Is the FFA more conservative or more liberal? (1 Viewer)

[Maurile Tremblay]

Not just compared to the Shark Pool or the Assistant Coach Forum -- but compared to the rest of the United States. What's your verdict?

 

[Koya]

The political spectrum here, imo, is pretty representative of the overall.  It's just easier to put out more left/right views, extreme or otherwise, on a message board as opposed to say, over a couples dinner where you don't want to get in a pissing contest - which, lets be honest, is half the reason people even say certain provacative things here.

With that as context, and understanding we are a male-heavy group, mainstream enough in that we all like(d) football, so the views will represent that demography. 

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

I voted other, I think the FFA is similar to primary voters in each party.  Those on the left are pretty far left and those on the right are pretty far right.  Compared to the rest of the United States, the FFA is more conservative and more liberal.  

 

[rockaction]

I think the FFA leans more logic than inherited wisdom, which sounds stupid, but we love our extensions by analogy and rigorous logical arguments.  Which makes sense.

I'd say the FFA leans left because of that sort of belief in logical dialectic. Think Hegel and Marx and Plato rather than Aristotle and Burke. 

I'd say I'm also neither left nor right, but sort of a weird hybrid of both though it's clear I side with the right out a sense of libertarian/conservative fusionism. I'm probably a paleo-libertarian, which puts me in the right, though I have sympathy for some of the goals of left-libertarians, especially when we can work together to provide a more efficient safety net (which I also believe to be inevitable, even at the federal level) and when we can undo sort of corporate fascistic distortions in the market, like forced collective bargaining and the illegality of wildcat and secondary strikes, etc. 

Stuff like that.  

 

[Eminence]

Left.  The poll results indicate that as well.

12 left

5 right

2 undecided

 

[Koya]

Left is the new center.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Left 2:1

That's obvious

 

[Ministry of Pain]

GOP should have minority status in here. Some Anti-Conservtite laws need to be passed.  

 

[squistion]

Left 2:1

That's obvious

It is only representative of those who participate in this particular poll, no way to determine if actually reflects the actual percentages of those who read or participate in the threads.

 

[John Bender]

Pretty up the middle, probably slightly left leaning with extreme sheep-party talking point-drones on each side.

 

[Dan Lambskin]

Other: politics are stupid

 

[SaintsInDome2006]

I think the FFA leans more logic than inherited wisdom, which sounds stupid, but we love our extensions by analogy and rigorous logical arguments.  Which makes sense.

I'd say the FFA leans left because of that sort of belief in logical dialectic. Think Hegel and Marx and Plato rather than Aristotle and Burke. 

I'd say I'm also neither left nor right, but sort of a weird hybrid of both though it's clear I side with the right out a sense of libertarian/right fusionism.  

It's called dialectic, good point, though I think the change in format might lead to a change in content.

 

[rockaction]

It's called dialectic, good point, though I think the change in format might lead to a change in content.

Yeah, that was redundant. I just wanted to be clear what I was saying. Dialectic is also called logic, etc. 

I just wanted to be clear, as I get accused of being too abstract all the time.  

And you seem worried about the change in content. If anything, I don't think it will change the political leanings of the place, it just might make it more snarky and ironic. Although...it does seem like the modern left is really snarky and ironic, so that might even further the move towards the left along.  

 

[Ignoratio Elenchi]

I voted other, I think the FFA is similar to primary voters in each party.  Those on the left are pretty far left and those on the right are pretty far right.  Compared to the rest of the United States, the FFA is more conservative and more liberal.  

I think you started with the right idea but came to the wrong conclusion.  In real life you've got people who are far left, people who are far right, and a whole lot of people somewhere in the middle.  Most of those in the middle probably don't vote in primaries.  And in the FFA it's likely the same, the far left and far right end up dominating the political threads, but that doesn't mean the vast middle doesn't exist here as well.  The FFA is just like the US (or at least the 30-50 year old white male part of the US).  

