By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close
curl-6 on 08 April 2024
Edit Thread
Ryuu96 said:
curl-6 said:

Nah, as a centrist I feel like this take mostly comes from the fact that with society so polarized, at least in America, people tend to instantly lump you in with the "other side" if you don't entirely align with their views. "You're either with me or you're my enemy" basically.

Granted there will always be bad faith actors who will use it as a smokescreen, they do exist, but don't make the mistake of assuming this is the case. Believe it or not, there are people who genuinely find both sides too extreme.

I lean more towards Pi-Guy's view from what I've seen, I wouldn't say it's all of them obviously, there are quite clearly some actual centrist but I've seen a lot of people who claim to be "centre" but dig deeper and they're full with right wing beliefs, I see a lot of people who claim they're centre but still vote Donald Trump cause "Dems bad" and I'm sorry you aren't centre if you're voting Trump, Lol.

I believe a lot of them Trump voters claim they're centre because they're deep down ashamed of some of their beliefs and then some of them pretend to be centre because they believe it makes them look more intelligent than those on the right or left, they will claim that they know better simply because they're centrist, that left and right are both bad and they're very smart for being in the middle.

Then there's people who pretend they're centrist to look unbiased but only ever criticise the left like Elon Musk, he is the perfect example of someone pretending to be centre but only ever parrots right wing talking points and only ever criticises the left wing. But there are a lot of legit centrists too and it depends on what country you're from I think, I think this "right wing pretending to be centrist" thing is more common in America.

Maybe it's more an American thing, as I'm not from the US. And yeah there are definitely those who think they're superior cos they're centrist, I won't lie about that. I personally don't consider myself to be any smarter or better than those who lean right or left. 

the-pi-guy said:
curl-6 said:

Nah, as a centrist I feel like this take mostly comes from the fact that with society so polarized, at least in America, people tend to instantly lump you in with the "other side" if you don't entirely align with their views. "You're either with me or you're my enemy" basically.

Granted there will always be bad faith actors who will use it as a smokescreen, they do exist, but don't make the mistake of assuming this is the case. Believe it or not, there are people who genuinely find both sides too extreme.

To be clear about a few things.

I didn't say "that's what centrism means" or "every centrist is actually a right winger" or anything quite as definitive as that. 99% is a bit of an exaggeration, but it's a frequent problem. Either in calling themselves centrist and yet not actually believing an centrist viewpoints or they'll deride both sides, while strongly advocating for a particular side. 

This isn't to say there aren't centrists or anything like that. But I think frequently actual centrists don't actually call themselves "centrist". 

There's a difference between someone using the label and someone actually being that thing.

Why do you think of yourself as a centrist? What do left and right wing mean to you? 

I think of myself as a centrist because while my position on most things leans left (reproductive rights, science, equal rights, etc) the current left feels to me toxic and hateful. They seem to think the solution to certain groups being discriminated against or disadvantaged is to redirect that hate at other people instead of ending it, like being openly and even proudly racist against white people, sexist against men, etc.

As someone who was born (mostly) white, male, and straight, I just got tired of my "own side" treating me like I was evil just for being born this way, and that I had to spend my entire life apologizing for my existence and hearing myself constantly demeaned.

It was hard to really feel like I was part of the left when the left openly treated me like the enemy.

What passes for "left" nowadays just isn't what I believe in.

Last edited by curl-6 - on 09 April 2024