Salon Article - Left and Right (Meaningless)

I hate to link to Salon because, well, you can't read it for free. But today, at least, it merely requires watching the Basic Instinct 2 preview, with I don't view as a burden, but a treat.

But once in awhile, the articles are of interest to me, and today there's one about bloggers writing books - specifically Instapundit and Daily Kos.

The article is typically Salon, pretending to be smarter than it is, but it makes a basic point - which doesn't get followed through - that the Left and Right distinctions are becoming increasingly irrelevant.

Me believe this.

Funke, the other day, forwarded my blog address to a group of people, notating that "he tends to be pretty right-wing, so it may damage our collective liberal-arts left-wing-ish sensibilities."

I still find it absurd to be considered "right wing," maybe it's never having voted for a Republican, maybe it's growing up in a Democrat household, not really going to church, I dunno, those hints just seem to me to be representative of not quite qualifying as "right wing," as Tom Delay or George Bush would define it.

I will admit, however, to being a Hawk, in that I think we should kick our enemies ass. Hard and without mercy. I'm not sure why that qualifies as right wing, but if it does, so be it. I also hate bureaucracy, but again, I'm not sure why that qualifies as right wing, either.

I think the far left, over the past five years or so, decided to compete with the far right with who could be the biggest policital fools in this country. Again, if that makes me right-wing, so be it.

Identifying oneself with a party or a political leaning, is like identifying oneself with a gang or fraternity (Chris Rocks says so, too). I think it's bullshit. I'm not in a gang or frat. People, are, as Chris Rock said, neither right or left, they have beliefs that overlap and sometimes come into conflict with political parties or movements.

I don't trust anyone who places too much loyalty into a political position or political party or a politician in general. I mean, does any one of us actually think a single politician offers the answer to things - George Bush or Paul Wellstone or Jesse the Body Ventura, or Bill Clinton?

I believe the system works better than alternatives. I believe in the Constitution works better than alternatives. I sometimes am a realist and sometimes an idealist. Sometimes right, sometimes left, sometimes wrong. I don't like fools, but am often one myself. I like blogs and humor.

I think we all try to simplify things to understand them. I think we have opinions, but be willing to modify them upon discovering new information. I think we often act surprised when events and people don't conform to our "opinions" or impressions, but such suprises are generally reflective of our own ignorance as much as the surprises themselves....and all this so fucking vague I'm sick of writing it.