WARNING! DEBATE! Are political beliefs based on emotion?

[Bobbles]

A friend of mine at work and I have "discussions" and he made an interesting point. He pointed out to me that MY political beliefs are based on MY emotions.
I thought about this for a few days and came to the conclusion that he was correct! So today,during one of our "discussions", I told him that i had to agree with him. I asked if he thought his were also emotional based. He actually took a moment and said yes. What amazed/amused me was that he had to think about it.

So the debatable question put forward here is, "Do you believe your political beliefs are based on your emotions?" And can you nail down the moment you realized your alignment?

 

[powellrj]

I am not sure if its emotion as much as life experiences. My DH and I usually agree on general political issues, but we come to our decision in totally different ways. I can't stand to read and listen to the people he likes, and vise versa, but we usually will form the same opinion.

 

[Truth]

Another so-called debate.

For the sake of a minor exercise in futility would you be able to give two examples of what you consider a " political belief "

 

[Bobbles]

Originally posted by Truth
Another so-called debate.

For the sake of a minor exercise in futility would you be able to give two examples of what you consider a " political belief "

Perhaps this shouldn't be labeled as a "debate".
Point taken.
I guess I should change the label for you.
The reason I put the warning up was because there are a lot of folks that would rather not see this kind of question on the CB but the darn DB is gone and questions could be asked more readily there.

It was not my intention to provide you with any "exercise in futility" It's a simple question so I won't waste any more of your valuable time. Better yet just don't waste your time replying! HA HA!

But for the others who I may have led astray.....
Was your current belief in conservative, moderate, or liberal beliefs established by a particular event or emotion?

 

[AirForceRocks]

I can't point to a single event, but more to my upbringing. I was brought up to believe that people are responsible for themselves and their families, and that while many people may need help from time to time, it shouldn't be a way of life.

 

[Betsyt82]

Yes I agree with you and that my political beliefs are based in emotion. Most likely for me is that I care, and am empassioned by them.

 

[wdwdvcdad]

Liberals' political beliefs are based on emotion...how else could they defend their positions...the facts scream out against everything they believe.

Conservatives have thought at the basis of much of their beliefs, but there is still some emotion that creeps in (ie. stem cell research).

Libertarians are thinkers. emotion does not get in the way of the facts.

 

[Truth]

Bobbles,
The point was not to dispute the term debate with
you but to point out that you had been to vague with the subject. With the face to face longer term relationship you have with a coworker you would have a better chance to think you are both on the same page with terms and meanings. But to post on an internet board with people from anywhere that have only the words you type to go on would seem to require a little more context/definition/information in order increase the possibility of more people being able to at least start somewhere near the same place as you.

Now rather than guess, if you would please give two examples of a " political belief " there will be no problem deciding how much more time to devote to this thread.

 

[faithinkarma]

Perhaps the OP was vague about details because they did not want a debate about any particular belief, but rather just a general discussion of how one's beliefs are formed?

To answer the OP's question, yes, I think political beliefs are based on one's experiences growing up, and how one reacted to those experiences emotionally.

 

[sha_lyn]

In my experience (in my cirlce of friends) I have to agree wdwdvcdad on this one (oh my, did I really just say that LOL)

example.... A couple that DH and I friends with. The DW is very emotional and tends to be very liberial in her views. She rarely if ever can give facts to back up what she says.

IE... Recently the DH (libertarian) told me of a conversatioin they had. She said the government should put a cap on Gas prices and other consumer items. The DH asked her if she though if people complained about the prices at his business, should the Gov be able to step in and put a cap on that too. Her answer was "oh no of course not" but she could not see the different between the 2.

 

[ripleysmom]

My views are also based on my life experiences.

 

[caitycaity]

i agree that it tends to be based on life experiences.

also just because you happen to know a liberal who can't back it up with facts, doesn't mean that all liberals are like that. i can back my opinions up with facts, thank you very much. i hate when people make such sweeping generalizations about liberals on this board.

 

[BedKnobbery2]

Although I can get emotional about politics, I don't feel my political beliefs are in any way based on emotion, but rather based on my life experiences and observations as well as logic and reason.

And I'd have to totally disagree with wdwdvcdad; I know plenty of conservatives whose beliefs are totally based on emotion (and some libs as well, of course). What I find really, really funny is many of my liberal friends often say, "How can they [conservatives] even think that? If they'd just open their eyes and look at the facts, they'd see they are totally wrong!" I guess it all depends what set of facts you choose to see.

 

[Lanshark]

I think our political beliefs are derived from our environment and life experiences. Emotions certainly play into it especially in areas surrounding our perceptions of what is just and was is unjust.

Not to sound like a Vulcan but emotion sometimes does take away our ability to look at a situation logically. Emotion can cloud reason. Being a woman, who was raised almost solely by my father, it is something I've tried to control throughout my life.

 

[sha_lyn]

also just because you happen to know a liberal who can't back it up with facts, doesn't mean that all liberals are like that. i can back my opinions up with facts, thank you very much. i hate when people make such sweeping generalizations about liberals on this board

Not sure if this is direct at me but as I said... It is my experience with my friends. I didn't make sweeping generalizations.

 

[wdwdvcdad]

Originally posted by caitycaity
i agree that it tends to be based on life experiences.

also just because you happen to know a liberal who can't back it up with facts, doesn't mean that all liberals are like that. i can back my opinions up with facts, thank you very much. i hate when people make such sweeping generalizations about liberals on this board.

in this case, sweeping = accurate

 

[BedKnobbery2]

Originally posted by wdwdvcdad
in this case, sweeping = accurate

LOL Hardly. I think you may be letting your emotions get the best of you, wdwdvcdad.

 

[Alice28]

I base my political beliefs mostly with the way I was brought up, especially more in my junior high and high school years. (when I was in elementary school my parents were pretty hardcore democrats...they made the shift to the right later on). I often struggle or think about certain issues, but facts, or at least opinions that make sense to me, are what usually win me over. I am definitely more "conservative" and I think that stems from my social background more than my emotions.

 

[RachelEllen]

Originally posted by caitycaity
i agree that it tends to be based on life experiences.

also just because you happen to know a liberal who can't back it up with facts, doesn't mean that all liberals are like that. i can back my opinions up with facts, thank you very much. i hate when people make such sweeping generalizations about liberals on this board.

So true. I have a mix of liberal and conservative beliefs (I'm pretty much a libertarian), but my liberal beliefs are based less on emotion than the others. For example, my emotional reaction is very much against abortion, while I've still very prochoice.

 

[ThreeCircles]

Originally posted by wdwdvcdad
Liberals' political beliefs are based on emotion...how else could they defend their positions...the facts scream out against everything they believe.

Conservatives have thought at the basis of much of their beliefs, but there is still some emotion that creeps in (ie. stem cell research).

Libertarians are thinkers. emotion does not get in the way of the facts.

Well, I wouldn't make such sweeping and absurd generalizations about where people derive their political beliefs from for fear of what it would make me look like.

Hello Wdwdvcdad!

But, I would tend to think that political beliefs are probably derived from many different aspects of one's being regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum.

As a proud liberal, the vast majority of my political beliefs come from my own life experiences. That's not to say that emotions don't sometimes come into play and reinforce those beliefs.