Has this site swayed your beliefs and opinions?

[iJohnHenry]

Originally Posted by firestarter

Yes.

I now believe there's a larger proportion of idiots in the world than I thought before I started reading these threads.

If you are viewing MR PRSI as the World, I think that is an incorrect conclusion, but I will concede that those here are vastly more vociferous.

[Prof.]

No. It's next to impossible to change someone's political beliefs. People have to change their beliefs on their own.

[jeremy h]

It hasn't changed my political opinions but I've certainly been influenced on occasion by posts on here.

It's really great to get a differing spin from elsewhere in the world. It's like being in a really multicultural pub where everyone is the mood to chat politics and religion. Occasionally, someone spills someone else's virtual pint but there's no hangovers and no actual fisticuffs - so what's not to like?

[eric/]

Just reminded me that some individuals on both sides of the false political spectrum are biased, and closed minded.

[LethalWolfe]

Over the years my views on some things have shifted though I can't really say this forum was catalyst for it.

[725032]

Only stregnthened my resolve

[roadbloc]

It has changed a few opinions of mine. None of them are that important though. I can offer an opinion but overall I have very little time for politics.

[itcheroni]

Yes, my political views have changed drastically since I began posting here but it is not from the discussion here. I changed my mind after reading books like Human Action and Reminiscences of a Stock Operator. I was actually quite liberal before. I voted for Ralph Nader a while back and I was very much in support of Obama in 2008. Now when I read everyone here who supports Obama for reelection, I have to scratch my head. He gets a lot of mileage from being "cool" but he is far from being a good President. Now, some of you will argue Romney is worse and I don't expect him to be any good, but I don't think he would be any worse than Obama has been.

[Andeavor]

The only thing it's done is proven to me that some people still refuse to listen to reason.

When I read the news and see the distress people can cause on each other because they refuse to share the street, let alone the country with each other - queue war and death - I weep for humanity. Coming here though, I thank God (irony!) there are still enough reasonable people in this world who can have a different opinion but respect the diversity.

However, I do shed the occasional tear when I read about some of the ignorance some people on here still have in their hearts and minds about the very fundamental rights of their fellow humans.

Really? After watching the news in 2012, you still hold that opinion?

[NickZac]

Yes, it's widened my understanding in the difference of perspectives, for better or worse.

[samiwas]

I certainly haven't changed from a liberal base to a conservative base, but I have altered a few of my views based on discussion here and learning more about various policies. For instance, I used to be 100% in support of a sales-tax-only-based system or a plain flat tax for taxes, instead of an income-based. Now I realize how regressive those are, and don't support them, at least without some major alterations.

[Scrub175]

Yes, this site has made me re-evaluate my beliefs and understandings in life. I see this forum very similar to a radio show host, Colin Cowherd. Like him or not his insights into the world are very intriguing and thought provoking, but his show is on sports radio. There are very bright intelligent folks on this forum. Add to that the cultural influence from being a global community, vice just a small fan site.

If you can't come here and gain insight or perspective from the global community here, you're really missing out. We may fight and vehemently disagree, however I do appreciate everyone's passionate and diversified life perspectives that I would never learn about otherwise.

[MadeTheSwitch]

Originally Posted by itcheroni

Now when I read everyone here who supports Obama for reelection, I have to scratch my head. He gets a lot of mileage from being "cool" but he is far from being a good President. Now, some of you will argue Romney is worse and I don't expect him to be any good, but I don't think he would be any worse than Obama has been.

Try telling that to a women worried about abortion being legal, her Planned parenthood location being closed down, or to a gay person worried about their civil rights being reversed. Tell that to a soldier wanting to come home from Afghanistan, not stay there longer. Tell that to the parents of a sick child reaching what was formally a lifetime cap on their health insurance. Tell them that it's still the same thing after Romney reinstates that lifetime cap through the repeal of Obamacare.

One believes in equality for all, another believes in the 47% rule. One shows care and compassion for all, the other shows it for the 1% (if even that). One shows his taxes, the other one hides his. The list goes on and on. I cannot stand when people equate these two candidates. They are not the same. Not by a long shot.

[MorphingDragon]

No, but then remember I'm some cackling kiwi who stirrs the pot and flees like some sort of really dedicated travelling chef.

[itcheroni]

Originally Posted by MadeTheSwitch

Try telling that to a women worried about abortion being legal, her Planned parenthood location being closed down, or to a gay person worried about their civil rights being reversed. Tell that to a soldier wanting to come home from Afghanistan, not stay there longer. Tell that to the parents of a sick child reaching what was formally a lifetime cap on their health insurance. Tell them that it's still the same thing after Romney reinstates that lifetime cap through the repeal of Obamacare.

One believes in equality for all, another believes in the 47% rule. One shows care and compassion for all, the other shows it for the 1% (if even that). One shows his taxes, the other one hides his. The list goes on and on. I cannot stand when people equate these two candidates. They are not the same. Not by a long shot.

