Have your political views changed in the past year- and if so state the original...

[Uncle Chester]

belief and the transformed belief.

My personal views have swayed towards the right and repositioned itself near the centre- making me a moderate as opposed to a leftist, which I was before.

I've changed my mind on abortion, previously thinking it's acceptable in the early development of a baby- now I consider it wrong with the exception of rape etc.

I've also changed significantly my views on economics with a more libertarian foundation.

So have you changed your politics in recent times (thus is up until approximately a year ago or 2) and if so, on what issue have you specifially changed? and what made you change?

 

[SalvIsWin]

Before: Lef. Now: Far, far left. I've realized that conservatives simply have few of the publics interests at heart, unless those interests also benefit themselves, or unless those interests coincide with what the rich would want. The amount of conservative bullshit that I read about on a daily basis is stunningly absurd. What is probable is that I simply don't hear about the left's bullshit, but I can't think of a single example that comes close to the bullshit from the right. The biggest criticism that is often levied at the left from what I see is that:

• 1. They're soft (true).
• 2. They're policies are irresponsible.

I agree with 1., but upon doing my own research, and really following the facts about issues, I don't agree with 2. at all. Regardless though, the things I've heard from Republicans like Huckabee, Romney, Palin, and Gingrich most oftentimes floor me because of it's sheer stupidity - I've never felt that way because of something from liberals.

 

[JWGunslinger]

My change is actually alot like Chester's, I started far left, then turned far right and then found my perfect spot right around the middle. When I changed from liberal and conservative it was not because the other side appealed to me but because the side I was on did not represent me. I hated being hearing people who supposedly were on the same page as me make fools of themselves and really make other repubs or dems look bad. That is when I decided that I did not want to be linked to either party or compared to them, am I just doing it to be on both sides to be everyone's friend and avoid conflict? No, I want to be represented by someone I trust and that is myself and politics are so much easier now.

 

[GI Cake]

When I was young I really never took a political view. I guess you can say that's in the middle. However now seeing as my family dinners always end up in a huge left vs right debate I can say I am still in the middle. Both sides are too busy fighting each other instead of fixing any actual problems.

The Conservatives are lost in this generation. Old customs from the Constitution do not work in all cases in the United States. They are bashed because of how nice they are to the poor. But I can tell you that not everyone making over $250,000 is living on top of Penthouses and partying every night. They are hard working Americans like you and I

Now the Liberals I believe are a party of hot air. They do a ton of stuff to get the public on their side. They are too quick to change things and create laws that would prove unconstitutional. Take for instance Gun laws and the Health Care reform. The bill of rights says clearly that Americans are allowed to stand at arms against the government if need be. Sure President Obama turning into a dictator over night is far fetched but some still need it for self-defense.

All and all we need to stop with this stupid left and right bullshit and work together for a common cause. That cause being building the greatest god given country on the Planet.

 

[Slyfox696]

The only part of my opinion on politics that has changed is just how stupid and corrupt I find the majority of politicians. A couple years ago I still believed there were some who had some honorable intentions and had an idea of what they were doing. Over the past couple of years, keeping up with technology news and the way the US government is basically violating the US Constitution with the Bill of Rights with regards to the Internet, and the way Republicans repealed a measure Net Neutrality, I now have no doubt the number of honest and intelligent Congress people sits in the single digits.

An example: Republicans repealed Net Neutrality because "it gave too much governmental control over the Internet" (paraphrasing), and yet, they are now trying to push through the Protect IP legislation, part of which says essentially if any website around the entire WORLD is SUSPECTED to be partaking in copyright infringement, then the government can force Internet entities (Google search, DNS servers, etc.) to disable anyone from traveling to that site using domain names (like wrestlezone.com, for example). Oh, and in fairness, Democrats are on board with this too.

It's absurd. Republicans claim they don't want governmental control over the Internet, and then support legislation which gives governmental control over the Internet. The only difference between the two pieces of legislation is where the Republicans are getting their monies from. They get money from big-time Internet Providers who are against Net Neutrality, so they are against Net Neutrality. They get money from the big time Music and Movie companies, so they are for legislation which protects those entities.


It's corruption and stupidity, all rolled into one. So the only thing that has changed is how I look at our governmental leaders. Whereas before I considered MOST of them to be stupid OR corrupt, now I consider almost all of them to be stupid AND corrupt.

 

[Cena's Little Helper]

Yes, one of my political views has changed. I used to believe in a moderate amount of gun control, but I now believe everyone has the right to own a firearm and also the right to bear that firearm on their own property should they feel threatened. When it comes to non-lethal weapons, I believe everyone has the right to carry a concealed one in public.

On a side note, I'm glad to see that the American public has come to accept at least one idea from the right; along with the legalization of marijuana and gay marriage, most Americans today believe in less stringent gun control.

 

[Dagger Dias]

My political views have not changed in the past year or two. I have remained politically neutral for many years now because I find both sides to be wrong about too many issues. I do lean toward the right sometimes, but I consider myself almost completely neutral. Politics is full of heartless people who have no idea what they are doing and are not in it for the benefit of who they represent. I came from an odd position where my parents are as far right as one can be but my sister and brother in law are as far left as one can be, I was always the guy in the middle saying "Shut up! You're ALL wrong!". Anyways, the past year or two have not changed my political views. I can see how it would cause others to change depending on who they voted for and what has been going on.

