Political Extremism

[Bryan Hancock]

Political extremism involves two prime ingredients: an excessively simple diagnosis of the world's ills, and a conviction that there are identifiable villains back of it all. ~John W. Gardner

I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!
~Barry Goldwater

Which do you agree with? It seems to me that MOST people that are strident supporters of one position or another subscribe to Goldwater's philosophy. The majority of people lie closer to the middle of the spectrum though and are less vocal.

It seems that we have an overly-simplified view of the world today IMO. Talk shows reduce all political discourse to the least common denominator on both sides of the isle. What happened to reasoned discourse and disagreement?

[Timothy W.]

I know of a couple hundred thousand men and women getting shot at in the defense of our political system. That's extreme.

Tom, as you are a retired soldier, I'd like to thank you for being one of those people willing to face the fire and put your life on the line in defense of this political system.