#874 Right Left

If you have a friend who’s on the opposite side of the political spectrum from you and have been trying to bring him around for years there’s good news.
Give up.
It ain’t possible—conservatives and liberals see the world differently, on a genetic level. It’s hard wired. At least as long as we label conservatism and liberalism the way we do.
Not too long ago scientists demonstrated conservatives tend to see the world in absolutes, everything black and white. Liberals tend to see shades of gray, situational circumstances that may mitigate a state of affairs one way or the other depending on varying qualities.
That last description would drive a conservative crazy.
But University of Nebraska researchers have found another way the two types differ. Conservatives have more fear.
The researchers first surveyed a group of people about their opinions on capital punishment, government spending, the Iraq war, gay marriage, foreign aid—all hot button issues. That determined whom to call what.
They then exposed the people to a series of startling images, like a face covered in blood or a disgustingly gross fleshy wound with worms crawling in it.
Conservatives, as defined by the issue survey, had much stronger physiological responses, more sweating, eye-blinking, and so on. Liberals’ reactions were more relaxed. They didn’t perceive the same level of threat.
All that certainly makes sense for the survival of the species, or at least the tribe. You got to have a group of people who are more paranoid and a group who are more laid back. You can’t go running every time a coyote howls.
Or as the conservative might say, you have to have a group who is more alert rather than more complacent. Because sometimes the coyotes are closer than you think.
It takes two to march ahead—right, left, right, left...
Politics is like food. One man’s delicate aged meat is another man’s putrid poison.
So love your conservative friend anyway, he has pretty good qualities most of the time.
And if you’re a conservative, love your liberal, even if he is absolutely crazy.
America, ya gotta love it.