 

[FUBAR]

I think you started with the right idea but came to the wrong conclusion.  In real life you've got people who are far left, people who are far right, and a whole lot of people somewhere in the middle.  Most of those in the middle probably don't vote in primaries.  And in the FFA it's likely the same, the far left and far right end up dominating the political threads, but that doesn't mean the vast middle doesn't exist here as well.  The FFA is just like the US (or at least the 30-50 year old white male part of the US).  

Exactly

The people who post most often here, at least in political thread will generally be more on one side or the other while the silent majority stands by and watch those guys argue. 

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

Bump to get more votes.

 

[CBusAlex]

We are centrist on a lot of issues, and overwhelmingly liberal on others. I can't think of a single conservative position that has as much widespread support in the FFA as, like, gay marriage or marijuana legalization. 

 

[SacramentoBob]

I lean right and dress left.

 

[RCon]

Other.  I lean libertarian and think the FFA does as well.

 

[Ditkaless Wonders]

I would guess that depends on definitions.  The left/right dichotomy is somewhat confusing to me.  The old guard fiscally conservative/restrained government right has been overtaken outside the FAA by the older guard, and now new again guard of fundamentalist evangelicals supplemented by xenophobes.  The schisms on the left are, to me, more amorphous, but we seem to have an increasing percentage that would never ask what they can do for their country, but would ask what their country can do for them

Libertarian leaning folks, a fair percentage around here, are difficult to align in today's linear  and dichotomous discussion.  I would guess that on most traditional scales the FFA votes slightly to the right while leaning left on many issues, not being represented by as many evangelicals as are out in the electorate.  This is partly a function of the demographically skewed population here, tending towards higher education.

I do believe that the left tends to be more vocal here in the last few years.  They are more prodigious in their posting.

 

[roadkill1292]

We are centrist on a lot of issues, and overwhelmingly liberal on others. I can't think of a single conservative position that has as much widespread support in the FFA as, like, gay marriage or marijuana legalization.

I think this is generally accurate. But I also think that the FFA is overwhelmingly uncomfortable with the nation being in a military situation where it is not the most powerful participant by a wide margin. The FFA is also mostly opposed to health care systems favored by our friends in western Europe, despite their pragmatic benefits, because people (who aren't represented here) will game the system.

 

[jon_mx]

I would guess that depends on definitions.  The left/right dichotomy is somewhat confusing to me.  The old guard fiscally conservative/restrained government right has been overtaken outside the FAA by the older guard, and now new again guard of fundamentalist evangelicals supplemented by xenophobes.  The schisms on the left are, to me, more amorphous, but we seem to have an increasing percentage that would never ask what they can do for their country, but would ask what their country can do for them

Libertarian leaning folks, a fair percentage around here, are difficult to align in today's linear  and dichotomous discussion.  I would guess that on most traditional scales the FFA votes slightly to the right while leaning left on many issues, not being represented by as many evangelicals as are out in the electorate.  This is partly a function of the demographically skewed population here, tending towards higher education.

I do believe that the left tends to be more vocal here in the last few years.  They are more prodigious in their posting.

If I had to classify how this forum leans, it is more libertarian than left or right.  And yes, the left is more vocal and also more obnoxious.  Witness the Scalia thread where a half-dozen plus were pretty disgusting in their posting.  Some pointed me to Teddy Kennedy where the right acted similarly, but browsing that thread produced nothing even close.  Not saying there are not examples of obnoxious righties, it just is not nearly as prolific, even counting Em. 

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

Some pointed me to Teddy Kennedy where the right acted similarly, but browsing that thread produced nothing even close.

I told you that you should have seen that thread before it was cleaned up (i.e., before a bunch of super horrible posts were deleted).

 

[jon_mx]

I told you that you should have seen that thread before it was cleaned up (i.e., before a bunch of super horrible posts were deleted).

Maybe.  But the thread I seen about his death was about a bunch of people expecting bad posts including Tim, and then Tim later saying he was pleasantly surprised there weren't any of those kind of posts.  Perhaps you were recalling a different thread when Teddy was ill.  

Regardless, the posting in the Scalia thread was repulsive and if Joe wants to ban me for calling that kind of behavior out, so be it.