apolitical people

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Is anyone else apolitical? Does anyone else avoid the election-related news because they just cannot make themselves care? Does anyone else balk at the question "are you a Democrat or a Republican?" Does being apolitical reflect negatively on one's character?

I hope not. I would rather loaf about and read obscure German writers.

I am actually political and apolitical a little. My last political stance was market anarchism but I recognized that my ethical reason for supporting any political system had flaws.... so, yeah, I like political theory but I have no suggestions. Being apolitical does not reflect negatively on one's character, but actually just reveals what that character is. Is it any more or less moral for one to be political?

Do you mean literature or what fields of German writing?

Erwin Romel was apolitical at a time and place when it wasn't so smart to be so.

To answer your question, it would have to depend on the circumstances.

don't care about politics

Obscure German literature. I love Gunter Grass!

In a discussion of apoliticality, the Nazi situation will almost always come up. If ever a situation in the U.S. became that morally obvious (let's hope never), I would be happy to play resistance for a while. However, I really do not care who controls the house. It does not seem so urgent.

Cool, everybody should like something.

Right, the Nazi situation is rather unfair as very rarely are parties so far from the center that they would seem evil to us. Honestly, there is little reason to care much about politics as an individual rarely has the power to change the outcome of an election. Voting has the high cost of informing oneself and a low benefit for that cost.

I agree. I don't agree with people who say it's a civic duty to always vote. I never understood the logic of that. If you don't have enough information or don't have a strong stance it doesn't make sense to vote. An uninformed vote is worse than no vote in my mind.

Perhaps these attributes express the utmost respect for true, meaningful politicism?

I would say I am am conservative but not Republican.

There is actually very little difference betweek Democrats and Republican. They agree in 86 percent issues. Their is more difference on the type of people who vote for the different parties however.

I would not call Gunter Grass obscure - he is one of the best known German authors of the last several decades. Nor would I call Herman Hesse, Thomas Mann, Bertolt Brecht or Goethe obscure.

Morally obvious is in the eyes of the beholder, and for those who are apolitical and merely concerned with going about their lives, the obvious may be quite hidden. As for today, if your country was invading other countries on false pretenses and involved in widespread torturing of people, would that be an obvious clue that things had gone off track? Or if there was widespread unconstitutional surveillance of the populace?

No one I have met has heard of Gunter Grass. He is one of the best known German writers, but apparently not in the US.

You make a good point about the eye of the beholder. However, I am quite sick of people thinking that I lack "passion" because I don't march for the rights of animals or fetuses or women or whatever (apparently, autism rights advocacy is not mainstream enough to count). It is quite aspergian of me; I prefer to be the separate and impartial observer.

I guess I grew up in a German area of the country, took German in high school and college, and hung out with an Aspie/Aspie friendly crowd that was into that kind of literature. Good stuff. But can it compete with Jerry Springer and the WWF? Maybe not.

I get annoyed at anything that reflects the "herd mentality." Politics, sports, ummm.....95% of the population!

I've always thought that we need a voting system that actually shows how much you care about a vote - for example, by giving you 100% of a vote and letting you split it up however you want (equal shares to each party, all of your vote to one party, or slightly favouring one party over the others).

exactly, i see no difference between the two parties, this is where american democracy fails. whomever can raise enough money to get to the presidential race is eligible for president, and its always the same people again and again. it will be this way until the government is overthrown or the US is openly ran by corporations instead of just heavily influenced by them like it is now. this is why i only really participate in voting on local matters

I agree honestly I think the only thing that could get me into politics if it goes back to being about values that are important to you and less about being one of the people that are like Bush's Policies because I'm a republician senator/presidential cnaidate/ etc and more that oh this is what I believe in. I don't care about party I have things I believe in and I want to make them happen and if you want me to do my best to make these values that are important to you as part of the process then vote for me. I don't see it happening too sooon but I can always hope.