In the Conservativism vs. Liberalism "Hatfields and McCoy" war, I like to consider myself somewhere on the sidelines, though behavior at the fringes tends to irritate me.  The political spectrum is an overly-simplistic measure of the true attitudes and beliefs of people, but it seems to have its utility perhaps in more ways than recognized.

Although I consider myself a liberal thinker, at least in the definition the term's founders originated, I am certainly not a political Liberal.  I find I don't seem to have the qualifications for it. 

As I see it, a spectrum parallel to the political one is more telling of the human nature behind political spectrum warmongering - at least in one dimension: herding behavior. 

It is easy to engage in unilateral thinking (especially in the spirit of ad hominem, which typical invokes incredulity in me), by standing on the right and throwing my spear of accusation at the left.  But I'm not necessarily standing on the right.  Regardless, calling the political Left a herd is certain to put me in the war theater.

Now this is where semantics behind the term "liberal" gets tricky.  A true liberal thinker will not let traditional beliefs and religion stop them from solving problems.  For instance, a true liberal can believe in God and have a developing sense of spirituality, while also believing human kind should become better stewards of the planet.  They just cannot dismiss this aspect of the Green movement under the religious belief that God made us masters of the planet so there is nothing wrong with doing whatever we please with it.

Being a liberal thinker means you can think outside the box - period. That means thinking outside both the politically Conservative and Liberal boxes.

(It is noteworthy to mention this does not mean necessarily acting outside the box or throwing values and morals to the wind for the sake of liberal thinking. Responsibility, maturity and sensibility should go with all thinking and acting - whether liberal or not.)

A true liberal thinker will revere and value all life - whether that life is a Liberal or a Conservative, born or unborn.  Thus, they will not support abortion, or hate others simply because they don't herd on their side of the fence.  Moreover, a true liberal thinker can think outside the box to realize sometimes violence has to be met with violence in order to stop the violence. 

Applying stock attitudes or jumping on bandwagons only known by their catchphrases is certainly not being a liberal thinker - especially if without regard for context or circumstance. (In my opinion.)

More and more it is hard for me to avoid thinking that as you travel Left, people herd for the sake of herding with others - then spend the rest of their energy rationalizing and justifying their herding behavior.  What defines where the herd goes? Public speakers, which typically reach the masses through the mainstream media.

It is important to understand the lure.  The main opportunities human "herding" offers are belonging (psychological safety) and (social) power. 

Indeed, we all tend to think in terms of who we associate with, and so we usually seek out those who are like us. There are differences however, sometimes subtle, to how this tendency plays out. Herding is just one manifestation. Those who tend to "herd" are not comfortable around those who do not. Those who do not herd for the sake of herding are irritated by the "herding behavior" of those that do.

There will be more about this as I have time to bring research to this blog, but the main message I have is that it seems to me Conservatives tend more to "herd" to their belief system, while those on the Left tend more to herd to others for the sake of herding.  This also comes with a higher lability on the Left than on the Right, which may explain why the left side of the spectrum is so long.