-you-a-member-of-the-new-american-center?lite

[Thurisaz]

Starting at 911 (or rather in its aftermath) I entered a process of change that encompassed many aspects of my life; there's probably not one single simple answer but I'd say that my change of perspective on many things led me to first start changing my political views, shortly thereafter my (very liberally christian) religious position. Technically, thus, leaving the cult didn't cause a change in political position for me, though both are still interconnected.

 

As for where I am now politically, I finally didn't check "very liberal" because the term is abused for things these days that are the antithesis of how I understand the term. I am very "progressive" and, in the original meaning of the word instead of the crappy one that politicians and media use today... socialist.

[Onyx]

I used to be a conservative, when I was a christian, I even opposed homosexuality and all that jazz. At the very last stage of my Christianity, I went leftwards and I'm still going.

 

My politics are in a flux, but it's merely a problem of labelling. Now I'm a socialist democrat or a Green socialist or whatever can accurately designate my brand of socialism in a couple of words or less. I could never call myself a communist with authoritarian though, my disaste for authoritarian communism is too great. I do have a soft spot for truly cooperative anarchism/minarchism and I respect Noam Chomsky as somebody who has consistently contributed to the discussion. I do try to read whatever truly respectful commentator have to say on the issue of the day, but I'll bring my salt. Not even my politics is beyond having flaws, but I cannot feel I can really go back to religious conservatism again. The stakes are really too high and I do not think being a Tea Party style conservative or Stalinist style communist helps the world an iota and jottle.

 

I try to make my politics as secular as possible, because a theocracy with a government and with corporations backing them would be one of the scariest possible oppressions. A secular political landscape puts the attention on social and economic issues more than a theocracy can and that's better than hearing "God Over All" everyday. A secular country can address such issues with better tools than if it were left to the religious fundamentalists and power hungry corporate people to impose their brand of poison on us.

 

I'd rather everybody has freedom of religious worship and freedom from them than if everybody was forced to worship one god or multi or forced to buy all the time under the auspices of gods of industries linked with anybody who can manipulate their deepest convictions to buy into whatever products they will hawk.

 

That's my stance on religion and politics, religion should be kept to the minimum or kept out of politics.

[disillusioned]

Right now, I'm a sort of liberal leaning moderate. Looking back, I guess I used to be a more conservative leaning moderate. I'm not sure that the change was brought about by my deconversion so much as by life in general though.

[RogueScholar]

I think I remember answering this in another thread but I've transitioned from a fairly conservative Republican to what I identify as generally being Libertarian. I'm all for anybody marrying anybody assuming all parties are consenting and not coerced. I want the war on drugs to end immediately. I'm not keen on policing the world and having our soldiers performing nation building. I'm a staunch advocate for religious and government separation. I generally do not like the government getting in the way of people who are not hurting other people. However, I have some socialist leanings, particularly when it comes to health care.

[Ravenstar]

No, I've always been a left leaning moderate. I'm just better at evaluating things critically now instead of reacting knee-jerk to every 'spin' the media/politicians put out.

 

If anything I'm becoming slightly more conservative - but I think that's because the far left has become ridiculous in their quest to support everyone and everything, and being PC has reached absurdity.

 

Sometimes accommodation is just being a coward.

[TheRedneckProfessor]

Not really.  I've always been a bit left of center.  I even have certain leanings toward socialism, which drives my fundy parents crazy.

[Margee]

I hated politics all my life and I still do. I knew intuitively that something was really wrong with all the governments in the world, even when I went to church. I always believed god would straighten it all out for us one day. I am saddened to think things might never change as long as 'un-evolved' humans have their hands in it.............

[Lilith666]

Eesh....I got Whateverman, though I consider myself pretty moderate. I gotta get involved in politics more.

[moanareina]

I have always been moderate (liberal leaning) and my political views have not really changed much except for me becoming more and more apolitical. I think the bigger politics becomes the more in trouble a society is. Politics isn't solving problems...and people should stop to view politics as their super power that is to protect them and start to believe in themselves and their own abilities to find solutions again. Politics has lead most in a passive mode of expectations because it leaves the impression that someone else is at the steering wheel anyways.

[Ro-bear]

I was always a social liberal.  I was for small government and fiscal restraint as a young man.  I was sort of a libertarian.  Now I'm a tax-and-spend liberal.  My belief or lack thereof has no effect on my politics as far as I can tell.

[Thurisaz]

I have always been moderate (liberal leaning) and my political views have not really changed much except for me becoming ...I think the bigger politics becomes the more in trouble a society is. Politics isn't solving problems...and people should stop to view politics as their super power that is to protect them and start to believe in themselves and their own abilities to find solutions again. Politics has lead most in a passive mode of expectations because it leaves the impression that someone else is at the steering wheel anyways.

I wouldn't say it's politics per se. It's more the party-based system.

