I am the long-lost child of both! Mommy conservative and daddy liberal chose to have a Taniciusfox one day.
Economically, I lean towards smaller government at all levels and fiscal responsibility, but I do support basic welfare programs, so I'm not a far-righty by any means(example: I actually support trying to get national insurance for everybody, so long as the hospitals themselves remain in private hands; regulations can be imposed as necessary to prevent overpricing of services).
Socially, I become very liberal. It is not the government's place to tell you who you can be or who you can be with. Your beliefs and choices are to be respected, provide they do not infringe on the rights of those around you( example: smoking at home is fine, but public smoking - except in designated places - is not).
I'd say I was libertarian or minarchist overall, but in terms of foreign policy, I don't meet the criteria as much.
I believe in diplomacy and the dollar being used as our chief weapons in the international arena. Furthermore, as a cosmopolitan, I reject the concept of the nation-state and acknowledge only governments(that are effective, anyway). But despite these idealisms, I also do not mind resorting to force - not necessarily outright invasions - to spread the ideals of liberal democracy and prevent genocide, not to mention threats to world security. However, believing in pragmatism, I feel it is fine to negotiate and work with dictators if it achieves some sort of goal(such as working with the Saudi King for oil) but once the goal has served it's purpose, like any resource, the strings should be cut. (I hope for green/independent energy to be achieved soon so we can disown quite a few of our former "allies." )
Anywho, that's it in a nutshell! I chose not to answer the poll, as I'm quite dissatisfied with both options. I don't view it in black and white, and I can't come up with a definite answer on liberal or conservative alone since my views skew either one as an option. I could be a liberal or a conservative, though relative to CFC, I'm probably conservative(I prefer right-wing, as conservative implies I'm not open to changes in society).
What should socialists, nationalists, theocrats, royalists and ecologists vote for?
