A Political Glimpse from Ireland

How much of a liberal/conservative are you?

Well as of today I am hoping to get into some kind of regular posting schedule with at least one entry per week as well as an audio blog entry which is another site addition that I am experimenting with. In addition, whenever Amilie has time, we will be collaborating on articles that reflect the diverse changes in the Western and Eastern hemisphere.

The inspiration for this entry came from a few sources which include all the blogs in my blogroll as well as some conversations I have had recently in the past week. Today in Dublin (out of all places) I found a Law Professor from New York who is a Hillary supporter and a pretty liberal person as liberals come. In my work place I have an Irish Lady who used to live in New Hampshire and is pretty conservative as I found out quite recently because she was watching Mitt Romney resign on BBC1 when I blurted out: “Gillian, I never realized you were a republican”. The conversation after that comment revolved around pulling the troops out of Iraq in which Gillian commented on the effects to the Iraqi people if we do pull out. Being a “somewhat liberal” I have never really considered it, some people say the situation would fix itself while others say the USA intervening is what is causing the issue. The bottom line for myself comes down to the fact that we cannot know with a 100% surety that if all military forces are extracted out of the region that the situation improves. With that statement the present course of action is the best choice as much as I hate to say it in order to save as many lives as possible.

I have always thought of myself as a liberal person growing up in South Africa because in the pre-apartheid era I never looked at a single person as being part of an ethnicity. To me all people are the same with a first name and last name. I am also a proponent of inter-racial dating even having told my mother in my youth that I would never marry an Indian Girl. Coming to America I discovered the two-party system and what it means to be a liberal living in Massachusetts or conservative living in Pennsylvania. I have never really examined this definition though of what it means to be liberal.

I don’t think there are many people on this earth who can truly claim that they are 100% conservative or 100% liberal. I was having a discussion with a few of my colleagues the other day that even though I consider myself a liberal I also have quite a few somewhat conservative values. For one thing I have always agreed with President Bush’s plan to invade Iraq regardless of the reasons, Saddam Hussein was a bad man and he needed to be taken out for global security if not American security. I am trying to think of other issues but I guess my biggest personal conservative aspect relates to national security or security as a whole. One of the things I support about America is the foreign policy that ensures that America’s interests are protected no matter the cost. This is also known as “pre-emptive policy” that is not only strategically sound but a necessary in a world where multiples threats exist in multiple points around the globe.

I know some liberal people will be screaming at me in particular some of the people I went to school with but this is what I believe. Any nation must put the needs of its people above the needs of the world to a certain extent. There exists a fine balance between total self-centrism and the proverbial global village. I do believe that the world is moving closer together beyond business into an age where countries will work closer together in the spirit of cooperative benefit.

Traditional competitor’s like Russia and China can work together with the United States to achieve a better tomorrow. I know that sounds awfully clichéd and some republicans may even rebel against the idea of a closer relationship with Russia or China but stop for a moment and think of all the good that can be done with, eventually, the three biggest economies in the world? I don’t know that answer yet and that concept is far too utopian for reality but I like to think of it as a possibility at least.

In the coming election; liberals, conservatives and independents need to look within themselves and realize that in order for an effective presidency, a candidate must be selected that embodies both virtues. I think for the Republican side that would be Senator McCain while for the Democratic side that would be Senator Obama. Senator Obama has said in his book and in numerous speeches about the need for both sides to come together and I think if this can happen, true progress can be made in the political arena and in the global arena.

Returning to my original topic, I will go with the phrase “somewhat liberal”, I believe in a stronger more involved government that transfers the benefits from the Rich to the middle class and the poor. I support a National Healthcare System that works on a model that combines the strengths of the Canadian and Danish system. I am a proponent of Gay Marriage and believe that regardless of sexual preference, homosexual couples should have the same rights as heterosexual couples. Stem Cell Research is another huge advancement that the current administration has killed whereas other countries like Italy and China are making huge headways in this regard. The next century is going to be defined in space therefore I also believe that the next administration needs to put NASA back on track to put a base on the moon before the Chinese or Russians. Lastly I also believe in the policy of pre-emption or the ability to neutralize threats to a nation’s sovereignty wherever they may exist.

The entire point of this monologue is to emphasize that Liberals need to look at the conservative side of things and conservatives need to look at the liberal side of things. A better understanding of each other’s philosophies can only benefit the country in the long run and as the election heats up and I think mutual understanding will achieve the ultimate success for the right candidate.