 

[ChickenWaffles]

I've gone from left leaning to fairly right. Mainly on the basis that unlike a lot of my peers I've realised that money doesn't grow on trees and that "taxing the evil bankers" is not a solution to anything.

 

[RockFan89]

I'd say that I've moved from a libertarian stand point to a more traditional conservative on certain subjects.

I used to be a pure free market guy, but after getting more into my business classes I've realized there are some things we do need to regulate, but only things that are common sense like, you can't sell something you don't own (i.e. naked short selling, which was already illegal to begin with). The government needs to be better equipped to enforce these laws.

I've also come to realize that the U.S. is the only major force of good in this world. When there is a major crisis in the world, everyone looks to the U.S. for leadership and, frankly, there is no other country out there right now who could fill that role. The U.N. is corrupt and impotent when it comes to major crisis and NATO is completely driven by the U.S. So taking a completely isolationist foreign policy would cause major problems for many people in the world (but I still firmly believe the U.S. needs to cut back on its international presence)

On guns, I've also become completely open to both sides. I used to be firmly conservative with the belief that gun laws are pointless because if you're going to break the law to kill someone, how could any gun law deter someone from buying a gun illegally? And with like 200 million guns in the U.S., any such law would only make it harder for innocent people to buy guns. But there's also the issue of background checks and keeping guns out of insane people. How do you stop people from killing others if they're willing to kill themselves? And issues like the number of clips in a magazine, should there be a limit? In what situation would an innocent person be safe with 30 clips instead of 10? So I'm more open to any convincing arguments on that issue.

 

[Brahma Bull]

the only thing that i can say changed for me is my beliefs in the parties. i am libertarian, but i lean right on more issues. im all for gay rights, legalizing marijuana and other drugs, and even legalizing prostitution. at the same time, i am for the right to bare arms, and dont want any more government taxes, and think we can get out of this recession if we get rid of the crap that the government does in a lot of sectors. these have mostly held, what has changed is that i have come to the full realization that no politicians, save a very small few who will never get power, have the publics interest at heart. it is all a power and money game. liberals are just as bad as conservatives, and both get huge money from corporations. so i dont support politicians, i just vote for my douche so that the turd sandwich doesnt win because i hate the douche less. (southpark reference anyone?)

 

[Calderownz]

A few things. Nothing major, but a few things.

1. Gun control. My viewpoint didn't really start out as anything, but I've thought about it more within the last 12 months. While I believe that the gun laws in place can be improved upon, I don't think that I'm so in favor of taking away the guns of law-abiding citizens. For a while there, I might have been in favor of that for some idealistic reason.

However, in truth, it simply doesn't make sense. The gun is only dangerous if the intent is dangerous. Outlawing guns doesn't do anything because criminals, by nature, would still have access to guns.

The laws don't need as much work as the people in this country do. We just need better mental states. Some of us are fucking insane.

2. Abortion. I've always been in favor of letting women decide whether or not they keep the child and I still am. However, I do believe that the man in the situation should at least have something to do with the decision. Especially when it comes to child support.

Legally, at the end of the day, a relationship is a business. Hence, the states involved. So, if you get into the "business deal" with the idea that both of you agree to not add another party and that you don't want to be in this business with the other if they end up wanting to add another party, you should have the right to financially opt out.

I know that most people won't agree with me here. However, that's beside the point. It's not right to force someone to take care of a child that they never wanted. Just like it's not right to force a woman to keep a child she doesn't want or can't support. If you went into a relationship making it clear that you don't want a child and you were protected at all times, you shouldn't be forced to become a parent.

Keep in mind; no matter how I got a women pregnant, if she kept the child, I would support the child. Whether I stayed with her or not. Nonetheless, I shouldn't be forced to.

That's about all I can think of at this point.

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

I don't think I've changed at all. In fact, I don't believe true, unaffiliated moderates have moved whatsoever.

I think the conservative base has moved further to the right, and that alienates someone like myself. At this moment, it seems as though Republican politicians have no choice but to go as far right as possible. If they don't, they're out of there. Voted out, plain and simple. The base has made something quite clear -- there is no place for moderate candidates. As a centrist, this bothers me.

Personally, I don't see the Socialist agenda of President Obama. I certainly don't believe he has done an outstanding job, but I see him as more of a moderate than most on the right. I think he's a bit weak, so the idea of compromise isn't something I believe he's opposed to. However, compromise cannot, and will not happen. The right refuses to compromise. They have set goals, which are totally based in politics, not policy, end of story.

So, at this moment, I'm not a fan of the Democratic party. However, from an ideological stance, they haven't shifted, and in an odd way, that appeals to me. I definitely cannot say the same for the GOP. If I had to bet money, I would say this shift ends up destroying the GOP's changes in the 2012 Presidential election.

EDIT: Keep in mind that Chester, in the title of this thread, asked about political views. The title says nothing about policy, so I stuck with politics.