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I'm a political moderate who leans slightly towards the left. I can readily see the sense and nonsense in both sides of an argument to the extent that I can play devil's advocate for positions I don't agree with for the sake of having an interesting discussion. I often challenge the other guy's statements from several different angles, some apparently ludicrous, just to find out how well he has thought his position through and to get a sense of whether the ideas are his own or whether he is simply parroting a politician, priest, or pundit.
Although I was raised in the Southern Baptist church, I do not consider myself either Christian or religious, nor do I believe that all good stems from the Judeo-Christian belief system. I may be provincial in many ways, but I have studied far too many other religions, esoteric and mystic belief systems, and psychological theories to believe that any one religion can lay exclusive claim to the core principles of ethical behavior and self-discipline. I am not an atheist because I think it presumptuous to claim that the existence of a Supreme Being has been conclusively disproven. Moreover, I have personally experienced the presence of an "other" whom the mystics and the devoutly religious call God. I am inclined to believe this is a natural psychological phenomenon rather than a supernatural one, but I'm keeping my options open pending further evidence.
Gay marriage: If they're consenting adults and they're playing house anyway, they may as well have a legally binding contract that protects the interests of both parties. Who does it really hurt?
Abortion: It's very difficult for me to think of a fetus as anything other than a human being. I suppose it's all right if the fetus hasn't gotten past the stage where it's just a clump of cells, but I find the idea of jabbing sharp objects into a semi-developed brain in order to kill the fetus barbaric.
Gun control: It seems pretty cut and dry to me that the individual citizen has the right to bear arms in order to defend himself, his family, and his property against crime and the prospect of tyrannical government.
Prostitution: In my opinion, anyone who would frequent prostitutes instead of forming an intimate relationship with another person is in dire need of counselling.
Marijuana: I smoked it for thirteen years until I simply lost interest in it one day and quit. I don't recommend it to anyone, but I don't think that its use creates any major societal problems either. For me, it falls into the category of what someone does in private is his own business.
Other drugs: I had a little problem with crystal methamphetamines for about two months a few years back and became so disgusted with myself that I ended up packing a suitcase and leaving the state on a Greyhound bus to get away from the scene. I've seen that shit turn my friends and family members into amoral, irresponsible, self-serving, freeloading idiots. Not only do I not want to see it legalized, I want to see it completely removed from the face of the earth.
Euthanasia: I believe that the individual, and only the individual, has the right to decide if he wants another person to end his life under certain circumstances.
Hopefully the foregoing was reasonably thorough, but if it wasn't and if you can't infer the rest from my posts, I enjoy playing twenty questions and will answer any you may have.
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