duretti

The issues on which the democrats and republicans are so fiercely divided are red herrings with very little to do with the left-right divide (abortion, gay marriage, gun control etc)

On the issues of foreign and economic policy which separate left from right, america is essentially a one party state. The democrats time and again preside over very little government spending (with the exception of the military budget) just like the republicans. Foreign policy is distinguishable only by the associated rhetoric. Compared to the rest of the developed world, or the wishes of the US population as expressed in polls, the democrats are for extreemely little welfare and massive military spending.

More extreme examples?

How about not invading iraq (the invasion considered a mistake by polled majorities)? Kerry said he would have invaded "whether sadam had WMD or not".

How about universal healthcare (supported by polled majorities in the USA, and supported by the *conservatives* throughout europe)? According to the democrats, this is "politically impossible". Ditto to most other forms of welfare seen in the rest of the developed world.

How about a minimum wage (or any other form of worker protection) comparable to those seen in europe? The democrats have never raised it to remotely comparable levels.

How about not doing 50% of the worlds military spending (again supported in polls), and spending a % of the GDP on education comparable to other developed nations?

--- ad nauseam




Of course, these are all just examples of welfare liberalism, not strictly anything leftwing. For the democrats to become leftists, they are going to have to start opposing private ownership of the means of production.

Inuyasha

Here is a good simple primer on American politics from the centrists point of view. Click the linl at the bottom of the page for more views on centrists.

Centrism and Political Moderates



Snippet:
So the Democrats aren't really left-wing?
Because the Republican Party has moved so far to the right, the Democrats seem left-wing, but in fact many Democrats are traditional centrists. The kind of Marxist leftists we have today proclaim themselves anarchists. They desire revolution. The mainstream television news media, however, largely ignore this movement and focus instead of the drama of Democrats versus Republicans--especially when it comes to issues central to the so-called "culture war" (gay rights, abortion, gun control, etc.) being waged in the United States. These "wars" have polarized the two parties like never before. In such a vitriolic environment, political centrism is more than just a position: it is the tie that binds.

__________________
from life i have learned:
My greatest teachers have been my own failures.
Ignorance is often the mother of valor.

from my military service:
Once you have pulled the pin, Mr Grenade is not your friend.

DeeJayH

where to start

cant say your post has justified your claim
sorry

__________________
These days it seems that the deadliest place on earth for an American to be is inside the womb. - Joshua P. Allem