The Great Divide: Why Liberals And Conservatives Will Never, Ever Agree
by William D. Gairdner /
2015 / English / EPUB
11.1 MB Download
The theme of
The theme ofThe Great Divide
The Great Divide is that the populations of
the democratic world, from Boston to Berlin, Vancouver to Venice,
are becoming increasingly divided from within, due to a growing
ideological incompatibility between modern liberalism and
conservatism. This is partly due to a complex mutation in the
concept of liberal democracy itself, and the resulting divide is
now so wide that those holding to either philosophy on a whole
range of topics: on democracy, on reason, on abortion, on human
nature, on homosexuality and gay marriage, on freedom, on the
role of courts
and much more, can barely speak with each other
without outrage (the favorite emotional response from all sides).
Clearly, civil conversation at the surface has been failing --
and that could mean democracy is failing.
is that the populations of
the democratic world, from Boston to Berlin, Vancouver to Venice,
are becoming increasingly divided from within, due to a growing
ideological incompatibility between modern liberalism and
conservatism. This is partly due to a complex mutation in the
concept of liberal democracy itself, and the resulting divide is
now so wide that those holding to either philosophy on a whole
range of topics: on democracy, on reason, on abortion, on human
nature, on homosexuality and gay marriage, on freedom, on the
role of courts
and much more, can barely speak with each other
without outrage (the favorite emotional response from all sides).
Clearly, civil conversation at the surface has been failing --
and that could mean democracy is failing.
This book is an effort to deepen the conversation. It is written
for the non-specialist, and aims to reveal the less obvious
underlying ideological forces and misconceptions that cause the
conflict and outrage at the surface -- not with any expectation
the clash of values will evaporate, but rather that a deeper
understanding will generate a more intelligent and civil
conversation.
This book is an effort to deepen the conversation. It is written
for the non-specialist, and aims to reveal the less obvious
underlying ideological forces and misconceptions that cause the
conflict and outrage at the surface -- not with any expectation
the clash of values will evaporate, but rather that a deeper
understanding will generate a more intelligent and civil
conversation.
As an aid to understanding, the book contains a handful of Tables
directly comparing modern liberal and conservative views across a
range of fundamental moral and political issues” so that curious
readers can answer the book’s main question: Where Do You
Stand?” An interesting result in testing this exercise has been
the number of people who find they think” one way, but live”
another.
As an aid to understanding, the book contains a handful of Tables
directly comparing modern liberal and conservative views across a
range of fundamental moral and political issues” so that curious
readers can answer the book’s main question: Where Do You
Stand?” An interesting result in testing this exercise has been
the number of people who find they think” one way, but live”
another.