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Post by mickey mouse on Jun 10, 2017 16:53:37 GMT
1) Are you a conservative? dont know
2) Were you always a conservative, and if not, when did you become one? ive looked at all of them and i dont know yet
3) Are you a libertarian? ye in alot of ways free speech and other things decent rights but not overdoing it
4) on financial and banks ) i think we need to have more control over banking system terrorist banks should be outlawed from operating or dealing with irish citizens or on in the country overseas banks are allowed but money have to be disclosed and hidden banks and terorist banks are banned the central bank fully nationalised and scrapped have a basic banking system that cant be manipulated by big banks
5) Do you believe in God? Yep.
6) Do you belong to any organized religion? am catholic
7) Are you a nationalist? Ye in different ways.
9) Are you a monarchist? . ye theres lots of different option that can work constitutional momarchy or a monarchy that doesnt get invovled with politics or full on momarchy with integrated democratic system kings got rid off every once in a while and new person put in
10) Do you believe in the death penalty? No, bbut mabye for very bad crimes but im not sure.
11) Do you support Ireland leaving the E.U.? Ye eu is a good idea but its corrupt we could leave and be in a swizerland - norway state they have trade with the eu and other things but not a part of it or we could stay in the eu but have more control over what we do .
12) Are you opposed to abortion? ye its evil and murder .
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Jun 10, 2017 17:58:21 GMT
Welcome, Mickey Mouse!
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Post by dunsscotus on Jun 10, 2017 18:18:54 GMT
Thanks for that, duns scotus, and welcome! Yes, the idea of this thread was indeed to double up as an "introductions" thread, for those who wished it. Someone suggested we should have such a thread, but I worried that Irish people are far too retiring to go for such a thing! I particularly liked your description of your nationalism. Yes-- to me, the people is SO much more important than the state. Only this week, I was once again trying to read Marmion, but I find him incredibly dry. Thank you for the kind welcome! As you say the people are so much more important than the state. I also like to qualify my nationalism so because the state as I believe it should exist to serve the common good. But the reality we face, especially in Ireland, is that we have a state that of necessity has to serve multiple nations. The Irish (read Gaelic and Catholic) nation, the Ulster (read Protestant and Anglo-Scot) nation, and the various nations from around the world that have a home in Ireland (Poland, etc.). My first interest is the interests of my nation. And my second interest is justice which is supposed to be accomplished by the state in the pursuit of the common good for all of these nations. I'm a rather weird mixture of ethnic nationalist and multi-culturalist, ha! I understand what you mean about Dom Marmion. I discovered him after coming off of a spiritual binge consisting of the likes of Father Faber and the Franco-Italian devotional writers who perfumed their works like a wife would herself on her 25th wedding anniversary. I found his dryness to be exceptionally refreshing. I would urge you though, persevere. Take him a little bit at a time. But in all honesty he's the only writer I've found who has summed up the entire gospel message and presented the entire doctrine of the Church in such a clear and precise manner.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Jun 10, 2017 18:25:20 GMT
Well, I will, but I have already read two of his books (Christ in His Mysteries and Christ the Life of the Soul) as well as a biography. The dryness I can live with-- like C.S. Lewis, I find intellectual stimuli much more "devotional" than emotional stimuli-- but my general reaction to reading him is "tell me something I don't know already". I'm QUITE sure that this is simply my own loss, though-- that I'm missing the subtleties, or Marmion's reasons for reiterating something that seems obvious.
I was, however, profoundly moved and influenced by at least one of Marmion's suggestions-- that our entire day should be a preparation for the next Communion we make. (I forget how he put it exactly, but something like that).
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Post by dunsscotus on Jun 10, 2017 18:42:15 GMT
Well, I will, but I have already read two of his books (Christ in His Mysteries and Christ the Life of the Soul) as well as a biography. The dryness I can live with-- like C.S. Lewis, I find intellectual stimuli much more "devotional" than emotional stimuli-- but my general reaction to reading him is "tell me something I don't know already". I'm QUITE sure that this is simply my own loss, though-- that I'm missing the subtleties, or Marmion's reasons for reiterating something that seems obvious. I was, however, profoundly moved and influenced by at least one of Marmion's suggestions-- that our entire day should be a preparation for the next Communion we make. (I forget how he put it exactly, but something like that). When I discovered Dom Marmion he filled a void in my understanding of the faith. For me it was more "oooooh, didn't know that, incredible!" I don't think you're missing any subtle greatness. I have never really found him to deal in subtleties unlike my username's namesake. I think you've simply been blessed with an understanding of what he has to say before having picked up one of his books. After all, he is simply presenting the basic message of the gospels. I'm also a tad Benedictine at heart...
