In politics these days, the worst thing you can label someone is a "Liberal". I can't exactly remember when this happened, but I think it was some time around the Reagan presidency. Certainly, it became even more acidic when Rush Limbaugh hit the airways, and I'm sure that the right-wing nut cases in the Brainwashed Churches of America have sprinkled "holy water" on the word -- with their crap.
I have never considered myself anything but a scientist, really. Science is actually a rather conservative business. You can't "liberally" claim anything you want, willy-nilly, such as "love is all you need." Any claims must pass many hardened tests of veracity else your reputation as a scientist will be thrown out the window.
Also, scientists are usually not "neo-conservatives", which also involve claims that may or may not be endowed with the constraints of reality, such as "pollution is good for climate change" or "nicotine is not addicting."
Belonging to the "left" or the "right" has no meaning in true science. At best I might be described as belonging to the Trapezoid Party. This is the party where things lean both left and right and also obey all the rules of geometry, unlike the flower power far-Left or the gun powder far-Right. And while leaning, the base of a trapezoid is always firmly assuring good balance.
Religion has a tough time with science, and often makes the mistake of lumping science in with "liberal academia". Religions have always had problems with people who notice the men behind the curtains. Religious people often make the mistake of believing unbelievable things, and then getting angry when others don't believe the same thing they do. I don't mind when they get angry -- only when they start killing "infidels."
The Trapezoid Party is more like the "Trisection of an Angle using a Compass" party. "That cannot be done," it is often said. That is true -- at least in 2-dimensional Flatland. But it can be done in the actual N-dimensional world that we actually occupy. We are not confined to pieces of paper. But the act of Trisecting the Angle is something that requires thinking way outside the box. That is something that belonging to political parties that are some 200 years old has a great problem with.
But, back to the "Liberal" label. I would not be labeled as anything but a "Liberal", merely because I do not believe in bigotry, gluttony, avarice and so forth, even though I am not religious. The Trapezoid Party does not support killing people needlessly in glorious wars, therefore "Liberal". We do not believe in gods or ghosts, therefore "Liberal." We do not believe in destroying the environment so that a few corporate fascists can get rich, therefore "Liberal." We believe in evolution, therefore "Liberal."
I think you get the idea. But if you don't -- worry not, the Trapezoid Party will not kill you because of it.
But you really have to watch out for the extremists of the Trapezoids -- the Triangle Party.
I have never considered myself anything but a scientist, really. Science is actually a rather conservative business. You can't "liberally" claim anything you want, willy-nilly, such as "love is all you need." Any claims must pass many hardened tests of veracity else your reputation as a scientist will be thrown out the window.
Also, scientists are usually not "neo-conservatives", which also involve claims that may or may not be endowed with the constraints of reality, such as "pollution is good for climate change" or "nicotine is not addicting."
Belonging to the "left" or the "right" has no meaning in true science. At best I might be described as belonging to the Trapezoid Party. This is the party where things lean both left and right and also obey all the rules of geometry, unlike the flower power far-Left or the gun powder far-Right. And while leaning, the base of a trapezoid is always firmly assuring good balance.
Religion has a tough time with science, and often makes the mistake of lumping science in with "liberal academia". Religions have always had problems with people who notice the men behind the curtains. Religious people often make the mistake of believing unbelievable things, and then getting angry when others don't believe the same thing they do. I don't mind when they get angry -- only when they start killing "infidels."
The Trapezoid Party is more like the "Trisection of an Angle using a Compass" party. "That cannot be done," it is often said. That is true -- at least in 2-dimensional Flatland. But it can be done in the actual N-dimensional world that we actually occupy. We are not confined to pieces of paper. But the act of Trisecting the Angle is something that requires thinking way outside the box. That is something that belonging to political parties that are some 200 years old has a great problem with.
But, back to the "Liberal" label. I would not be labeled as anything but a "Liberal", merely because I do not believe in bigotry, gluttony, avarice and so forth, even though I am not religious. The Trapezoid Party does not support killing people needlessly in glorious wars, therefore "Liberal". We do not believe in gods or ghosts, therefore "Liberal." We do not believe in destroying the environment so that a few corporate fascists can get rich, therefore "Liberal." We believe in evolution, therefore "Liberal."
I think you get the idea. But if you don't -- worry not, the Trapezoid Party will not kill you because of it.
But you really have to watch out for the extremists of the Trapezoids -- the Triangle Party.
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