Republican/Democrat, Liberal Vs. Conservative - Is a relationship possible

Curious to hear horror stories or success stories of intelligent individuals that differed on political topics. Guys (I think!!) more than women tend to be more agressive toward their beliefs and "push" them onto their SO. What are your stories and feelings?

Edit: I'm a liberal :)

i couldn't be with someone who's a social conservative.  fiscal conservative, maybe, but not a social conservative.  i'd strangle him in his sleep.

you my friend, are ASKING for it with this topic.

Original Post by tblover900:

you my friend, are ASKING for it with this topic.

Who? Me? *blink* I'm as innocent as Mother Theresa.

Dorothy Mantooth is a saint!

Original Post by kkempinski:

Original Post by tblover900:

you my friend, are ASKING for it with this topic.

Who? Me? *blink* I'm as innocent as Mother Theresa.

Dorothy Mantooth is a saint!

 ha!

well when hell breaks loose, dont say i didn't warn you.

Original Post by tblover900:

Original Post by kkempinski:

Original Post by tblover900:

you my friend, are ASKING for it with this topic.

Who? Me? *blink* I'm as innocent as Mother Theresa.

Dorothy Mantooth is a saint!

 ha!

well when hell breaks loose, dont say i didn't warn you.

I'm a talented arsonist, once the topic is ablaze, let the bitch burn.

I'm a little more liberal, he's a little more conservative. Hooray

Original Post by pgeorgian:

i couldn't be with someone who's a social conservative.  fiscal conservative, maybe, but not a social conservative.  i'd strangle him in his sleep.

OMG that is so true for me as well. My SO at times will surprise me with some social conservative bullcrap, but then when I get him to think about what he's actually saying and what it implies, he usually agrees that I have a point. I think he tends to knee-jerk react to the conservative side before really thinking the whole thing through.

One of his friends though is so socially conservative it makes me want to puke. I'd definitely strangle him in his sleep.

When we first met, my husband was an activist libertarian and I was an enviro-green-liberal.  He wanted to go work on Wall Street and I wanted to go work in Alaska.

Many interesting conversations later, he has convinced me that the free market works and I have convinced him (mostly) that the government has a legitimate role in protecting the people from externalities and monopolies that distort the market.

These days I am more the libertarian and he is more straight conservative.  We have very different ideas on war and the MIC.  We have completely different tastes in our news sources and op-eds (I like Andrew Sullivan and Matt Drudge; he likes Hannity and Limbaugh).

Overall, I'd say I'm a more independent thinker than he is; he will tend to get caught up in the fad of the moment (like the stupid birth certificate).  Which is not to say I didn't have some interest in the "did sarah palin really give birth to trig" debate ... (seriously, folks, does that look like a woman who gave birth to a 6 pound baby three weeks later?)

Anyways, yes, it can work if you both have an open mind and don't take different opinions personally.

It'd require a desire to compromise.

If you're talking about conservatives before the day of Barry Goldwater, the ones who could 'agree to disagree' and didn't equate volume to rightness, then I'd say sure. Allegedly there's still some out there, these near mythical "thinking conservatives", so it's at least theoretically possible.

The bulk of conservatives today, the ones who just shout "no" as loud as they can to anything they don't like, and then reach for guns when people shout back... I'd say probably not. There's no interest or desire for compromise, no interest in finding a middle ground. It's all or nothing.

That said, I'm sure some conservative chick could be useful in my bed. I'd just have to find something to put in her mouth for the duration.

Original Post by kassanovella:

I'm a little more liberal, he's a little more conservative. Hooray

Ditto.  I classify myself as an Independent and he is a staunch Republican.  I think we work because a lot of our views are similar enough and we both have the ability to respect each other's position (even though we may disagree w/it)because we respect each other as people.

i dont fit neatly into any political category and i dont spend much time thinking about political issues. neither am i interested in debating what viewpoint i do have, i'll throw it out there but thats about it.

bf considers himself an anarchist and couldnt give a flying flip. politics never come up. VERY COMPATIBLE :)

EDIT: for the record, i do vote to set a good example for my kids. i voted for obama in the dem primary and voted libertarian in the election. you figure it out. heh.

Me and a Republican?  What?  Uh-uh, not in this lifetime.  I think men tend to mind less about what their SO's political agenda is because, by and large, they do not want us for our minds.  Lets face it, the female mind terrifies the average male. IMO, the male personality who is attracted to conservative politics does not respect a woman with my intellect and empathic ability.  It would never work.  Also, I tend to find politically-conservatives to be a bit less evolved all the way around.  So no, it would never work. 

