In case Solomon didn't share this... Reaching for a Name for the Groundswell Against the Two Major Parties – Centrists, Moderates, Indepe http://riseofthecenter.com/2011/12/29/reaching-for-a-name-for-the-groundswell-against-the-two-major-parties-centrists-moderates-independents-etc/
It’s easy to identify a partisan. By its very definition, a partisan is one who is in alignment with a cohort of similarly minded individuals with the purpose of aggregating a common identity. It is easier still to identify a (big ‘R’) Republican; the party membership in its current state has been so kind as to formulate ‘litmus tests’ on all the issues important to the party faithful for just that assessment. A (big ‘D’) Democrat is a bit trickier to identify, in that many do not even consider the President from their own party to be a true Democrat, but suffice it to say they all wear ties of a similar color. Sol’s Unscientific Bell Curve of the American Political Spectrum But what are we, we faithful readers and contributors of blogs and forums like Rise of the Center? We describe ourselves in very abstract terms as non-partisan and the politically-homeless, to more specific labels such as moderates, centrists and independents. Some of us have foregone the concept of labels entirely. And yet we seek to forge an identity of the unidentifiable to combat the excesses of partisanship on the political stage of our Republic. How does one name the nameless? Indeed, it would seem that it is partially the very absence of a common identity as an organizing movement that limits our capacity to match the partisan machine. Let’s focus for a moment on moderates, centrists and independents; what they are and what their key differences are. The term moderate implies moderation; the avoidance of excess or extremes. I believe it is safe to define a moderate in a partisan context as a partisan with moderate partisan behavior. More specifically, these are likely individuals subscribing to partisan alignment (Republicans and Democrats), but who work to curb excessive partisan behavior within and between their respective parties. They are likely to be at the van of bipartisan compromise. Centrism implies a disposition towards a center-point between the two polar ends of the political spectral dichotomy. Between the Left and the Right lies a Center. I believe there is a strong case to be made that a centrist exists outside of partisan extents. If a centrist were merely a partisan with a centrist orientation, the label of moderate would suffice and negate the need for a centrist label in the first place. The Center, for me, represents the best candidate for a new point of unique identity within the political spectrum. The Center can be a point between Left and Right that is uniquely neither, that moderates can aspire to, and that centrists can occupy. This brings up several semantic questions, such as whether this forms a third partisan entity, or some form of non-entity. Is it non-partisan, or is it something more? Independence is defined as an absence of dependence. In a political context this can be thought to imply an absence of dependence on partisan alignment. If one is seeking true non-partisan identity, independence is perhaps the ultimate declaration of such sentiment. Within the realm of political theatre, independents are most decidedly not moderates, but in terms of definition what is their relation to centrists? Independents are clearly more non-partisan than centrists, but where does this leave centrists, who we have already identified as not merely being moderate partisans? There is a concept called transpartisan, which I can describe no better than my dictionary can: “Transpartisanship represents an emerging field in political thought distinct from bipartisanship, which aims to negotiate between “right” and “left,” resulting in a dualistic perspective, and nonpartisanship, which tends to avoid political affiliation altogether. Rather, transpartisanship acknowledges the validity of truths across a range of political perspectives and seeks to synthesize them into an inclusive, pragmatic container beyond typical political dualities.” So perhaps the center offers to serve two functions: providing both a bastion for moderates and a caucus for independents, as well as serving as the van in a revolution against partisanship itself by leading a transpartisan approach. I believe ‘pragmatic’ is a key word in the above definition, as Pragmatism (which is a topic for another discussion, but can be read about at places such as http://thepragmaticcenter.com, and in future posts) potentially represents a new political philosophy to transcend Progressivism and Conservatism; a political philosophy that can illuminate the aspirations of moderates, centrists and independents alike. Pragmatism might serve as the means to transcend partisanship. Moderates can work towards this aim through bipartisanship and by seeking to moderate hyperpartisanship within their parties, independents can work towards this aim by creating a distinct counterpoint independent of partisanship through dealignment from the partisan system altogether, and centrists can seek to pioneer a Pragmatic transpartisan frontier from the center point between the partisan poles. These definitions are neither thoroughly descriptive nor truly definitive, nor should any of us seek to impose upon ourselves such rigid structures lest we defeat our entire purpose. But perhaps they can lend a sense of structure to our collection of political identities and thereby our roles in our mutual endeavor. The centrist discourse should not merely be a podium for a slightly more polite form of bantering between moderate partisans. We bear no partisan standard to move along the shifting lines of the political battlefield, but rather we should seek to transform the very nature of the battlefield itself until there is no battle to be fought at all. (via Instapaper) Sent from my iPad -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org
