My results on the Moral Politics quiz:

Your scored 2 on the Moral Order axis and 0.5 on the Moral Rules axis.

Matches

The following items best match your score:

1. System: Authoritarianism
2. Variation: Moderate Authoritarianism
3. Ideologies: Social Republicanism
4. US Parties: No match.
5. Presidents: Gerald Ford (82.18%)
6. 2004 Election Candidates: John Kerry (75.29%), George W. Bush (72.31%), Ralph Nader (64.58%)

Statistics

Of the 229006 people who took the test:

1. 0.5% had the same score as you.
2. 36.2% were above you on the chart.
3. 52.2% were below you on the chart.
4. 14.3% were to your right on the chart.
5. 77.5% were to your left on the chart.

... but kind of funny considering what I just posted.

You Are a "Don't Tread On Me" Libertarian

You distrust the government, are fiercely independent, and don't belong in either party. Religion and politics should never mix, in your opinion... and you feel opressed by both. You don't want the government to cramp your self made style. Or anyone else's for that matter. You're proud to say that you're pro-choice on absolutely everything!

I'm a O65-C2-E7-A22-N76 Big Five!!

Little indication as to what this means, but there ya go.

JUDGE KAREN WILLIAMS
U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit, appointed by
G.H.W. Bush, 54 years old
Lots of recent buzz for Judge Williams, known best
in constitutional law circles for writing the
opinion that said the Miranda warnings are not
constitutional requirements. The Supreme Court
reversed her. If you can't beat em, join em!


New World Man presents: My favorite candidate for the Supreme Court
brought to you by Quizilla

[via Judd]

I find myself retaking this quiz once a year or so. The results seem to vary, though I seem to pretty consistently find myself two blocks away or so from the center. First I was in the center economically but libertarian socially. Then I was two in both ways, and now I've shifted to the right economically but in an anti-libertarian direction.

I find it a little bit funky because if anything I feel like I've shifted slightly back in to the libertarian direction from where I was two years ago (though I'm a whole lot less a libertarian than I was in college). If I created an index with a rating of 10 being completely conservative or libertarian and -10 representing being completely liberal or authoritarian, it would look something like the graph to the right

The red represents conservative/liberal and the blue libertarian/authoritarian. This probably lakes me look quite fickle, but the issues of the day change from year to year and a lot of it has as much to do with current events and the issues on the forefront than it does with an actual change in underlying philosophy. That said, my views on specific issues have changed as well. Living out here has given me a new appreciation to the notion of separation of church and state, for instance. Thrifthaven gave me a different view of the poor than I had recieved at the Bingham Barrios back in Houston. I'm sure that once I have children, things will shift again in one way or another.

But all in all, I think the underpinnings of my political philosophy (limited tax and regulation, market-oriented solutions to social problems, and a self-interested foreign policy) have remained relatively constant - much moreso than my personal philosophy and outlook on life. One of the interesting things about the graph - and I didn't intend it - is that the sum of my libertarian and conservative values actually remained 6 for the last few years, meaning that a lot of my shift towards conservatism came at the expense of libertarianism and my shift towards libertarianism came at the expense of conservatism.

By-and-large I tread about halfway between libertarian and conservative political philosophy. There's a little more liberal influence than there was a couple years ago, but even that gets bent in the prism of economic libertarianism and the conservative guarding of moral norms through which I see the world.

UPDATE: Then there's this quiz that Kevin pointed out, according to which I am somewhere between being a centrist and a libertarian. Most of the people who took the quiz and landed where I did apparently voted for Kerry. As Kevin notes, one must be a bit suspicious of a quiz that places John Kerry smack dab in the center. Like the first test, this one seems to lead the taker in a certain direction (some feel like "Do you believe that AIDS is wiping out Africa because god hates gays and blacks? No? Score one for liberal/libertarian").

You are a Social Liberal (60% permissive) and an... Economic Conservative (66% permissive) You are best described as a: Libertarian

I find a couple things interesting here. First that the anarchists seemed somewhat divided between Bush and Kerry. One would suspect that they would lean in favor of the challenger whomever it was. It's extremely difficult for one to be socially conservative and have voted for Kerry, but a fair number of people that registered as socially liberal voted for Bush. This can probably be chalked up to Internet-libertarian bias, wherein most avid Internet users are more socially liberal than the general population at large. Totalitarians leaned towards Bush in the ballot-box, which is kinda goofy to consider that someone that voted for Bush could find their little box landed on Osama bin Laden. I'm not sure whether that was an oversight or whether the author(s) of the test thought that they were being clever.