 

Just recently I read some very interesting analyses on the German political system; they made the point very well that, while in politics you need the will and the ability to solve problems and serve the people as a whole, in a political party the only skills you need are arse-kissing and waiting patiently until it's your turn (i. e. until you've finally kissed enough arses, and the right ones). Of course it's not the 100 % identical system everywhere but I'm... afraid regarding big parties it's the same in each and every country with a party-based system.

[GraphicsGuy]

While a Xian, I had very conservative leanings since I thought they were most in-line with what the church taught.

 

As I got older, I began to believe that Jesus never once spoke against the political authority of the day (Rome) and that "God" set up the government and brought them low (as the Bible states), so I stopped voting.

 

When I left religion I paid minimal attention to politics, but thought I should try a little as perhaps it was my civic duty.

 

Six years later...I just don't give a shit anymore. I really believe politics is a joke. "Like rooting on pro wrestling" as Joe Rogan once put it.

 

However, my "political" leanings would definitely be uber-liberal were I to label how I would vote if I cared.

[slave2six]

Great question WI!

 

I was a typical fundie conservative and a Rush Limbaugh fan. Even though I was never as ultra-conservative as he, I tended to agree with what he said...until I started reading things like Darwin writings and other "forbidden" books. This was all during my deconversion.

 

Then, one day I heard Limbaugh say that Freud and Darwin have done more to mess up the human race than any two people and that if it wasn't for them, there probably wouldn't be liberals. That's the last time I listened to his show. What a moron.

 

I still lean toward fiscally conservative but socially I have gone the other direction and become rather liberal. 

[roadrunner]

^^^ Me too. Him and Boortz. I still remain fiscally conservative and like the idea of paying down the debt. I remain fearful of a society that it too far to either direction. The two party system kind of helps with this.

[Fernweh]

I was a rabid right-winger but I'll just blame it on my youth and lack of understanding with regards to society. I started shifting to the left as I discovered my right-wing beliefs about social issues did not correspond to reality and a well functioning society. As my compass swung I found my political beliefs to be in conflict with my life-long indoctrination into Christianity. For a time I attempted to reconcile this conflict by shunning all established forms of Christianity and sought the truth of it all through the Bible itself. At some point the light went on and I realized all revealed religions are nonsense and I was attempting to worship a god that was an image of my own thoughts and imagination. My political compass shifted dramatically from right to left and this shift definitely preceded my eventual de-conversion and declaration of atheist. 

[JadedAtheist]

While I held a conservative position on several Christian hobby horses, I was still overall a liberal by Australian standards, and definitely so by American ones.

[midniterider]

I don't know if this has already been a topic, but I haven't seen any polls floating around about this so... (crossing fingers). 

 

I ask because my political views have definitely changed. I was an uber conservative person during my time in Christianity. No gay marriage, no taxing rich, no entitlements. I was just spouting off what my parents said. 

 

When I learned to think for myself, I learned that many of the things I had so despised were actually goods for society. 

 

So my political views have flopped a little (a lot). I consider myself a liberal leaning moderate.

 

What about anyone else? Did your views change?

 

For fellow Americans (sorry guys from outside the states! ): I also included a link below to a quiz that I took a while back on NBC's websites. Researchers did a study to find out where most of Americans lie on the political spectrum. It's a neat quiz and places you on that spectrum. I scored MBA Middle, meaning I am probably educated and white, etc. If you haven't looked at it, it is interesting. I had my dad and boyfriend take it. My dad scored The Talk Radio Heads (farthest conservative category) and my boyfriend scored The Bleeding Hearts (farthest liberal category). It's pretty interesting. And I am a psych major, so hey.

 

http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10/15/20977799-quiz-are-you-a-member-of-the-new-american-center?lite

 

Prior to Christianity I probably didnt care much either way about politics nor did I vote. Though growing up we seemed a bit liberal to moderate thinking.

 

During Christianity my highly programmed Christian wife insisted I vote and of course the churchies around me were convinced I should be a republican so I was for about 10 years. Though I think I still voted for Democrats for president. :-)

 

When I got divorced and stopped being a Christian I reverted back to my more comfortable and natural state of being more liberal. I would consider myself moderate now as I agree with some GOP stances as well as Democrat stances on issues. 

[midniterider]

Great question WI!

 

I was a typical fundie conservative and a Rush Limbaugh fan. Even though I was never as ultra-conservative as he, I tended to agree with what he said...until I started reading things like Darwin writings and other "forbidden" books. This was all during my deconversion.

 

Then, one day I heard Limbaugh say that Freud and Darwin have done more to mess up the human race than any two people and that if it wasn't for them, there probably wouldn't be liberals. That's the last time I listened to his show. What a moron.

 

I still lean toward fiscally conservative but socially I have gone the other direction and become rather liberal. 

 

I remember watching Limbaugh during the time I was a Christian as he was counting down the days of American being "held hostage" by the Clinton administration. I remember thinking what a douche Limbaugh was even though technically speaking I was a republican.