Oddbean

@c721880c I probably guess that the people you'd survey would look more centrist than they actually are, actually. It seems like western society discourages political positions that deviate from the current model of neoliberal democracy. Most of the left supports stronger welfare and sometimes social democracy (at most, democratic socialism), which keeps the current system of capitalism (eww). Most of the right supports economic conservatism and western traditional morals, but not so much where they'd look like Anti-American Nazis or actually build a free market (which is still highly, highly flawed but it lets small businesses have a small chance of defeating the same companies that are paying the government). I wouldn't call this system good. Even though it discourages violent ideologies like Nazism and religious nationalism, it also cuts out conversation surrounding important ideas further from the center. We should listen to the successes of the Second World, or the merits of anarchism (even as a flawed ideology). It'd at least let us compare it to the current system to let us see how it can be improved.