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Post by ZenoOfCitium on Jul 29, 2017 14:41:52 GMT
1) Are you a conservative? Yes
2) Were you always a conservative, and if not, when did you become one? I was a liberal, very much in the mode of JS Mill and even Berlin. I found as the years rolled by that I was getting increasingly alarmed by the intransigence and intolerance of fellow liberals and progressives and found myself sharing one side of the battle field with conservatives essentially arguing for customary liberties. Started reading conservative writers and was taken by the disposition rather than signing up for a list of positions. And then there was the impact of Kenneth Clark's 'Civilisation'.
3) Are you a libertarian? No, but I certainly prefer political arguments to be grounded in appeals to liberty rather than equality.
4) Are you a fiscal conservative? Depends - I believe in social spending but I'm a Keynesian in good times and bad: as in during times of growth the State should run surpluses.
5) Do you believe in God? Yes.
6) Do you belong to any organized religion? Yes, Roman Catholicism.
7) Are you a nationalist? Yes, I believe that a people have a right to political self-determination and to secure their customs, language, and traditions.
8) Are you a democrat? Yes, but I do not believe direct democracy to be prudent.
9) Are you a monarchist? I believe that where monarchies exist they should be retained as constitutional monarchists or converted to same, but I think it would be difficult to establish one.
10) Do you believe in the death penalty? No. I certainly think that some people deserve to die, but I think we do not have the right to kill them. There is also the difficulty of an innocent being executed. Finally, I just find the idea of killing someone in cold-blood emotionally distasteful.
11) Do you support Ireland leaving the E.U.? Yes. As this point yes as I think the centralising tendencies of power will draw power towards Brussels and I value our own sovereignty. Preference would be to strip back the EU to a trading block but that seems unlikely.
12) Are you opposed to abortion? Yes.
13) What writers and thinkers have influenced you the most? St Benedict, St Augustine, St Thomas Aquinas, Aristotle, the Stoics, Roger Scruton, and many others.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Jul 29, 2017 14:53:06 GMT
Finally, I just find the idea of killing someone in cold-blood emotionally distasteful. Me too. I've found Edward Feser's arguments quite persuasive, but that emotional reaction is still there.
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Post by Stephen on Sept 19, 2017 20:16:57 GMT
I just updated the Survey. It's funny how your beliefs change.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Sept 19, 2017 20:59:12 GMT
Indeed-- I believed some crazy things in the past. (Secular liberals would say I believe some crazy things now...)
I used to be a socialist, although in my defence I was never a Marxist.
Funny, today I was wondering if I should un-pin this thread. I guess I'll leave it up for now.
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Post by optatuscleary on Jan 10, 2018 20:47:10 GMT
This is a great thread. Being new to this forum (I found Maolsheachlann’s blog the other day and just had to join the discussion) this thread helps me get a handle on all the participants’ points of view. It’s a great introduction.
1) Are you a conservative? I used to call myself this more often than I do now. I am definitely a traditionalist and that makes me conservative by some definitions. But there isn’t much left in the modern world to “conserve.”
2) Were you always a conservative, and if not, when did you become one? From the day I was born. As a child I wanted to do everything old and traditional. I didn’t get introduced to political conservatism until later...I grew up in California’s Bay Area, a notoriously left-wing place, and I was inspired by my teachers’ radical leftism and my parents’ vague social conservatism to research and learn more.
3) Are you a libertarian? In a “distrustful of the government” sense?Yes. In a “the government must never intervene” sense? No.
4) Are you a fiscal conservative? I’m a pragmatist when it comes to economics. I am annoyed by left-wing arguments because they always seem envious, but I can be convinced that government spending is sometimes beneficial.
5) Do you believe in God? I was raised as an atheist, and converted as an adult. I believe in God, but feeling that there is a God is another matter.