I don't think Romney will do anything about abortion or gays. It's just like gun supporters constantly in fear of Obama enacting more stringent gun control laws. It won't happen. It's just an unsubstantiated fear.

[mrkramer]

Originally Posted by itcheroni

I don't think Romney will do anything about abortion or gays. It's just like gun supporters constantly in fear of Obama enacting more stringent gun control laws. It won't happen. It's just an unsubstantiated fear.

He probably won't personally, but he will get to appoint supreme court judges who will rule on those issues, and what side do you think they'll be on.

As far as the actual topic of the thread goes while my political beliefs have changed over time including since I started posting here I wouldn't go so far as to say that this forum has had much of an impact on them.

[Andeavor]

Originally Posted by itcheroni

I don't think Romney will do anything about abortion or gays. It's just like gun supporters constantly in fear of Obama enacting more stringent gun control laws. It won't happen. It's just an unsubstantiated fear.

For some reason I believe you. Mitt never struck me as anti-woman or anti-gay, he was quite openly liberal in the past on civil rights issues, it's just this election has made him flip-flop into this stern Republican that appears to reverse everything once in office.

I'm sure that if he became president, he won't let the GOP run over civil rights and 'hopefully' reason with them.

[Iscariot]

Absolutely.

While posting and reading PRSI hasn't radically altered where I sit on the political compass, I've had my opinion changed outright on a couple of issues. But then, my stated goal has always been to have my opinions challenged and either reinforced, or forced to be reconsidered.

[MadeTheSwitch]

Originally Posted by itcheroni

I don't think Romney will do anything about abortion or gays. It's just like gun supporters constantly in fear of Obama enacting more stringent gun control laws. It won't happen. It's just an unsubstantiated fear.

You cannot know this. He has said over and over and over again that he thinks abortions should be banned and that he thinks Row V Wade should be overturned. A Romney Presidency could very well set the stage for that.

Originally Posted by Macaroony

For some reason I believe you. Mitt never struck me as anti-woman or anti-gay, he was quite openly liberal in the past on civil rights issues,

Because he was running for office in a more liberal leaning state. He couldn't have ran up against Kennedy for instance, with a hardcore anti-abortion anti-gay rights stance. So like he does so well, the chameleon changed his spots to suit his surroundings. Nothing more. But that isn't his usual postion on those matters. Additionally, he has picked a VP who voted to ban gays from adopting. Romney also has issues with that subject:

"It's not right on paper, it's not right in fact," Romney said of the same-sex parents. "Every child deserves to have a mother and a father."

http://www.advocate.com/politics/ele...-are-not-right

http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2012/1...les/?mobile=nc

http://www.thenation.com/blog/170891...massachusetts#

[mcrain]

Originally Posted by Sydde

Acrimony can be, umm, fertile.

My son is proof.

Originally Posted by Mord

Probably, though only because I started posting here when I was like 14 and obviously I've changed a lot in the past 10 years as anyone would, I've little doubt that I've been influenced during that time here and there.

I've always have been and likely always will be a left leaning atheist though.

My view of some issues has changed dramatically. Other positions have evolved, but more importantly, I have a much better understanding of WHY I hold these positions. (edit - I quoted Mord because 10+ years, even when you're older, brings about a lot of changes)

[LizKat]

Originally Posted by itcheroni

I don't think Romney will do anything about abortion or gays. It's just like gun supporters constantly in fear of Obama enacting more stringent gun control laws. It won't happen. It's just an unsubstantiated fear.

Originally Posted by Macaroony

For some reason I believe you. Mitt never struck me as anti-woman or anti-gay, he was quite openly liberal in the past on civil rights issues, it's just this election has made him flip-flop into this stern Republican that appears to reverse everything once in office.

I'm sure that if he became president, he won't let the GOP run over civil rights and 'hopefully' reason with them.

Uh... I am sure of no such thing. What is "civil rights" to the GOP? Who are the GOP now anyway? Romney's been acting like someone who can't remember the location of his personal bomb shelter. It must be here, no I think it's over there, well it will be there soon, we're going to build it and it will be really great, I'm not going there, we're not even having a war are we? Is it time for dinner yet? Where's Ann?

This guy Romney, whoever and whatever he is, is not the leader of the Republican Party. The party has no leader. It is a shambles. How can one political party stand for ideals of unfettered capitalism, and at the same time represent extreme social "conservativism" (not to say lunacy) and fundamentalist religious views so bizarre as to make ordinary rabbis, pastors, priests and imams of the 21st century shudder for the reputation of religion in general and "Christianity" in particular?

