Center of Attention
October 5th, 2007 by PETE ABEL, Assistant Editor
A round up of recent posts by various bloggers who either attempt to strike a balanced note on heated debates and controversial issues, or improve our ability to find our own sense of balance by exposing us to new information and different points-of-view.
Many people today are leaving the Republican party, but there was a time when the migration flowed the other way. The Anchoress [h/t Patrick J. Conlon] explains why (and when) she left the Democrats. Whichever party we’re in, or in between, I think many of us can relate to these words:
” … when it became clear to me that the word “liberal†no longer meant “open-minded, respectful and broad†but quite the opposite, that’s when I finally left the left.
“I’ve been trying to balance myself, ever since. For a little while, I believe I may have gone too far right in an over-correction, but that was another uncomfortable fit and not where I wanted to be, either. There are plenty of folks on the right who are as interested in a lockstep mentality as there are on the left, and nastiness abounds on both sides, so I’ve recently found myself stepping more and more toward the center and marching to my own drum.”
Andrew Sullivan went on a tear yesterday, and rightly so, on the subject of torture; two of the posts are here and here. Though these posts are not necessarily balanced in and of themselves, their passionate defense of the rule of law and decency serve to balance those arguments that attempt (wrongly) to condone, accept, or otherwise enable torture.
(At the risk of broken-recordness, my only point of difference with Sullivan on this subject is that I believe John McCain stood up to the Administration, more capably and more consistently, than he is given credit. Regardless, I do agree with Sullivan that, as a nation, we’ve generally failed on the subject of torture, and we must answer for it, as a nation.)
In an effort to shake up and wake up the party, Rick Moran continues his diatribe on the current state of the GOP.
Shay channels Colin Powell on the subject of affirmative action.
Cobb chimes in on behalf of non-experts everywhere who are still trying to make sense of the quagmire in (and debate over) Iraq.
Kevin Sullivan wrestles with the impact of simplistic (over-used and abused) labels on our public debates and policy.
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