Disillusionment

Since I started the Conservatism-lite side of my blogging I have become quite disillusioned with politics and the people who like to get down in the trenches and fight about politics. Both liberal and conservative sides have their pundits and their quips and their talking points, but very few people seem to get anything done. We humans like to demonize each other and take sides in everything, like it's all a big college football match. But the goal isn't just some plastic and metal monstrosity, it's a total moral victory over the other side. Nobody has that, morality and it's ilk are just too complicated.

I have grown to really respect some of my sources. The professional side holds the Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times. At least they give a good balance to things. Although I do read the Washington Post online too for a slant from "the other side". On the blogging side I've really grown to like Evan Malony over at Brain Terminal. I like his slightly sarcastic sense of humor, his willingness to be self-deprecating and his clear style of writing. He seems like a good guy to have ferreting out the facts. And I hope he takes his shirt off in his next movie.

I also like to read the Drudge Report in the mornings. Drudge has a lot of headlines up and he updates almost constantly. You really feel like you're in the know when you read him, and he highlights things that the conventional media doesn't always cover visably. Granted he only uses conventional sources, but you don't have to wade through all points of his site to get at what he feels is important. Drudge is right there and in your face.

These days I really have a hard time calling myself any kind of political ideology. I am not sure what liberal and conservative mean anymore. I fall towards some hot points on the liberal agenda and some on the conservative adgenda. Although I do have to admit that I listen to Air America, and they are terribly biased and very contentless. When I listened the last time it was like being in high school again and listening to people rip on each other. Very harsh. I find Hannity and Rush irritating sometimes but they got nothing on the AA people.

My next projects are going to be focusing on economics and recent political history. I want to feel like my own point of view on current events is based on more fact and solid evidence.

The Euro

I think a lot about the EU and the Euro. I know that sounds strange being that I live in Japan, but I always thing about the pound sterling when I write up my international travel lesson. Is England smart for not jumping into the Euro? With all the former soveit block countries clamouring to get into the EU, is the Euro in danger of instability? That was the view of one of the German guys I shared a hostel room with in Australia (along with a friend of mine, so don't get any ideas). He seemed like an intelligent guy and had a lot of informed opinions about the world. Plus he avoided bashing America to me, and thus makes up for a lot of the people I've ment on the JET program.