6) Do you belong to any organized religion? I’m a traditional Catholic. I split my time between the Traditional Latin Mass and the Byzantine Divine Liturgy.
7) Are you a nationalist? As an American, I can’t be a “nationalist” in an American context. I don’t know what that would even mean. I have no real identification with the America that was before my ancestors got here in the early 20th century. I am reasonably patriotic, celebrate the 4th of July, etc., but I can’t really point to an American “nation.”
Outside of an American context, I have to say I am emotionally and aesthetically nationalist, but not necessarily politically. Being of Irish descent, and raised listening to Irish music, I have a strong affinity for the ideas and “feeling” of Irish nationalism. I visited Ireland in 2016 and was surprised by how emotionally affected I was by the centenary, especially when I toured Kilmainham Gaol. However, in a historical context I recognize that multi-national empires, like Rome, have worked as well.
It seems to me that some nations, such as the Irish, have a state ostensibly for themselves. Others, like the Hawaiians, are part of a larger state. And some, like the Basques, are split between multiple states (and America might be conceived as the gigantic middle of a Venn Diagram of nations). I’m not convinced that every recognizable people must have it’s own government, but I am convinced that peoples, as peoples, have an identity and at least sometimes a national will.
8) Are you a democrat? Well, unless a leader is willing to kill everybody he has to have some support from the people. But I don’t trust the “wisdom of the majority.” I think democracy is sometimes a good way to make decisions, but only if both outcomes are acceptable.
9) Are you a monarchist? To an extent. I actually think the old Irish system of a high king with loose authority over other more local kings could provide an almost perfect model of subsidiarity.
10) Do you believe in the death penalty? I don’t want anyone to be executed, but I do think some people deserve to die. I prefer to see the abolition of the death penalty as mercy than the death penalty as unjust.
11) Do you support Ireland leaving the E.U.? I don’t know what to make of the E.U. It seems like a terrible intrusion on national sovereignty to me. However, some form of lasting peace treaty and common market seems advisable.
12) Are you opposed to abortion? Yes. And from my experience as a pro-life American, I would say that once it is legal it would be nearly impossible to restrict again. I pray that Ireland doesn’t legalize it.
13) What writers and thinkers have influenced you the most? St. Augustine of Hippo (and by extension, St. Optatus, the source of mv pseudonym), J.R.R. Tolkien, G.K. Chesterton, Walker Percy, etc.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Jan 10, 2018 21:39:45 GMT
This is a great thread. Being new to this forum (I found Maolsheachlann’s blog the other day and just had to join the discussion) this thread helps me get a handle on all the participants’ points of view. It’s a great introduction. Thanks for reviving it....it's languished a while, despite being a sticky!! I think you've managed to express my own view on the death penalty, by the way. I am reluctant to yield the principle, and yet I have no appetite to see it applied. I'd never heard of St. Optatus!!
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Post by Stephen on Jun 7, 2018 21:02:10 GMT
I love looking back at this post and updating. 😀
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Post by Youngdan on Aug 5, 2018 5:16:27 GMT
Best of luck here lads
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Post by shillelagh1212 on Oct 11, 2018 14:15:47 GMT
1) Are you a conservative? Yes.
2) Were you always a conservative, and if not, when did you become one? Yes.
3) Are you a libertarian? Yes.
4) Are you a fiscal conservative? Yes.
5) Do you believe in God? Yes.
6) Do you belong to any organized religion? Yes. I am a Southern Baptist.
7) Are you a nationalist? Yes.
8) Are you a democrat? Yes.
9) Are you a monarchist? No.
10) Do you believe in the death penalty? Yes.
11) Do you support Ireland leaving the E.U.? Yes.
12) Are you opposed to abortion? Yes. In all cases.
13) What writers and thinkers have influenced you the most? Ravi Zacharias, C.S. Lewis, Jordan Peterson
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Post by anonymous on Oct 13, 2018 5:20:25 GMT
1) br] 5) Do you believe in God? Yes. 6) Do you belong to any organized religion? Yes. I am a Southern Baptist. 7) . 12) Are you opposed to abortion? Yes. In all cases. We seem to be largely reading from the same page, thanks for that testimony
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