Before I met my hub on Match.com I made it very clear that I was an enviro-activist.  Apparently it wasn't enough to ward-off the conservative men requesting contact with me.  So I changed my profile to say that I am a Full-Time activist and that it is a vital part of my core-values.  I went on to explain further that because this is such a large part of who I am as a person, a politically-conservative man pursuing me is insulting to me and shows what little regard he has for his own politics.  The requests did not even slow a little!  I was still getting 50 requests a day from guys who probably didn't even read what I wrote. 

Its not that I cannot abide someone with a different view than my own.  Having freinds with different views enriches my own perspective.  But I would never shack-up with someone who didn't respect my core-values and share them. 

Original Post by pgeorgian:

i couldn't be with someone who's a social conservative.  fiscal conservative, maybe, but not a social conservative.  i'd strangle him in his sleep.

Agreed. I have friends who are socially conservative but we rarely talked during the campaigning/election time because inevitably politics would come up and we're start fighting about abortion or gay rights. For dating/marriage, the person would have to be socially liberal. 

Original Post by alibsam:

Original Post by pgeorgian:

i couldn't be with someone who's a social conservative.  fiscal conservative, maybe, but not a social conservative.  i'd strangle him in his sleep.

Agreed. I have friends who are socially conservative but we rarely talked during the campaigning/election time because inevitably politics would come up and we're start fighting about abortion or gay rights. For dating/marriage, the person would have to be socially liberal. 

Yup. I'm liberal and my boyfriend is socially liberal but leaning towards fiscal conservatism. Anyone who was against the rights of women, gays, whoever - well, that would be a total deal-breaker. Disagreeing on the minimum wage level or prison funding; that I can handle. After all, I don't need or want someone who agrees on every point with me. We wouldn't have any fun debates!

When my husband and I met, we were pretty darn conservative.  As we get older, we tend to lean more and more toward the middle, especially in regards to some social issues.  I have friends who are very hardcore liberals and we get along just fine....but that's because we all respect each others opinions and I prefer to be friends with people who can discuss our differences in a rational way.  Not sure if I could ever marry one though.  And it's not because i'd be afraid that he'd vote differently than I would.  It's more because there is a certain way that I would choose to raise my family, and I'm not sure if that would mesh well with a very right winged liberal. 

So I guess what I'm saying is that if I was still looking for a mate, I don't think I'd focus so much on what party the person associated themselves with.  I'd focus more on how they choose to lead their own lives and whether that would mesh with mine.

Original Post by watergirl:

bf considers himself an anarchist

Woohoo! for anarchists!  :)

Hard-core lib here, married to a woman whose political view is "who cares?"

It drove me crazy when we were dating, but I've learned to live with it.  I still think people who are completely non-political are why we have so many problems, but I've least got her voting on things she cares about.

Now, I could not have fallen for a modern Hannity-Limbaugh conservative; particularly while I'm living in Arizona.  Such a red state means I have to listen to rabid, demeaning diatribes against anyone left of mild right on a daily basis.

If I had to listen to the hate at home, I'd be divorced in a month.

I don't even know what I am and both my husband and I aren't really into politics to begin with, whatever I am, he happens to be too.

Original Post by cptbunny:

I don't even know what I am and both my husband and I aren't really into politics to begin with, whatever I am, he happens to be too.

'bunny, you're liberal.  trust me.

Original Post by peaches0405:

When my husband and I met, we were pretty darn conservative.  As we get older, we tend to lean more and more toward the middle, especially in regards to some social issues.  I have friends who are very hardcore liberals and we get along just fine....but that's because we all respect each others opinions and I prefer to be friends with people who can discuss our differences in a rational way.  Not sure if I could ever marry one though.  And it's not because i'd be afraid that he'd vote differently than I would.  It's more because there is a certain way that I would choose to raise my family, and I'm not sure if that would mesh well with a very right winged liberal. 

So I guess what I'm saying is that if I was still looking for a mate, I don't think I'd focus so much on what party the person associated themselves with.  I'd focus more on how they choose to lead their own lives and whether that would mesh with mine.

you need to be able to go home with your partner and talk about how your conservative friends have got it so wrong.

but for the record, peaches, you're still pretty darned conservative.  if you were more conservative before, i'm glad i didn't know you then.