Or not liberal. What makes one person drawn more to points of view that are considered liberal, and another "conservative". Is it an ongoing process for most people? I've seen conversion stories galore about reformed Republicans, but we know that not everyone changes.
So what is it? Most of us would never read a Coulter book, or if we did, nothing would change our minds in them. Conversely, most people who read Coulter seriously would never read a Franken book, or at least not with an open mind. Moreover, a much larger segment would never pick up either, preferring to remain in the mushy middle of ideologies.
Clearly, certain ideas will mesh with what we have as a worldview better than others. The ideas that I hold to be a given prevent me from taking in any ideas Coulter has as anything other than lies. I imagine the opposite is true for conservatives.
But is this entirely nature vs. nurture? Why are some people more logically drawn to one idea vs another? Why do some of us become avatars of change and hope, and others fear and the status quo? Clearly, something makes us better habitats for one meme-set or another. But what?
Is there really any room for free-will in this picture? Or is it just a series of experiences that if you go back far enough starts with one event that pushed us to one path or another?
I'm not looking for "I'm liberal because I'm smart" because we know there's plenty of smart conservatives. Nor am I looking for arguments about intellectual honesty, since we all know that alot of these same people actually believe what they are saying.
Any thoughts?