Category | Op Ed

The myth of the moderate

Published on April 27, 2010 by Noah Solomon

Whenever there’s an election about to come up in this country, regardless of where it is or what or at what level of government, there is always at least some talk about “moderate” or “centrist” candidates. These people can relate to both conservatives and liberals on nearly any issue without much hassle and never get involved in petty partisan squabbles. There is discussion about the moderate voter, who is likewise somewhere in between left and right, firmly planted in their own middle-of-the-aisle ideology. Finally, there’s often talk of a “post-partisan” era - the era of American politics some like to think we are in.

All of these are simply myths - untruths created by people who want to think we can avoid the petty partisan bickering that Washington and every other government, whether local or state, descends into day after day. There are some who realize this and point to our two-party political system as the culprit, who say that if we just get some more legitimate parties into the fray, we’ll solve this. That solution is like trying to heal a compound fracture by putting a bandage over the broken skin. It doesn’t solve the underlying cause of the issue. Truthfully, it’s the makeup of our country that’s to blame.

America is made up of immigrants from many, many countries from all over the world. While the vast majority of those immigrants have adopted our language and culture, they still have their fundamental beliefs intact. Some of those beliefs are more conservative than others; some are more liberal. As the different immigrants intermarried and sired generation after generation, some of these beliefs got passed on.

These different ideals coming from different backgrounds clashed; that is the underlying tension you see in America today. It’s not just that Republicans and Democrats hate each other; it’s that John Smith was taught a set of ideals by his parents because they were taught that by their parents, all because it’s what makes the most sense to them. In the same way, Jane Doe had another set of values passed on to her through her parents.

Of course, they are also influenced by the outside world and the values of others. Don’t think I’m saying that all political belief is simply hereditary. It’s just how it starts. We disagree because America is built upon such a vastly different and heterogeneous mixture of people that there is no way we could not conflict with each other. And since at least part of who we are is influenced by where we came from (parents, et cetera), those differences continually get passed down. But don’t be fooled- that’s just the beginning. The underlying cause of our conflict is our diversity, but doesn’t our political system contribute to it in at least some capacity? Of course it does.

From the birth of our country, there have been two opposing cliffs: one on the left, one on the right, with a valley in between them. Compromising between left and right used to be easier, but Lyndon Johnson’s administration saw a massive split in Congress that deepened and widened this valley. Richard Nixon’s presidency increased the valley’s size tenfold. Issues such as abortion, gay marriage, war and the draft are incredibly polarizing, as are candidates who insist on pitting people against each other for political gain (nearly every politician does this, so don’t think your favorite is above reproach).

The simple fact is you can’t disagree with someone anymore without having to ally yourself with their polar opposite. Involvement on any issue forces you to one side or the other; the valley in between them is far too vast for anyone to stand in. There is no middle ground to speak of. The backgrounds, issues and politicians that divide us make it impossible to be a moderate outside of isolation. You have to pick a side if you want to be active on any issue. It’s just the way it works. We will never be post-partisan. It’s time we stopped deluding ourselves.