Further, the GOP is disrespectful of the President, of the office of the presidency and of the people of the United States of America. This is a party that instead of engaging in a bipartisan effort to support the country and the president as he struggled to get momentum for the economy's recovery, took every opportunity to prove that it was 100% behind Mitch McConnell's baldfaced statement that the GOP's primary goal was to make President Obama a one term President.

Whatever happened to losing an election gracefully and supporting the country's endeavors as members of the loyal opposition?

These guys in the Republican party seriously have not cared that they've risked bringing the country down around their own ears (and ours) while they've been trying to discredit the President's efforts during his first term. The President moved center to try to meet their objections to his plans, they moved further right and Obama moved again, so much that the left of his own party has objected. And yet the GOP continued to demonstrate that they have become mere contrarians.

"If you want it, we're not going there." What a creed for a party that once stood for principles I could comprehend if not agree with.

How could Romney lead them? How could we trust him to veto their legislative insanities as they try to impose their extreme views?

The elders of the Republican party are a collection of old white men clipping bond coupons and stroking their most beloved sections of the Tax Code. The rest of the party is a chaotic, seething collection of mostly white men of assorted ages and peculiar rages, bent on dismantling the government agencies that protect our food, air, water, drugs, children's education and welfare, factory workers, did I leave anything out? Why they want to do this is unclear, since their wives like the food, air and water clean, like to think their children are safe and getting smart at school and want to know that their men are safe in the coal mines or on the shop floor. Further, their children don't share the xenophobia and rabidly repressive social views of these guys. It's too late for that stuff in the USA. Some getting-old parents are still signed on but the younger generations realize two things: 1) the fundamentalist rants are bull, and 2) the rest of the country will never stand for legislation that takes the USA backwards off a cliff. Not socially, not economically, not democratically.

And yet we have these guys in the GOP trying to impose their bizarre social policies and completely off the wall government-dismantling populist proposals on a country that (by even tolerating the logjam of failure to reach sensible compromise) is slipping down the ranks of developed countries in stats on education, health, income disparity and so forth. It's scary. It's way too scary to figure that Romney's more moderate than he acts, or more moderate than his party is.

See really it's moot what or who Romney is. What he's clearly not, that's what matters. He's not in charge of the GOP, which is so far right of moderate that it would not even nominate most of the Republican presidents we've already elected in the USA. I don't care that he's run corporations. Running a company is not like being President of a democracy, and being beholden to one of the two parties that spar with each other over legislation in the Congress. Romney doesn't have what it takes to lead his party to the table, period. So then he could be led to the table by the most vocal elements of his splintery party. That is what I fear about the guy. That's what Wall Street should fear about the guy too.

As to thread topic: I don't believe the PRSI has changed my views. It has probably raised my awareness of the complexity of some issues I've tended to see as not that complicated. But I'm not sure. Maybe I'm just more tolerant of ambiguity than I used to be. I think it's probably natural to grow in that direction as one ages, assuming one is willing to keep an open mind.

[hulugu]

Originally Posted by itcheroni

Yes, my political views have changed drastically since I began posting here but it is not from the discussion here. I changed my mind after reading books like Human Action and Reminiscences of a Stock Operator. I was actually quite liberal before. I voted for Ralph Nader a while back and I was very much in support of Obama in 2008.

You did change over time, which I always think is interesting.

Personally, I've changed my opinion on a few fronts as well and I've become less certain on other ideas.

...Now when I read everyone here who supports Obama for reelection, I have to scratch my head. He gets a lot of mileage from being "cool" but he is far from being a good President. Now, some of you will argue Romney is worse and I don't expect him to be any good, but I don't think he would be any worse than Obama has been.

I think the "cool" factor has worn off for Pres. Obama. As for Romney, the problem remains that he will be lousy in all the ways that Obama is and lousy in new ways. The problem isn't just Romney it's the lunatics he keeps company with.

Originally Posted by Iscariot

Absolutely.

While posting and reading PRSI hasn't radically altered where I sit on the political compass, I've had my opinion changed outright on a couple of issues. But then, my stated goal has always been to have my opinions challenged and either reinforced, or forced to be reconsidered.

To me, writing is thinking and thus composing a response, even to someone who will never really engage with it, helps me understand my own reasoning or lack thereof.

[imac/cheese]

I originally wanted to post in PRSI to defend a poster named God Bless as he was getting beaten up by the anti religious crowd, but I wasn't allowed to post due to my low post count. When I finally reached the required number, he wasn't around much any more, but by that time I was interested in all sorts of the discussions going on here.

My opinions have definitely changed on a variety of subjects such as gay marriage and immigration due to the posts I have read here and the thought processes I went through afterwards in evaluating those posts. I have learned about the opinions of people who have lived completely different lives than I have, and those opinions and viewpoints have helped me to further develop my own personal views.

Originally Posted by Iscariot

But then, my stated goal has always been to have my opinions challenged and either reinforced, or forced to be reconsidered.

Truly the only legitimate reason to be in a forum such as this.