If, as you live your life, you find yourself mentally composing blog entries about it, post this exact same sentence in your weblog.

[via CGH]

1) Your blog was one of the first I ever read. When did you begin blogging, and why?

I am, alas, deprived of any blogging anniversaries because I started by first blog in summer of 2002 but didn't post regularly until that summer. I was only a year or so removed from being a columnist for the Daily Cougar and I missed commenting on matters political. I was also not very far removed from a crumbled "relationship" and I needed to refocus some of my energies. At some point, for a variety of reasons, I moved away from politics and it became a place to share my thoughts on all sorts of matters, as well to tell stories of my day. I'm not sure what tomorrow holds for it all. I can feel myself starting to move back in a more political direction, but I'm also mulling over using it as a springboard for short story writing.

2) When I read your columns in The Daily Cougar, I remember remarking to law school peers about how one-sided and narrow the perspective reflected therein was.

Five years later, I now tend to think you're one of the more open-minded and balanced bloggers (people?) I 'know.' (Though I should mention that I think some measure of closed-mindedness is a relatively inescapable facet of the human condition -- we believe what we want to, to some extent).

What do you think this says about the columns you wrote, or my own predilections then vs. now, or your own predilections then vs. now?

The funny thing is that I was a lot more liberal than I am now. Certainly more libertarian, but also more liberal. For a variety of reasons that wasn't reflected in my columns. Partly it was to balance out the other left-leaning columnists and as time progress (and this was significant) I found myself a lot more comfortable espousing the conservative viewpoint on various issues. They seemed more intuitively correct. More so and more so the more I started exploring day-to-day issues. So as such I was a rightwing columnist before I was a rightwing thinker.

But that's not entirely your question. The narrow scope and point of view depicted in the columns came down to the 550-word limit a column was supposed to have. When I went over that I would get pushed to page four, which meant less readership. There really isn't much room to really expound on an issue in 550 words and present multiple sides in an issue (or, unfortunately, confront glaring counter-arguments). Some people could do it, but I couldn't. So I went full-force with the opinion that I had come to (sometimes half-heartedly). I frequently came across more forcefully than I actually felt.

Some of it was by word-limited necessity, some of it was by choice. Some days when people would stop me on the way to class, I much prefered "You're nuts, dude!" or "Fascist!" to people with more general complimentary things like my thoughtfulness or evenhandedness. It would also more forced me to defend my ideas if I put them more plainly and forcefully. The downside, though, are those columns that I look back on and now vehemently disagree with, archived with my name on the header for the rest of the history of the Internet.

3) The life of man is nasty, brutish, and short. Discuss.

The older I get, the more I agree with that. But not in an embittered or depressed way. My ability to delineate between black and white has diminished greatly. In life, we cannot avoid getting ourselves dirty. We cannot avoid being cold and ruthless, when the circumstances warrant. Sometimes it's for the best when you are. Sometimes justice is letting the criminal get away. It's hard to explain, really. I guess there was a recognition that life is too short to stay on the gravel the whole time to avoid getting dirty. And sometimes you have to know the wrongs your capable of to henceforth walk on the path of right. And to determine what exactly is wrong, what is right, and what can't be adequately described as either. I thought my teens were dramatic. Nothing compared to my twenties...

4) What, if anything, do you miss most about Texas?

Too much to list, probably. I mostly miss the people, the common identity that Texans with widely disparate experiences share. The diversity (not only ethnic, but of city and country) is something I apparently took for granted. And the music. Good heavens, do I miss the music.

5) Why do you like anime/manga so much?

Believe it or not, this is the short answer:

When I was a kid I watched a lot of television. A whole lot. I have probably seen every episode of Matlock, Family Matters, Batman: The Animated Series, and The Commish. I've seen entire seasons of just about every genre in existence. I am extremely familiar with American storytelling style (as it pertains to serial fiction). The most immediate appeal to anime, for me, is that it shifts the axis ever so slightly. The stories are coming from a slightly different foundation, different assumptions, and different expectations. So while I make no claim that Japanese animation storytelling is better than American storytelling, it's different enough that the mediocre stuff is more interesting to me than the mediocre American stuff. And there are things that they do better. Season-long story archs are much more prevalent. Shows in which you can just switch around the episodes without confusion are more rare. I like all different kinds of storytelling formats from the graphic novel to formulaic television to old-time radio shows. Anime gives me a new one.

Of course, it's not as new as it used to be and my interest has waned in recent years. But I do like variety and Anime is good to keep in the rotation.

