Not necessarily. People vote for the candidates in the offing, and sometimes one candidate will be the best of the available options without actually having an agreeable platform. In my case, for example, I rarely have anyone to vote for. I just vote against whoever is the most objectionable, to me.eRvin wrote:Forty Two wrote:rachelbean wrote:Well I would say amongst atheist lefties that it is definitely not commonly true, because they tend to be science oriented (of course, not all). However, there definitely is a large part of the left (at least a large part of my circles in the US) that is aggressively anti-GMO. It is one of my (and I'm sure many scientists) continual frustrations.eRvin wrote:Cool story, bro. Have you talked to many lefties during your sheltered life, by chance?Forty Two wrote: Have you ever had a discussion with a lefty person about Monsanto or GMOs? They reject the mountains upon mountains of data that prove GMOs safe and reliable - at least as safe as non-GMO food - with not a shred of evidence of any negative effects attributable to GMOs, but they still hang on to their "frankenfood" nonsense.
It's also important to be careful about our terms. Many atheists "lefties" aren't really "leftist" as much as they are liberal.
If they vote to the left of the political spectrum, then they are lefties.
eRvin wrote:Liberals tend to be open to discussion of ideas
As are most lefties.
To the extent that most righties are also open to the discusison of ideas, sure. But, there are significant elements of both sides that are not. Part of the word "liberal", however, connotes an openness to ideas and tolerance of the ideas of others. This is distinct from conservative, which connotes a resistance to new ideas, and also leftist which connotes an intolerance of ideas outside of that ideology. Like, for example, the leftist ideas in Marxism -- Marxism is not "liberal" or "open to the ideas of others" and Marxism is "leftist." One of the pillars of Marxism is the elimination of dissidents and dissenters, not an openness to ideas of others -- this pillar on the left creates a tendency of some leftists to be intolerant of other ideas, deemed inconsistent with their ideology. Such inconsistent ideas are branded and sought to be silenced -- look at many of the things some leftists do -- shut down other people's conferences, try to run speakers off college campuses, boycott politically incorrect comedians, file complaints against college professors for discussing unpleasant ideas, foster things like microaggression policies and champion the silencing of opposing views through overbroad claims of hate speech, and the like. The "left" can sometimes be very, very, very, illiberal in the sense of being intolerant and not open to the ideas of others.
eRvin wrote:
I'm happy to discuss global warming/climate change, moon landings, the shape of the Earth, whatever -- some "lefties" these days are going so far as to try to liken challenges to climate science to hate speech and there are efforts afoot to criminalize it.
Oh ffs you come out with some utter rubbish. You really need to get out into the real world.
It's not rubbish. Some lefties have done this. The United States Attorney General, Loretta Lynch, a solid lefty, has said that they have considered prosecuting climate change deniers. There were demands from leftist climate scientists made in writing to President Obama, asking him to use RICO to silence climate "deniers." There have been calls from the left to make climate change denial a crime against humanity.
If you're unaware of this, you're not paying attention.