What is worth your anger?

older rude people that try to push in front of little uns (children) in a que !

I abhor extremism whether political or religious - and the two often go together. Have you noticed that extremists almost always have a sense of humour by-pass? Wasn't that the message of 'The Name of the Rose'?

Hypocrites
Smugness
People who think they are superior to others
Bullies
Gang Leaders
Micky Takers
People in denile
People who don't think others see through them
Bigots
Homophobia
Paedophiles
Despots
Dog mess

He"s right

DH thinks the US Democrats are about the same as our Tories

My post actually referred to the fact that right wing in Australia is nowhere near as far right as the republican/tea party right wing in America. However, I do agree that right and left politics, when extremes are added to both sides, can form a circle and meet in a repressive authoritarian middle.

In Australia and England, at least we don't have all that religiosity that seems to be dominating the far right of the USA.

Actually, that reminds me of Romney's VP candidate who loves the writings of Ayn Rand. Rand was an ultra right wing writer, probably the original 'greed is good' advocate who rejected all social services, help for the poor, and altruism based politics, taxation, and any constraints at all, on business. But he doesn't like Rand any more, he says, 'cos she was an atheist!

I mean, really, her atheism was the only acceptable part of her!! Oh, by the way, Rand ended her days on Social Security. I guess hypocrisy goes with the territory.

And, back to the thread question, the extreme right of politics makes me angry.

It is hardly necessary to state that extremism of any kind is wrong - it is like those surveys that ask 'Is too much.....bad for you?' The answer is in the question.
I am another disenfranchised voter - there seemed to be a glimmer of hope in 1997, soon extinguished, and then again with the resurgence of the LibDems. Now, a plague on all their houses, and my heartfelt sympathy for those MPs who are honest, hardworking and dedicated. Whatever their party allegiance, they must feel totally betrayed.

Bags done that more than once but I did rather more than cross each candidate, I made my feeling felt!

You can always cross every candidate (spoil the paper). That's counted as an abstention, but still a vote – a dissatisfied one!

bags you are right. left and right wing are both bad in their extremes. I find it hard to label myself with any political party in the UK as I agree with bits of all of them and disagree with bits of all of them! I have to think very hard at every election and would sometimes like the option to abstain.

Leap-frogging back to previous comments, I was thinking further on perceptions of right wing and left wing as regards political outlook, I find it fascinating that there is a recognised biological term for a similar thing that happens between apparently distinct species. The species affected are called ring species and we all know two gulls that belong to such a ring: herring gulls and lesser black-backed gulls.

I refer you to Richard Dawkins very clear explanation in The Ancestor's Tale (my copy's isbn is 0-75381-996-1), as part of The Salamander's Tale, pp308-320. The bit about the gulls is on p311.

Those who insist on distinguishing between right wing fascism and left wing fascism ("the obsession with discrete names") are suffering, in my view, from what Dawkins eloquently calls "the tyranny of the discontinuous mind".

I was googling life expectancy for African Americans (it is, of course, lower than that of white Americans) but I was interested to see that now I have reached 72 I can expect to carry on for another 20 years!

Yes, I know people are much worse in third-world countries, but America is ultra rich so the disparity is more obvious. I guess the lowest economic groups in some African and Asian countries do not have access to TV or internet, so possibly they are not as aware of how wide the gulf is between the richest and the poorest. I don't think telling poor Americans 'Some people are worse off than you' will be much comfort to them. And I believe it is still possible to die in the USA simply because you cannot afford appropriate treatment. That makes me angry.

Interesting isn't it Anno, how our (British) understanding of political 'right wing ' and 'left wing' ideals are perceived quite differently in other countries.

Ditto Annobel. We would meet in my house and send letters as Amnesty members, so found quite a bit of correspondence appeared to have been opened. Interesting that paranoia about left-wing sympathies was alive and kicking here, too!

Butty*, in the days when I was very active in Amnesty International, it always struck me that extreme right-wing regimes (at the time, Argentina and Chile) accused us of left-wing sympathies and Communist regimes such as China thought of us as right-wing.

Anagram isn"t that the title of a song ?

Yep, B - I've often though that if one goes far enough right, and far enough left, on the political 'swingometer', then the two ends will meet, with little, if any, light inbetween.

Average life expectancy in the States is still high by global standards, so in spite of not having a national health service (as we understand the term), their poor people are not doing too badly, it would seem. I'm not saying conditions for poor people in the US can't be or shouldn't be improved. I believe Obama is trying to address such things.

They probably don't think about it much - too busy staying alive!

I think you raise an interesting point Bags that 'poor in the US is not the same as poor in poorer countries'. It is undoubtedly true - but I do wonder how it must feel to be really poor in America; as a black person in the southern states for example, to have no healthcare and dreadful living conditions, all the time knowing that you live in the richest country in the world. I guess your personal experience is always just that - personal, but I'm sure the contrast with what others have must make it feel worse somehow.

Your third para is interesting, joan. I have thought for a while that there isn't much difference between the extremes at either end of the political ideological spectrum, even though how they get there may be very different. I think of it now as a circle. Either extreme leads to autocracy and dictatorship, often with military rulers, and masses of oppression of individuals' freedom.

"Good" Mormon women may well vote for Romney.

Greatnan I've been watching Romney and his even worse VP candidate with growing horror. They go beyond right-wing idealism and have reached fascism imho.

I will be utterly surprised if Romney wins though - I can't imagine any woman voting for them, nor any non-white immigrant, nor African American, nor anyone on a low wage or benefits.....

Thank goodness I live somewhere relatively civilised. True, we have a nasty right wing state government, but compared to Romney's mob, our lot are red flag-waving Marxists!!

Maybe not, but I bet they'd rather have an unfair democracy than an unfair autocracy. Poor in the US is not the same as poor in poorer countries.

But will the poor and elderly get the government they deserve?