right like me

thanks to a couple of friends clueing me in to bloglines a few months back, i've become a big blog reader. i read a lot of political blogs, mostly lefty. i try to occassionally check out some right-leaning blogs too, in the interests of hearing all sides. i find that i can't really read conservative blogs for more than a few minutes, though, before i start to lose my marbles.

i sometimes wonder to what extent progressives and conservatives are really that different, versus just being two sides of the same coin. one key difference that i think i've noted is this: conservatives seem consumed with the notion of absolute good and evil.

it is a comforting thought in some ways. if you can convince yourself that the world can be split up into undeniable good and undeniable evil, and if you can further convince yourself that you come down on the side of good, then it pretty much gives you free moral reign to think and do whatever you like, and it will - by definition - be good.

i come down on the side of moral relativism. this is not to say that i think morals have no place in a society; defining morals - or, more accurately, defining laws to govern behavior, which is not necessarily the same thing - is one of society's key functions. it's only to say that there can be danger in thinking that your opinions are grounded in some universal moral absolute. our society once predominantly thought that slavery was morally acceptable. many people in germany thought the third reich was morally justifiable. most of us can look back now and say that these things were wrong. unfortunately, we seem to lack the ability to look at ourselves now with the same critical eye.

conservatives like to accuse progressives of being wishy-washy, flip-floppers, soft, and whatever else. however, what they appear to lack is the sense of perspective, the awareness of others, that might allow them to more objectively judge our nation's actions and their impacts on the world. slave owners in the 1800's didn't care about the impact of slavery on the unlucky souls brought over from africa. all they knew was they had access to a readily available supply of free labor. likewise, if terrorism scares the bejesus out of you, then seeing boatloads of bombs dropped on brown people halfway across the globe might help you sleep better at night.

i don't mean to paint all conservatives with such a broad brush, and i certainly don't equate them with slave owners or nazis. neither am i implying that progressives have all the answers. balance is key, and while those of us on the fringes may have a hard time hearing the opposing viewpoint without frothing at the mouth, the end result will hopefully be something in the middle that is acceptable to all. isn't that how societies are supposed to work?

news flash

a national intelligence estimate reveals what millions of americans already knew before we ever went into iraq:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/24/world/middleeast/24terror.html?hp&ex=1159156800&en=22b7a0941b08007f&ei=5094&partner=homepage

assuming this story even gets much notice, it probably won't change many minds one way or the other. supporters of the current administration will brush it off as propaganda from the liberal elements of the intelligence community. detractors will just have their existing opinions reinforced.

in other words, we've all pretty much stopped listening to each other or our government anyway.