Do liberal and conservatives in America still share at least a few common beliefs? I would certainly hope that the following core beliefs are shared by the vast majority of American liberals and conservatives:
* Members of Congress, members of state legislatures, and governors should be elected by simple-majority vote by the people whom they are supposed to represent.
* Elected officials should obey the law until the law is changed.
* Elected officials should ensure that laws are enforced until they are changed.
* The national government should provide for the common defense to protect us from foreign attack and invasion.
* We always welcome immigrants, but immigrants should enter our country in a lawful and orderly manner, and the number of immigrants should be regulated so that we do not accept more immigrants than our economy can handle.
* People who have committed serious crimes in other nations should not be allowed to enter our country.
* People who belong to criminal gangs should be allowed to enter our country.
* If you are accused of a crime, you should have the right to a trial by a jury of your peers and should be provided with competent defense counsel if you cannot afford your own attorney.
* Laws should be enforced without regard to race, politics, religion, lifestyle, or gender.
* Business taxation and regulation should not be so severe that it harms businesses or makes it difficult to start a new business.
* National, state, and local government should ensure that our drinking water and air are safe, and that our lakes and rivers are not polluted.
* People should be free to express their opinions without fear of legal action, as long as they do not call for violence against others, do not advocate the violent overthrow of the government, and do not deliberately cause false panics (such as yelling "fire" in a theater when you know there is no fire).
* People should be free to practice their religion, or to practice no religion, without fear of legal action or persecution, as long as they do not call for violence against others and do not commit violence against others in the name of their religion.
* No one should be allowed to vandalize or damage another person's business facility or home or other property just because they do not like that person's religious or political views.
* A baby in the womb should be protected against elective abortion when he or she is medically viable (i.e., can survive outside the womb) and has all of his or her vital organs, brain waves, a heart beat, fingerprints, and a blood supply that is separate from the mother's.
* Businesses should be able to hire people based on merit, but no qualified applicant should be denied a job solely because of their politics, age, gender, religion, race, or lifestyle.
* A vibrant free press is vital to the health of any democratic country. The government should not be able to take any legal action against a journalist or a news outlet unless it can be proven, beyond a reasonable doubt, that they severely endangered national security, gravely harmed national security, collaborated with our enemies, or knowingly printed/broadcast libelous claims about a person or group.
* National, state, and local government should properly maintain our roads and highways.
* Citizens should be protected against unlawful searches and seizures, but law enforcement should be given reasonable latitude to do their job to keep us safe and to get criminals off the street.
* Our prisons should not be luxury hotels, but they should not be places of violence and abuse either. Inmates should be safe from attack or harassment from other inmates at all times. And inmates should be provided with opportunities to improve themselves through vocational training, high school courses, and college courses (some of which could be done online).
* If the national, state, or local government invokes eminent domain to take a person's property, the owner should be compensated at the market value of that property and only after a court of law has determined that the government has a compelling interest in taking ownership of that property.
* Parents should be free to educate their children as they see fit, whether it be through public school, private school, or home school. A state should be able to require that home-schooled children take some kind of recognized academic test for their age group, whether it be the state's standardized test or a credible third-party test (such as the Khan Academy's final exams for that grade).
These are the beliefs I can think of off the top of my head that 98% of Americans should accept. If you have others, please provide them.
* Members of Congress, members of state legislatures, and governors should be elected by simple-majority vote by the people whom they are supposed to represent.
* Elected officials should obey the law until the law is changed.
* Elected officials should ensure that laws are enforced until they are changed.
* The national government should provide for the common defense to protect us from foreign attack and invasion.
* We always welcome immigrants, but immigrants should enter our country in a lawful and orderly manner, and the number of immigrants should be regulated so that we do not accept more immigrants than our economy can handle.
* People who have committed serious crimes in other nations should not be allowed to enter our country.
* People who belong to criminal gangs should be allowed to enter our country.
* If you are accused of a crime, you should have the right to a trial by a jury of your peers and should be provided with competent defense counsel if you cannot afford your own attorney.
* Laws should be enforced without regard to race, politics, religion, lifestyle, or gender.
* Business taxation and regulation should not be so severe that it harms businesses or makes it difficult to start a new business.
* National, state, and local government should ensure that our drinking water and air are safe, and that our lakes and rivers are not polluted.
* People should be free to express their opinions without fear of legal action, as long as they do not call for violence against others, do not advocate the violent overthrow of the government, and do not deliberately cause false panics (such as yelling "fire" in a theater when you know there is no fire).
* People should be free to practice their religion, or to practice no religion, without fear of legal action or persecution, as long as they do not call for violence against others and do not commit violence against others in the name of their religion.
* No one should be allowed to vandalize or damage another person's business facility or home or other property just because they do not like that person's religious or political views.
* A baby in the womb should be protected against elective abortion when he or she is medically viable (i.e., can survive outside the womb) and has all of his or her vital organs, brain waves, a heart beat, fingerprints, and a blood supply that is separate from the mother's.
* Businesses should be able to hire people based on merit, but no qualified applicant should be denied a job solely because of their politics, age, gender, religion, race, or lifestyle.
* A vibrant free press is vital to the health of any democratic country. The government should not be able to take any legal action against a journalist or a news outlet unless it can be proven, beyond a reasonable doubt, that they severely endangered national security, gravely harmed national security, collaborated with our enemies, or knowingly printed/broadcast libelous claims about a person or group.
* National, state, and local government should properly maintain our roads and highways.
* Citizens should be protected against unlawful searches and seizures, but law enforcement should be given reasonable latitude to do their job to keep us safe and to get criminals off the street.
* Our prisons should not be luxury hotels, but they should not be places of violence and abuse either. Inmates should be safe from attack or harassment from other inmates at all times. And inmates should be provided with opportunities to improve themselves through vocational training, high school courses, and college courses (some of which could be done online).
* If the national, state, or local government invokes eminent domain to take a person's property, the owner should be compensated at the market value of that property and only after a court of law has determined that the government has a compelling interest in taking ownership of that property.
* Parents should be free to educate their children as they see fit, whether it be through public school, private school, or home school. A state should be able to require that home-schooled children take some kind of recognized academic test for their age group, whether it be the state's standardized test or a credible third-party test (such as the Khan Academy's final exams for that grade).
These are the beliefs I can think of off the top of my head that 98% of Americans should accept. If you have others, please provide them.
