I had an interesting discussion with my parents yesterday. It was about politics, religion and the left-right spectrum. I think that it isn’t really all related. A person may be progressive on some topics, but conservative on others. I myself say I’m a liberal on some topics (like gay rights, immigration and freedom of religion), a socialist on others (like labour and social security) and a conservative on yet other topics (like abortion). And on yet other topics, I’m not sure what my position would be called. Like, what do the political movements say about war? The war on Iraq or the Israel-Palestine conflict. The left-wing parties share my opinion on these topics, but I
wouldn’t really consider my opposition of the war on Iraq, for instance, to be liberal or socialist. I agree with Michael Moore on many of the topics he discusses, but I agree with conservatives where it comes to my pro-life standpoint. (You often see that most leftist folks also support abortion and euthanasia.)
I don’t really think one can say he’s a socialist, a liberal or a conservative. I’m a member of the Socialist Party and support many of its opinions - some of which aren’t strictly “socialist” -, but not all. And if I were an American, I’d probably vote for Kerry (if not, then for Nader, but he’s no chance of becoming president), but that doesn’t mean I agree with all his statements. With some, I don’t agree at all.
Mum tried to solve all societal problems by her statements: “Everyone should be free to do with his or her body and mind whatever he or she wants, as long as he or she doesn’t limit others in that freedom.” So, what do we do about Muslimas wearing veils? They have the freedom of religion, but they are distracting to others at times. Mum wanted to forbid veils then, cause they restrict communication. She engaged in a lengthy explanation of the importance of eye contact. I know, but it’s still a cultural principle. In other cultures it’s really rude to look someone in the eye. And what about a conservative Christian who discriminates aganst women or homosexuals? He has freedom of religion, right? But he’s also discriminating. Both are in the Dutch constitution. We still have to set priority values.
Astrid
Ps - I found a New International Version (NIV) of the Bible. That’s better-known than the World English Bible.
