Good Reading: Why People Vote Republican
September 17th, 2008
There’s a great, albeit long, piece over at Edge.com entitled Why People Vote Republican. It is actually a group of essays on the topic, by experts from across the social and political spectrum. There’s plenty of good stuff in there. Our conservative readership is likely to be turned off by the unabashedly liberal tone of the introduction — something the author recognizes and admits — but I encourage them to push through and keep reading. There’s plenty to piss off the liberals in the response essays. Even the Corner’s John Derbyshire had positive things to say about it:
Psychologist Jonathan Haidt has a long piece titled “What Makes People Vote Republican” on Edge.org. Don’t be put off by the whiffs of liberal-intellectual snobbery in Haidt’s opening remarks. He has interesting things to say; and the follow-up discussion is very good.
Derbyshire also notes what I think is the Quote of the Day from one of the response essays, from Roger Schank:
The Haidt article is interesting, as are the responses to it, but these pieces are written by intellectuals who live in an environment where reasoned argument is prized. I live in Florida.
You should read the whole thing, but as I said, it’s long, so as Uncle would say, pack a lunch. For the time-challenged, a few tastes of the various essays are below the fold.
Categories: Politics, Weekend Flame Bait | 1 Comment