---

The Official Interview Game Rules:

1. If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying "interview me." (Also, please leave a link to your journal/blog either in the URL box or within your comment.)
2. I will respond by asking you five questions -- each person's will be different.
3. You will update your journal/blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

I really like this quiz, pointed out by Kevin. It at least breaks up the Democrat/Republican mold somewhat. Interesting that I had the same results as Kevin and his entire readership (or at least those that commented on the post in question. This is the first type-setting quiz on politics that actually has a group for Republicans that are neither super religious or libertarian. Reading over it, though, I can't help but wonder if the category should have been called "libertarians who pragmatically sold out."

----

Enterpriser

Based on your answers to the questionnaire, you most closely resemble survey respondents within the Enterpriser typology group. This does not mean that you necessarily fit every group characteristic or agree with the group on all issues.

Enterprisers represent 9 percent of the American public, and 10 percent of registered voters.

Basic Description
As in previous studies conducted in 1987, 1994 and 1999, this extremely partisan Republican group’s politics are driven by a belief in the free enterprise system and social values that reflect a conservative agenda. Enterprisers are also the strongest backers of an assertive foreign policy, which includes nearly unanimous support for the war in Iraq and strong support for such anti-terrorism efforts as the Patriot Act.

Defining Values
Assertive on foreign policy and patriotic; anti-regulation and pro-business; very little support for government help to the poor; strong belief that individuals are responsible for their own well being. Conservative on social issues such as gay marriage, but not much more religious than the nation as a whole. Very satisfied with personal financial situation.

Who They Are
Predominantly white (91%), male (76%) and financially well-off (62% have household incomes of at least $50,000, compared with 40% nationwide). Nearly half (46%) have a college degree, and 77% are married. Nearly a quarter (23%) are themselves military veterans. Only 10% are under age 30.

Lifestyle Notes
59% report having a gun in their homes; 53% trade stocks and bonds in the stock market, and 30% are small business owners – all of which are the highest percentages among typology groups. 48% attend church weekly; 36% attend bible study or prayer group meetings.

2004 Election
Bush 92%, Kerry 1%. Bush’s most reliable supporters (just 4% of Enterprisers did not vote)

Party ID
81% Republican, 18% Independent/No Preference, 1% Democrat (98% Rep/LeanRep)

Media Use
Enterprisers follow news about government and politics more closely than any other group, and exhibit the most knowledge about world affairs. The Fox News Channel is their primary source of news (46% cite it as a main source) followed by newspapers (42%) radio (31%) and the internet (26%).

TP passed the book meme on to me, and I shall sorta answer the call. Most of you know that I'm not a huge reader of books, so I'm going to have to keep this one general.

From Centinel:

1. You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be saved?

Probably Fahrenheit 451, cause a good look at themselves might get them to stop!

2. Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?

Tons and tons. I may have even had a crush on a fictional character that I wrote! Oddly enough (I say "oddly" so that I can remain in denial about how obvious that is and the implications of that) the characters I tend to have 'crush'es on tend to be very messed up in the head.

3. The last book you purchased?

I can't remember the title of it. It's about a Harvard literature grad who joins the NYPD. It's an autobiography. Haven't gotten very far in to it, though.

4. What are you currently reading?

Not reading any book at the moment. Reading the Book of Mormon off and on and the aforementioned cop book.

5. Five books you would take to a deserted island?

I'd need to spend a little time in the bookstore, but preferably five books that could get me off the deserted island.

Absent that, I'm not sure which books I would take, but they would have to be long and thought/imagination provoking. Anthologies would work even better. But I'd probably stretch it out and have one of each of the following: One philosophical book, one religious text (almost certainly the Bible), one fantasy novel, one science fiction novel, and a graphic novel (likely V for Vendetta).

I'll pass on passing this one along. Anyone interested please consider yourself passed on to.

My ska name is Dexter Checkers.
Take The Ska Name Generator today!
Created with Rum and Monkey's Name Generator Generator.

The Moderate Okay! You scored 67!

You are a moderate. Not EVERYTHING conservatives do annoys you, but some things get under your skin. You're not entirely comfortable with liberals, but there are some issues you'll support them on. You like to think of yourself as an independant thinker and you refuse to just vote down the party line! You hesitate before leaping into things, but when you get into them, you're quite passionate!

My test tracked 1 variable How you compared to other people your age and gender: You scored higher than 84% on rightness

Link: The how conservative are you Test written by lemonslippers on Ok Cupid

Hmmm... just this side of moderate.