Afghanistan: Malia & Sasha’s New Adopted Sibling
15 years ago
Monday, September 22, 2008
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Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is always a vice." - Thomas Paine, The Rights of Man, 1792
Welcome to the moderometer
We are a group of McGill University students taking Professor Gil Troy's History of Presidential Campaigning class. As an independent, volunteer project, we are going to be monitoring the two major party presidential nominees over the next two months, judging when they are appealing to the center, both tactically and substantively. We have developed a "moderometer" to chart where a particular tactic or statement stands on a scale from very red to very blue, with a purple middle, the ideal center. We acknowledge that this is subjective. We have a range of views among us and we are not assessing whether we agree with the particular tactic or statement or whether we think it is shrewd. Knowing the gravitational physics of American politics, and especially American campaigns, which pulls candidates to the extreme of left or right, we want to create a counter-force pushing toward the middle. We believe that a civil, reasonable, middle is necessary on certain issues, even as we acknowledge the advantage of healthy partisan disagreement in other realms. Feel free to plunge into the debate and feel free to disagree with us. If we all start wondering just what constitutes the center and civility - we will feel like we have made some small but necessary contribution to the campaign.
The Gauge
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